Paris, 1928: Agatha Christie and fellow writer Dorothy L Sayers board the Orient Express, bound for Constantinople. Christie in particular is looking forward to a break from recent dispiriting events in
both her work and private life – the finalisation of her divorce from her philanderous husband Archie, and the miserly reception of her latest book.
But before the duo can settle in to enjoy the luxuries of their first-class journey, their journey is derailed when a fellow guest drops dead during the dinner service. And as the last person to speak to
the victim, Dorothy finds herself a prime suspect in his murder.
As the train hurtles East, Sayers’ resourceful assistant Eliza and her friend Theo must navigate a maze of suspects. But with each passing mile, the stakes rise, and when another body is discovered, their search to find the killer before they reach their destination becomes increasingly complicated.
Can Eliza and Theo stay one step ahead, crack the mystery and clear Dorothy’s name? Or will this be one journey too far for the amateur sleuths?
Kelly Oliver is the award-winning, bestselling author of three mysteries series: The Jessica James Mysteries, The Pet Detective Mysteries, and the historical cozies The Fiona Figg Mysteries, set in
WW1. She is also the Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University and lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Facebook: @KellyOliverAuthor
Twitter: @KellyOliverBook
Instagram: @kellyoliverbooks
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My thoughts: Would I willingly get on the Orient Express with Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers having already been involved in a murder case with them? Not sure, but Eliza does. And a fellow traveller, an old flame of Sayers’, promptly drops dead in the dining car.
Eliza knows her employer didn’t kill him, but somebody did, and far from the heart attack others suspect, she thinks it’s poison. Christie of course was a pharmacist and knew all about poison, but has no connection to the deceased, so Eliza rules her out. But the man’s wife ate from the same plate, so how, if it poison, did she survive?
Digging into the man’s life and secrets, Eliza and Theo (working on the train as a waiter/general dogsbody alongside a very young future George Orwell) must solve the case before anyone else is killed or disappears. With a train full of suspects, a mysterious inspector, and no official authority to investigate, what could go wrong?
Clever, full of little literary references, twists and with a canine sidekick, courtesy of Eliza’s beagle Queenie, as well as an espionage angle when MI5 operative (and Eliza’s sister) Jane joins them, there’s plenty for the duo to dig into here. Very enjoyable.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 