Amazon.com: Customer reviews: The Seven Dials Mystery

Top positive review

I was Bamboozled and I liked it

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 5, 2022

I was bamboozled. The bad guy took me COMPLETELY by surprise. I plan on rereading to see how I missed the clues.
Superintendent Battle is in this book more than the first one but again don't understand how he gets top billing over Lady Bundle.
I am a little sad that our Lady Bundle never was as popular as Poirot or Maple. She is interesting and bold.
I like it enough that I plan to reread it and watch its movie.

One person found this helpful

Top critical review

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illiandantic

Scooby Dooby Doo

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 15, 2014

At the start of my version of Agatha Christie's "The Seven Dials Mystery," there's an Introduction that talks about how Christie wrote this book as a farce that makes fun of the thriller/mystery genre of the time. I suppose what that Introduction is saying is true. But, it really doesn't help me accept the book. Yes, Christie is sticking her tongue out at the genre with this book. But, reading it feels like watching a Scooby Doo cartoon complete with meddling kids (well, I'm guessing they're actually in their mid- to late-20s -- but their behavior is certainly childish). The humorous aspect of a farce is almost entirely absent and is overridden with the ridiculous aspect. The utter stupidity of the protagonists and the things they do is just unacceptable. Many were the times that I was sorely tempted to put the book down incomplete. But, I persevered and got through the twist ending that made what had just happened make sense. Still, that ending doesn't counteract the ridiculousness of the earlier 98% of the book. Plus, the ending Christie provides is of a type without evidence. It's merely someone in the know explaining what "really" happened. The "answer" to the mystery could just as validly be one of several obvious alternatives that we go through in our own minds on the way to the end (very much like the alternative endings to the "Clue" movie). There's no process of discovery that we go through so we can make an attempt to figure things out on our own. Instead, we're just provided with an answer. I think my biggest complaint, though, is that in order to preserve her surprise, Christie puts us in the heads of several characters but, essentially, lies to us about what we find while we're in there. Because of this, I can only rate the book at an OK 3 stars out of 5.

The books in the "Superintendent Battle" series are:

1. The Secret of Chimneys (Agatha Christie Mysteries Collection)
2. The Seven Dials Mystery (Agatha Christie Mysteries Collection)
3. Cards on the Table: Hercule Poirot Investigates (Hercule Poirot Mysteries)
4. Murder Is Easy
5. Towards Zero

9 people found this helpful

2,614 total ratings, 242 with reviews

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From the United States

Kindle Customer

I was Bamboozled and I liked it

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 5, 2022

Verified Purchase

One person found this helpful

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illiandantic

Scooby Dooby Doo

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 15, 2014

Verified Purchase

9 people found this helpful

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SeAmRe

Always love an Agatha Christie Novel

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on November 15, 2022

Verified Purchase

I have read most of her books over the last 44 years but don't recall reading the Inspector Battle series. I am thoroughly enjoying the series.

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JSchenck

A very satisfying mystery

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 12, 2022

Verified Purchase

This was a book I'd never read previously so I was hooked Dom the start. I loved Bundle's fiery spirit and liked that most of the story is told through her point of view. That makes the ending so appropriate.

One person found this helpful

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Observer

The most fun AC mystery I've read!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 30, 2022

Verified Purchase

The plot has some holes, but they are easy to overlook b/c of the subtle tongue-in-cheek parody of the mystery/espionage genre. Also, it is fun that most of the young men are portrayed as upper class boobs of the Boris Johnson variety.

2 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Seven Dials-Mixup/Murder

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 29, 2022

Verified Purchase

Again a good read, who's #7? What's the Seven Dials? Bundle gets into a secret meeting, but what is the secret? Why did Wade die? Answer to these questions may surprise you as you read.

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Joann Kay

Very Good

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 30, 2021

Verified Purchase

I really enjoyed this Christie mystery. I loved Bundle, her father and Bill. It was entertaining and had a lot of humor.

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TCru

but Superintendent Battle provides a nice balance of adult common sense

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 27, 2016

Verified Purchase

Agatha Christie's "voice" is ironic and provides an interesting view of the (sometimes exceedingly tedious) upper classes with which she was so familiar. Her usual plucky female lead character ("Bundle") is present, as are several suitable young "asses," (her word for them, and I agree), but Superintendent Battle provides a nice balance of adult common sense. Lord Caterham is a riot and a fun character to follow. Class and race prejudices are now politically incorrect, but Dame Christie had no qualms about expressing her views. If the final exposition is a bit too long, that was the style of her mysteries and a bit of a let down at the end.

3 people found this helpful

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Joyce

Wonderful Mystery!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on March 12, 2014

Verified Purchase

Most of Agatha Christie's stories have been made into movies or t.v. episodes so we think we know all about them, but that isn't true! Reading the original story is so much better! She reveals so much more about her characters than can be shown on film, and some of her characters are cut out of the story altogether on film! So reading her original work is a real joy and because she writes such a carefully constructed mystery story it gives me a deeper appreciation for her work. I recommend reading her stories in chronological order (whatever series you choose to start with) so that you don't miss any references her characters make to previous interactions with other characters. It just adds to the enjoyment when you feel you have grown to know the characters. This book is the 2nd book of the Superintendent Battle series.

10 people found this helpful

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Geri Mitchell

Who needs Miss Marple?

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 12, 2013

Verified Purchase

Who needs Miss Marple when you have Eileen Caterham (Bundle)! Bundle and her friends try to find out who killed their friend Gerald Wade and why? then another friend is shot. It seems the Seven Dials Society is behind it, they always seem ahead of our plucky heroine. Can Bundle, with her friends and the police in the form of Superintendent Battle finally figure it out. Between deaths, romantic interests, even a proposal from stuffy George Lomax for Bundle, the ending is reached and the identity of the Seven Dials Society is revealed, what a trick! Once again Agatha Christie has fooled us all! Yet when you look at it again the clues are all there unfortunately we do not have the skill of our author.

4 people found this helpful

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5 star		58%
4 star		26%
3 star		11%
2 star		2%
1 star		2%

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