The Seven Dials Mystery By Agatha Christie

Apologies for the long delay between postings. I have broken my ankle. All the wailing, moaning and gnashing of teeth which go with a broken limb has eaten into my reading time.

In The Seven Dials Mystery we return to Chimneys where Lord Caterham and his daughter, Lady Eileen "Bundle" are still on good form. Bundle is a game gal, and up for adventure, and Lord Caterham will do anything for a quiet life.

Bundle becomes caught up in the mystery of Gerry Wade's death, a young man who dies in his sleep and is found with seven alarm clocks in his room. Superintendent Battle also returns to investigate the crime. Along with her friends, Bill, Jimmy and Loraine she tries to discover the mystery of the Seven Dials and bring Gerry's murderer to justice. 

The plot is simply daft, there's no getting away from it. Christie does not do international intrigue and global super villains very well. The guilty parties are blatantly obvious from the start, and the "bright young things" are as daft as brushes. So, as a mystery it's a rather lame, but it is worth reading to see the conversations between Bundle and her father which are sharp and witty. It's also worth taking note of one aspect of the "reveal" at the end, Christie will use the same plot mechanism in a later book, to much, much better effect.