Fan of Murder on the Orient Express? Check out this Death On the Nile SPOILER FREE REVIEW by Meilun

Post written by: Meilun

" Do not allow evil in your heart, as it will make a home there"- Agatha Christie, Death on The Nile

How do I even start with reviewing this book. It was MINDBLOWINGLY GOOD. I was obsessed with Murder on the Orient Express, and thought that there would not be another murder mystery book to get even close that level of amazingness. Well boy was I WRONG. The plot, the characters, the ending, and the murder, was just as good as Murder on the Orient Express, but the author did not recycle ANY of the plot lines from Orient Express. Which is very astonishing as many authors who write different books from the same genre tend to recycle a lot of plot/characters/cliches. Agatha Christie DELIVERED this time, she did not let me down. Now let's get into the details of why I am crazy about this book. *SPOILER FREE*

Characters:

Unlike many other crime/murder books, Christie spends a lot of time exploring the story of each character. Main as well as side characters got a few chapters dedicated to explaining their motives, lives, morals, values and backgrounds. I LOVE this way of writing, as instead of choosing to dive right into the plot, Agatha introduces the characters thoroughly first. That way, I could relate to them more, and their reaction/involvement in the plot made more sense. This is definitely not a trashy murder mystery book that you would read for pure thrill.

The main characters are very complex and not at all two dimensional and flat. On the surface, all appears to be known about them, but once the story continues, you realize that everything you know about them is a facade. If you are like me and adore characters with conflicting values and morals, then you would love this book. The antagonist, though undoubtedly morally unsound ( you know, 'cause they murder people) is actually very trapped by their own loyalty (which is a good quality ). And the protagonist, though appearing to been kind, falls prey to her own selfishness. As well, all of the other supporting characters in the book have their own mundane troubles weighing against their conscience, which makes them morally grey and human. ( Her characters are very relatable).

Plot:

This book definitely has a slow burn plot. At first, Christie writes about the backgrounds of the characters and their backstories. It can be a bit confusing with a bunch of people getting introduced at once, and it seems like that there is no plot. But trust me, it's just one of those books that once you get past the beginning, the plot will start to speed up. And speed up it does! Once the plot starts going, you cannot put the book down. It's a twisty and winding run down the hill from there, leading to an explosive and shocking ending. The ending of the book has everything a good murder mystery book should have. It's mind blowing, emotional, heartfelt and gets you thinking. If you think the plot is slow moving at first, STICK AROUND FOR THE ENDING. It's worth it I promise.

Overall Review:

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Recommendation age: 13+

Pros: deep characters, overall good plot, excellent world building, amazing ending

Cons: plot is slow at first, beginning is a bit confusing

Should your read it: Hell yes!

Trigger warning: talks about affairs and cheating, murder, descriptive murder scene, mild gore, death, shootings, has mild foul language, talks about suicide, talks about greed

P.S ITS GETTING TURNED INTO A MOVIE! So if you liked the Murder on the Orient Express movie, then you should definitely read this book and watch the movie.

Links to books that were mentioned:

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie