FIRST, THE MATERIALS

Books:

I initially wanted to purchase the book on the right because it matches the Poirot books I’ve been collecting, unfortunately, that book isn’t available brand new anymore. So, I had to go with the one on the left. It makes me realize how difficult it can be to collect a set of books that all look the same, especially if you decide to begin the collection many years after their initial release. Let this be a lesson to you if you’re like me, because now I’m going to try and get all of the Miss Marple Mystery books that look like the one on the left and I hope I’m able to do it:

Adaptations:

I had no idea until I did a search in IMDb that A Caribbean Mystery has 3 adaptations! I’m fascinated to read the book first and then watch all 3 and, as I always do, compare them to each other and then to the book. Unfortunately, I’ve only been able to find the Julia McKenzie version via Acorn TV or BritBox. I’m hopeful that I’ll find the Joan Hickson version there as well. As for the Helen Hayes movie, I will need to rent it in order to watch it:

• 1983 - Helen Hayes

• 1989 - Joan Hickson

• 2014 - Julia McKenzie

Audio Book:

There are two options I found for the audiobook of A Caribbean Mystery. And since Joan Hickson adapted it as Miss Marple, I thought it would be the best option to go with that. Unfortunately, the cover shown below is NOT the one where Joan Hickson is the narrator. The cover shown below is narrated by Emilia Fox. I could not find a good enough image of the audiobook version with Joan Hickson.

As always, I recommend using the free app, Hoopla or Libby to get access to the audiobook without paying for it.

Narrated by: Joan Hickson
Listening Time: 6 hours (approx.)

SECOND, THE SCHEDULE

April 1 - April 7

• The Book + Audiobook: Chapters 1 to 8

• The Short Story: Have You Got Everything You Want? (week of April 6th)

April 8 - April 14

• The Book + Audiobook: Chapters 9 to 16

• The Short Story: The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan (week of April 13th)

April 15 - April 21

• The Book + Audiobook: Chapters 17 to 26

• The Short Story: Ingots of Gold (week of April 20th)

April 22 - April 26

• The Adaptations:

  • 1983 - Helen Hayes

  • 1989 - Joan Hickson

  • 2014 - Julia McKenzie

• The Short Story: The Soul of the Croupier (week of April 27th)

THIRD, THE LIVE DISCUSSION

Mark your calendars for our next Live on Thursday, April 30th where I discuss everything with of Only Murders In The Inbox!

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FIRST, THE MATERIALS

Books:

There are several editions and versions to choose from with Murder on the Orient Express. Just Google it and you’ll not fall short of options and places to buy yourself a copy, if you haven’t got one already. I’ve got a regular version of the book, a special edition, and the graphic novel. For this read through these are the two I’ll be reading:

Adaptations:

If you didn’t know already, there are actually 4 adaptations of Murder on the Orient Express. And because I’m a nutter, I’m going to watch all 4. Some will require a subscription to watch. I’m listing them here in order of release date and who portrays Hercule Poirot:

• Albert Finney (1974) 2hr 10min | PlutoTV → Click here to watch FREE (w/commercials)

• Alfred Molina (2001) 90min | YouTube → Click here to watch FREE

• David Suchet (2010) 90min | Acorn TV/BritBox (Subscription) or Amazon Prime Rent ($4.99) → Click here for iMDb page

• Kenneth Branagh (2017) 2hrs | Amazon Prime Rent ($3.99)

Audio Book:

It occurred to me that you could, potentially, listen to the audio book for free. A service I like to use is Libby. It is dependent upon your local library, as you need a library card in order to open an account through the app. And your library would need to have Agatha Christie books on hand to loan. My local library used to but they have since removed all Agatha Christie books from their audio library which was a bummer. BUT as I live in Upstate NY I am able to access the NYC library which has almost everything! And here comes another, however, though! The wait times can be long for when the copy to rent becomes available.

All this to say, if you have a library card and have not availed yourself of the Libby app, please do so! Hoopla is another option though I find it doesn’t have quite the library as Libby does. And if your library has a copy, reserve it! Some places will have 14 day or 21 day loans.

Doing a quick search now on my Libby app I can see that the NYPL has 2 of 27 copies available and my local library has 2 of 3 available! Snatching one up now!

Keep in mind that there are limits to how many audio book loans you can have out at one time as well. I currently have reached my max with this one!

Narrated by: Dan Stevens
Listening Time: 7 hours (approx.)

If you’ve got the cash or you have access to Audible, there is a version narrated by Kenneth Branagh which might not be half bad.

Video Game:

This is available on Nintendo Switch, my console of choice. It’s currently $39.99 with a DEMO available. I think I will play the DEMO and if I like it then I might shell out the rest.

SECOND, THE SCHEDULE

February 27 - March 7 (9 Days)

• The Books: Chapters 1 to 10 [Part One]

• The Adaptations: Albert Finney (1974) 2hr 10min [Monday, March 2nd]

• The Short Story: The Herb of Death (week of March 1)

March 8 - March 14 (7 Days)

• The Books: Chapters 11 to 17 [Part Two]

• The Adaptations: Alfred Molina (2001) 90min [Monday, March 9th]

• The Short Story: How Does Your Garden Grow? (week of March 8)

March 15 - March 21 (7 Days)

• The Books: Chapters 18 to 24 [Part Two]

• The Adaptations: David Suchet (2010) 90min [Monday, March 16th]

• The Short Story: Swan Song (week of March 15)

March 22 - March 26 (5 Days)

• The Books: Chapters 25 to 32 [Part Three]

• The Adaptations: Kenneth Branagh (2017) 2hrs [Monday, March 23rd]

• The Short Story: Miss Marple Tells a Story (week of March 22)

THIRD, THE DISCUSSION

As a tester, I want to try and utilize the feature of Substack Chat to have a discussion about the book (and graphic novel) as I read through them both simultaneously by sharing my progress each week. I think I will post on the Ink After Dark Chat on the 7th, 14th, & 21st with my full review released on the weekend of the 28th.

Also, feel free to follow me on Substack Notes where I hope to share my daily progress with all that I’m reading. It’s great for accountability, if nothing else.

A small goal of mine is to try and catalog (and incorporate) my journey on Instagram and get back to that. Perhaps March will be the month for new beginnings?

Then mark your calendars for our longest Live yet on Friday, March 27th to discuss everything with of Only Murders In The Inbox!

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My plan is to read the stories …

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The Agatha Christie Ltd. estate has been running a year long reading book club of her work for years now and I’ve been following it but never participating. This is the first year I’ve decided to give it a try and I’m really excited about it! Maybe you’ll join me?

Here is the list of books on the docket to read each month in 2026.

I’ll be tracking my progress on both Goodreads and StoryGraph as I’m hoping to also use this year to determine which book tracker app I’d like to use moving forward. I’ve used Goodreads for decades now but I’ve heard some good things about the new StoryGraph. And I feel the best way to determine if something is worth using (and sticking with) is to just try it.

You can follow me by clicking on either link: Goodreads Profile or StoryGraph Profile

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I.

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A colo…

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“Poirot, you old villain,” I said, “I’ve half a mind to strangle you! What do you mean by deceiving me as you have done?”

We w…

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The trial of John Cavendish for the murder of his stepmother took place two months later.

Of the intervening weeks I will say …

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