"And Then There Were None" or "Murder on the Orient Express"?

AgathaTop

Hi guys! I'm a huge fan of Agatha and I have a question for you: what do you think is better between "And Then There Were None" and "Murder on the Orient Express"? Sorry for my english

tudes

And then there were none! It's not only better than Murder on the Orient Express, but it's the best A.C!
I love this book. It's perfect!

Tommy_A_Jones

And Then There Were None is Excellent and Murder On The Orient Express is perhaps Famous for they Hype that surrounds it.

taliavishay-arbel

I had a problem with the basic concept of "And then there were none" so I prefer "Murder on the orient express", but I think "And then there were none" is better constructed and written.

Tommy_A_Jones

Was it the idea that people could be lured onto an Island by a Stranger? I think to read ACs Books and books by many others you have to allow your Imagination to believe the unbelievable is possible,

taliavishay-arbel

I don't like the idea of SPOILER a judge nominating himself as jury and hangman.

tudes

@taliashay-arbel, I understand your point.
 SPOILER:
But I think in his letter he writes that what he his actions weren' t right, that he's wicked. I think he only found a way to satisfy his evil nature being a judge. And I don't think A.C endorsed his behave in any moment.

that_girl_again

A difficult choice but I find ATTWN has a stronger 'woah' moment than Murder on the orient express. Also the former was much more intriguing, executed better and much more mysterious. My favourite Poirot book is ofcourse Murder on the orient express.

CT148

I have to say I prefer And Then There Were None in either book or television format. I thoroughly enjoy the way each quest is systematically bumped off and despite knowing the murderer, am constantly fascinated by the conclusion. Looking forward to the new BBC tv adaptation in the new year.

Tommy_A_Jones

And Then There Were None for me, not a difficult choice I like the plot of both but ATTWN has the edge, I wouldn't take either to a Desert Island though and neither are in my top 10

martin223

I have to say that both of your mentioned books are great. Each is well written but I prefer 'And Then There Were None'. Tonight on BBC One we can see a brand new TV adaptation. I'm waiting for that!  
 

J K Reynolds

I felt the best by far was "Murder on th orient express." A great story line and of course very well written.

LukeMcLAren

Murder on the Orient Express is much better. Funnily enough though, the other is a bestseller. 

ChristieFanForLife

Murder On The Orient Express and And Then There Were None are both good in different ways in my opinion. Both books similarly involve a group of people in an enclosed, confined space (more so with Murder On The Orient Express). I wouldn't say they are your "typical" locked room mysteries because they are more than typical and average. Agatha Christie takes 2 different locations -- a train and a hotel on an island -- and these two locations are richly described in detail. You can imagine being on that train, you can imagine being on that island at the hotel and it's deserted. A.C. sure knew how to create an atmosphere!

Agathasmykid

Orient express, but only by a slight margin.  I think Agatha's books are best when there is a lot of investigating going on, especially Poirot, who is a master at conducting an interview.  I really enjoy how he interacts with suspects, not just in this book, but most of the other Poirot books as well.

ATTWN comes as across as a dark, brooding mystery/suspense story where everyone's fate seems sealed.  It is a great book, but likely would fall second or third on my list of best Christies.

ChristieFanForLife

Agathasmykid said:

ATTWN comes as across as a dark, brooding mystery/suspense story where everyone's fate seems sealed.  It is a great book, but likely would fall second or third on my list of best Christies.

Great point and you're definitely onto something there. A great contrast would be that in ATTWN, everyone's fate is sealed, whereas, in Murder On the Orient Express, everyone has a chance to live their lives―to move on with their lives

adbetter

I read 'and there were none' yesterday. The first Christie book I have read. I prefer films or TV. margaret Rutherford was the best for me... Miss Marple.  The last death by hanging I found hard to imagine I must say and the fact that every death, although shocking, was accepted. And informing the police was never considered. I know they were isolated. It was also obvious , at one stage, that somebody was faking death and that two were working together. But I enjoyed it and found myself hurrying to the conclusion.  

rabbity300

I can't choose they are both so good.

HerculeAndAchille

I agree, @rabbity300! They are both very enjoyable novels. However, in And Then There Were None, since (arguably) there were no minor characters in the mix - secretaries (Miss Claythorne, I suppose, doesn't count), impoverished cousins, waiters, etc. and the settings didn't change drastically for most of the novels, readers experienced a greater amount of character development. In MOTOE, some of the characters really didn't come alive on paper. The setting didn't change in that novel either, but there was no lack of minor characters - husbands, wives, doctors etc. (and there was a much greater ensemble in it than in And Then There Were None). Though there was greater overall characterisation in ATTWN, some individual characters (such as Mrs Rogers) were not given any special attention in terms of character development.

The solutions of both, however, like that of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, were very novel and unheard of in the Golden Era crime fraternity, which made them (and still make them) extremely ingenious. Both, of course, made the readers want to tear out their hair and cry 'How could I have been so stupid?'

So... to choose or not to choose...?

Linnet Ridgeway

Both were intersting and really got me at the edge of my seats, when that question was posed to me back then I would choose  Murder On The Orient Express, though I admit I might rethink whether if that is still true. Murder on the Orient express was likethat tip if the icebirg type murder, it wasn’t as horrid as And Then There  Were None, while the other seems  like  it makes you ask the questions why would this happen, and then it messes your thoughts and ends up confusing and shocking everyone. 

anjo

At the moment I am enjoying the mini series And then there were none  on the Flemish TV. I am intrigued to find out who the sculptor of the ten disappearing figurines on the dining room table is. In the trailer behind the scenes  it is mentioned that the sculptor is a She,  but no name is given. 

paule1980

Both books are great, however And Then There were None is simply the best thing ever written.

Luke

I have tried and tried but find Orient express difficult, and I just don't get it   maybe ill have to try again, but I found And then there were none, extremely dark and creepy book, and for that reason I think I'll say that And then there were none is the better of the two 

mo109

In some ways,they are diametric opposites...one had one victim and multiple innocent murderers seeking their own justice.. the other had one murderer seeking his,justice on multiple guilty victims...