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Bow to the queen of crime

Tea. Sarcasm. Downtown Abbey. Benedict Cumberbatch. Harry Potter. The accents.

That’s only the beginning of my list of everything I love about the British. It’s a long list.

At the top of that list is a book from 1939 called “And Then There Were None,” by Agatha Christie. As any Sherlock fan will tell you, the British know how to write a good mystery.  “And Then There Were None” is her masterpiece, the best-selling mystery of all time. So while it is an oldie, it is definitely a goodie, and a book that I recommend-for when a book is old enough, there is a whole new generation that will find the story quite new.

Here’s the premise. Ten people arrive at an isolated island, all lured there under false pretenses and all with secrets to hide. One by one, they are murdered, until the island is left empty. Given the fact every possible suspect is dead, there’s a twist on the classic question, “Who did it?”

Christie isn’t the most stylistically impressive author I’ve ever read, but she is diabolical with her plot. Before “Inception” or “The Matrix,” there was this book.

Christie shifts between perspectives, and the constantly changing dynamic keeps the suspense and tension high. The creepiness factor is also exponentially increased because the murders follow the pattern of a morbid nursery rhyme, “Ten Little Indians.” Every time someone dies, a little wooden Indian figure disappears from the dinner table.

Unlike some modern-day crime shows, this is not a book where you can guess the killer’s identity fifteen minutes in.

Every time I thought I knew who it was, that character died,  and was proved innocent too late. In retrospect, I realize that Christie drops enough clues to give the attentive reader a fighting chance at solving the mystery. To be honest, I took the other option and just waited for the  epilogue to explain it.

So anyone with an appreciation for the British or plot twists or suspense (i.e. anyone with a soul) should go read this book.

And if you want the full British experience, I recommend reading it in rainy weather, with a strong cup of tea and a good scone.

 

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About the Contributor
Megan Root, News Editor
Megan Root ’15, never stops running, whether it is on the soccer field or chasing a story. She began her Inklings career her second half of junior year as a staff writer and has recently transitioned into a position as a news editor. Before Inklings she was an avid reader of the New York Times who loved politics and education. To Root, one of the main attractions of the paper was it gave her the opportunity to discover more about her school and community. “It gives you cover, you are not just a random person asking questions you are a reporter asking questions.” To Root the interview is the key to the story. After every interview she writes down all of the interesting quotes and pieces of information she took away. It is from this information that she tries to find the story. One piece she wrote that she believes best showcases her ability to do this is Genders split over weight-training. Although the story was originally supposed to be about how some teams were getting more time in the weight room than others, she discovered that the boys’ teams just wanted more time in the weight whereas the girls teams did not. Root has some personal experience with sports, as a varsity athlete and senior captain of the girls varsity soccer team at Staples. She says when she was about three years old her older brother, who also played soccer, started to teach her. And she was marked for success right from the start, “My first game...nobody else really knew how to play, so I had this really unfair advantage, and I scored twelve goals my first game.” She continued that success through high school, making the varsity team her freshman year and becoming captain her junior year.