Read Christie 2025

Characters & Careers

#readchristie2025 is here and this year's theme is Characters & Careers. Various professionals pop up across Christie's books, so this reading challenge will be a fun opportunity to explore them all.

Agatha Christie Ltd. will post its first article in January. Sign up for the official Agatha Christie Ltd. newsletter to participate in this year's challenge (and receive the above stunning postcard)

I'll be sharing my thoughts on each month's read here.

Agatha Christie Ltd | Official Newsletter

Month	Theme	Official Pick
January	Artists	Five Little Pigs
February	Authors	The 13 Problems
March	Performers	Three Act Tragedy
April	Butlers	The Seven Dials Mystery
May	Detectives	Cards on the Table
June	Amateurs	Crooked House
July	Archaeologists	Come, Tell Me How You Live
August	Medics	One, Two Buckle My Shoe
September	Religious Figures	At Bertram's Hotel
October	Lawyers	Towards Zero
November	Spies	Cat Among the Pigeons
December	Military Men	N or M (or) The Sittaford Mystery

Let's get started!

January - Five Little Pigs

Theme: Artists

Alternative Reads: The Hollow, Unfinished Portrait, Third Girl

What a book to kick off the reading challenge! I remember buying this book after I finished reading The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. I wasn't much of a reader before reading Christie's books. I think her writing style is appealing because it's accessible to everyone. Within the first few chapters, you are already hooked on a story. There is the occasional slow-paced Christie novel, but usually, her work is concise. With Five Little Pigs, the reader has an opportunity to properly immerse themselves in the mystery. You are given various accounts, much like witness statements. It's then up to you and Hercule Poirot to unravel the mystery. In many ways, you are in the same boat as our famous Belgian detective. You are tasked with solving a murder 16 years after it occurred. All you have are the few witness accounts of those who knew the victim: renowned artist Amyas Crale.

I had little to no sympathy for the victim. The only thing the characters could agree on was his obsession with his art. The only way you can understand a crime is to understand the character of the victim. I believe Christie illustrated this brilliantly in Five Little Pigs.

Synopsis:

Caroline Crale was tried and convicted for the murder of her husband, Amyas Crale. 16 years later, their surviving daughter is convinced her mother was never guilty. Hercule Poirot is tasked with finding the real murderer, even with all the evidence stacked high against Caroline.

You can find some of my favourite Hercule Poirot mysteries on my Bookshop Page.

February - The Tuesday Club Murders

Theme: Authors

Alternative Reads: Third Girl, Dead Man's Folly, Cards on the Table, The Pale Horse, Mrs McGinty's Dead, Elephants Can Remember, and Hallowe'en Party

Originally published as The Thirteen Problems, this book introduces readers to Jane Marple's brilliant mind through thirteen unique, puzzling mysteries. When it was first published in the United States in 1933, the title changed to The Tuesday Club Murders. I've never been 100% certain why book titles change when published in other countries, so I thought this month would be a great opportunity to read this edition.

Although we love Hercule Poirot's flamboyant, enthusiastic energy, there is something very special about Miss Marple. Her quiet, reserved energy is deliberate. She is an observer of people. Although she lives in a quiet village, she understands better than most how dark human nature can be. It's a rare insight that many people lack and can, unfortunately, lead to their demise. Miss Marple is similar in the sense that she does utilise her 'little grey cells', but in a subtle manner. Although human nature is dark, it is predictable, allowing Miss Marple to use her own life experiences to crack the toughest of cases.

These short stories are wonderful to escape in. I love how all the characters take Miss Marple's frail, mundane appearance for granted. I've said it many times before, and I will say it again. Miss Marple is a great literary example of why you should judge someone at face value.

Synopsis

The author, Raymond West, decides to share a puzzling mystery with his guests. In turn, a fun little game unfolds where each guest shares a problem, and the others must try to find the solution. Through this collection of short stories, you can enjoy the wit and extraordinary mind of Jane Marple.

Christie On Stage - Murder on the Orient Express

This February, I was fortunate enough to see the stage adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express, directed by Lucy Bailey. I saw the stage adaptation of And Then There Were None last year, which was also directed by Bailey, and adored it. I knew I would be in for a treat with this one. I was a curious how they would go about transforming this iconic novel for the stage. After all, there are an extensive range of characters set on a train, and that can be tricky to bring to life on stage with the same energy of the book. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I thought the set design in particular was really creative. Everything from the set, to the actors was simply brilliant. There were a few slight alterations/adjustments from the book, but I feel since this was being adapted for the stage, those changes were necessary. The overall atmosphere was not lost, and I loved seeing one of my favourite Christie novels on stage.

Murder on the Orient Express | Tour Dates

Murder on the Orient Express | The Show

Trailer attached was produced by the Murder on the Orient Express Theatre Adaptation

March - Three Act Tragedy

Theme: Performers

Alternative Picks: Lord Edgware Dies, The Body in the Library, Giant's Bread, The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side.

The theme for this month are performers, and in the case for this book, this is key to solving the mystery. You can understand in this book why many people find Hercule Poirot a bit frustrating. Where he is usually concise and methodical, he was deliberately evasive. I'm not surprised why many of his companions found him a bit tiresome. Unfortunately, the one character I really didn't like was Egg. She came across as really naïve, and she just kept getting on my nerves throughout the story.

The overall solution to this mystery is very clever. Although I had read this book once before, it was so long ago, that this time around it felt like reading it anew. Out of the list of alternative reads for this month, The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side is one of my favourites. However, I read that one fairly recently in last year's reading challenge, so I needed to freshen it up bit. This is a fairly puzzling mystery, that will have you stumped until the final reveal.