Cat Among the Pigeons

By Agatha Christie (1959)

I have incredibly mixed feelings about this book. Mostly because I was compelled to like it due to my fondness for anything set at a boarding school (I grew up reading Harry Potter, Mallory Towers and St. Clare’s), however, it felt slightly clunky.

Set at the prestigious Meadowbank’s School for Girls, we enter summer term with the rest of the girls and teachers. The chaos and potential of the first day of a new term allows fro Christie to set up various strings of the plot: Mrs Bulstrode, the perfect headmistress, is on the brink of retirement, and is seeking her replacement; Princess Shaista, a new student, arrives from a fictional Middle Eastern country on the brink of revolution; and finally, Mrs Upjohn, a member of the British Intelligence community, is interviewed by Mrs Bulstrode, before departing for a vacation, where she cannot be reached.

All of this compiles into an intriguing concept, and makes for a charming and humorous read so far - but this is where things get sticky. Christie brings in an additional element - she takes us back a few months to the fictional country of Ramat (where Princess Shaista hails from), and delves into a sub-plot of revolution which inevitably spills into Meadowbank’s.

At what feels like an eternity after starting the book, the first murder happens. This then allows for the plot to spiral, ending with three murders and a kidnapping.

Poirot enters two thirds of the way through, making him feel like an afterthought. This was my main criticism of the book. Christie had given us many ‘detectives’ to choose from in this case: Julia, Kelsey, or Adam Goodman would have made for great stand-alone sleuths. But when the time is right (or wrong, in this case) Poirot enters, and plucks the answers out of thin air.

This book is only short (320 pages), so makes for a light summer read, especially because of its setting. However, if you’re looking for the next great Christie novel, this isn’t it. I enjoyed it, but it left a lot to be desired.