Vassals of Kingsgrave

The fabulously wealthy Aristide Leonides is murdered and suspicion immediately falls on his much younger second wife who could be having a flirtation with the grand-children’s tutor. But Aristide’s children and grandchildren also stood to benefit from his death in different ways. Aristide’s favourite granddaughter Sophia asks her fiancé to investigate….

Bina, Pat and Hannah disagree about the merits of this critically acclaimed standalone detective story originally published in 1949.

Spoiler-free to 48m; spoiler-filled thereafter.

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Bina007, Julia (No True Lady) and Steph (GSDG) discuss this year’s Oscar nominated movies.

Oppenheimer (1m); Poor Things (8m30s); Killers of the Flower Moon (24m10s); Barbie (30m10s); Maestro (37m40s); The Holdovers (40m5s); American Fiction (43m10s); Anatomy of a Fall (45m); The Zone of Interest (48m50s); Napoleon (51m10s); Past Lives (52m); Society of the Snow, Nyad, The Creator, MI Dead Reckoning Part One, Rustin, El Conde, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, May December and The Boy and The Heron (54m).

Picture credit: The Hollywood Reporter.

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When Gordon Cloade is killed in the Blitz his young wife inherits his fortune, much to the chagrin of his parasitical family. Poirot is called in to investigate whether the marriage was bigamous. 

Bina and Pat love the social history and intricate plotting of this Hercules Poirot mystery right up until the epilogue where their favourite character makes a handbrake turn.

Spoiler-free to 46m; spoiler-filled thereafter.

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Bina and Pat disagree as to the merits of fan favourite Hercule Poirot “mystery” The Hollow. Celebrated doctor John Christow is found shot by a swimming pool. His wife Gerda is holding a smoking gun but the last word he utters is his mistress’ name. Is the solution to this murder as simple as it seems, or a confounding mystery?

Spoiler-free section: first impressions and introduction; social change and historic context (5m40s); characters (16m10s); how the novel holds up to modern readers (48m); adaptations (1hr1m); spoiler-filled discussion of the ending (1hr6m); brief discussion of the new BBC Murder Is Easy (1hr23m30s).

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Bina and Pat discuss the last Colonel Race novel, Sparkling Cyanide, with side conversations about domestic science and The Crown. A year ago, beautiful young, and fabulously rich Rosemary Barton committed suicide at a restaurant surrounded by her dearest family and friends. A year later, her devastated husband recreates the scene, hoping to smoke out the person he now suspects of murder. Will anyone crack?

Spoiler-free to 1hr5m and spoiler-filled for this novel thereafter.

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Bina and Pat discuss the last Superintendent Battle novel, Toward Zero, which is typically admired by Christie aficionados. An old wealthy lady is found bludgeoned to death in her cliff-top home. As a result, questions are asked about the apparently accidental recent death of her close friend and lawyer. And how does all this relate to a schoolgirl falsely accused of a crime, and an attempted suicide?

Spoiler-free to 37m and spoiler-filled thereafter.

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Bina and Pat discuss the sublime Hercule Poirot cold-case murder mystery set in a gorgeous English country house. Fashionable portrait painter Amyas Crale is poisoned and his wife is convicted of the crime. Decades later, Poirot interviews those present at the invitation of their daughter to see if she really did it.

Spoiler-free to 59m and spoiler-filled thereafter.

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