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    The Sittaford Mystery
    The Sittaford Mystery
    The Sittaford Mystery
    Audiobook6 hours

    The Sittaford Mystery

    Written by Agatha Christie

    Narrated by Hugh Fraser

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    The Sittaford Mystery is Dame Agatha at her most intriguing, as a séance in a snowbound house predicts a particularly grisly murder.

    In a remote house in the middle of Dartmoor, six shadowy figures huddle around a table for a seance. Tension rises as the spirits spell out a chilling message: ""Captain Trevelyan . . . dead . . . murder.""

    Is this black magic or simply a macabre joke? The only way to be certain is to locate Captain Trevelyan. Unfortunately, his home is six miles away and, with snowdrifts blocking the roads, someone will have to make the journey on foot. . . .

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateJul 3, 2012
    ISBN9780062233882
    Author

    Agatha Christie

    Agatha Christie is the most widely published author of all time, outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. Her books have sold more than a billion copies in English and another billion in a hundred foreign languages. She died in 1976, after a prolific career spanning six decades.

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    Reviews for The Sittaford Mystery

    4/5

    167 ratings29 reviews

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    • 4/5
      One of the really good non Poirot, Non-Miss Marple mysteries

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Kept me guessing to the end. Classic Dame Christie. Hugh Fraser does a marvelous job narrating.
    • 2/5
      Typical Agatha Christie fare, though I can't say I loved it. The prose was uninteresting and the final "twist" is one that can be seen a mile away. It's decent entertainment for a long car ride, but if you're not interested in having a laugh at dated gender stereotyping, give this one a pass.
    • 2/5
      Also published as "Murder at Hazelmoor"

      A rich recluse, Sir Trevayne, rents his remote mansion out to a woman & her daughter, while he takes a manor in town. He is in the habit of dining w/ his friend on Tuesdays & Thursdays, but due to the snow, dinner has been cancelled and his friend goes up to Hazelmoor for the evening instead.

      After dinner a seance is held and the "spirit" taps out that Trevayne is Dead, Murdered! It is found that Trevayne's estranged nephew has been to visit him, prior to his being found dead & is arrested for the crime. The nephew's fiancee, Emily Trefusis, believe him innocent and sets out to prove it.

      From Amazon: "Agatha Christie: Inspector Narracott. Murder at Hazelmoor has the British title: The Sittaford Mystery. From inside the front cover: Race Against Death. Inspector Narracott was the perfect model of a professional police inspector - calm, methodical, doing everything by the book.

      Beautiful Young Emily Trefusis was his perfect opposite - impulsive, intuitive, irreverent toward all rules and regulations. Together, they entered into a competition to solve a baffling case of a man who had died at the very moment his murder was being forecast at a seance miles away.

      And it was not long before even the Inspector had to admit Emily was as effective a sleuth as he could ever hope to be ... ... unless of course, she was a murderess, leading him on a merry chase..."

      I didn't like Emily (she was annoying & a user/manipulator of people) and I didn't like the detective..... The story had a good premise, but unlikable characters.

    • 4/5
      Mrs. Willet and her daughter Violet, recent arrivals from South Africa, have leased Sittaford House near Dartmoor for the winter from its owner, Captain Trevelyan. They have invited several local residents to Sittaford House on a snowy day that soon cuts them off from the rest of the world. Someone suggests table turning to pass the time, and all are shocked when the letters spell out a message that Captain Trevelyan has been murdered. It doesn't take the police long to learn that Captain Trevelyan's nephew – and one of the heirs in his will – is in the area and doesn't have an alibi. His fiancee, Emily Trefusis, undertakes her own investigation to make sure that an innocent man isn't hanged for murder.Several of Christie's earlier mysteries feature young adult amateur sleuths who figure more prominently than the police. They're usually energetic and determined, and the young women are always clever and bold. Emily Trefusis is no exception, but she disappointed me with her rationale for a decision she makes at the end of the book. I had read this recently enough that I remembered the murderer's identity and motive. Despite being aware of this from the beginning, I still couldn't see how Emily figured out how the murder must have happened. It all made perfect sense once she explained it.
    • 5/5
      Lovely cozy British murder mystery. Short and entertaining. Narration well done.
    • 5/5
      The new residents at Sittaford House planned a little evening party with neighbors. Even the snowstorm didn't discourage them. But when a little harmless table turning became something more sinister, everyone became a little nervous. Was Captain Trevelyan really dead? His friend Major Burnaby set off on a 6 mile hike to find out.The police decide that there was nothing supernatural about the death - it was murder, and they know who did it. But the fiance of the accused is sure of his innocence and sets off to find the real killer.
    • 4/5
      A little clunky language in the beginning, but overall a good story. I liked the protagonist in this one - too bad Christie didn't use her more.
    • 4/5
      I love "The Sittaford Mystery". It’s a strong non-series outing from Christie at the start of a decade when she was at the height of her powers. This is Christie’s "Hound of the Baskervilles", with lonely moors, escaped convicts and the suggestion of something otherworldly. Like most, the mystery relies on timing and contrivance, but it’s never unbelievable. In fact, looking back, the reader discovers how many questionable elements they have accepted as “fact”. A lovely book.
    • 3/5
      Another solid entry in the Christie canon, but not a top one. I figured out most of the secondary plot's mysteries, but I was unable to nail down the culprit (from among those who "couldn't" have done it) before the intelligent and lovely Emily Trefusis did so for me. Of course, as was usually the case, Christie cheated the reader on at least two occasions. In one, we get something of an unreliable narrator chapter and in the other, we are not told about a critical piece of evidence that Ms Trefusis uncovers. If I have one overarching complaint about Christie, it is this penchant for stacking the deck like that. If you're not clever enough to outfox your readers without cheating, etc. I also liked what I saw of Inspector Narracott, who for some reason was later eclipsed by outing after outing after outing by a certain Poirot chap with lots of affectations.
    • 3/5
      I was a bit taken in by the book summary I read. I was expecting some wintery race against time type of story. Considering I have watched almost every Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple movie adaptation of Christie's books, you think I would have realized that this would be more of the murder confirmed at the start, with a more relaxed pace while the investigation of the "who", "why" and "how" of the crime are the main plot focus. My only defense is that this is my very first Agatha Christie 'read'. Overall, I enjoyed this one. Christie's writing has a lovely "settle in with a cup a tea" lightness to it, even if the topic is murder. The private citizen sleuth in this particular story, the overly capable Emily, was a nice change of pace but not a very convincing sleuth IMO. The mystery was okay but not any sort of head scratcher. Overall, a nice cozy crime read but a bit of a letdown for me. I was expecting something a little more robust in the plot and character development department. I think I will stick to watching movie adaptations of Agatha Christie's works and continue reading Margery Allingham when I am in the mood for a Golden Age detective fiction.
    • 3/5
      Sittaford, England, ca 1930.Den lille by Sittaford ude på landet er stort set isoleret fra omverdenen af store mængder sne. På Sittaford House morer man sig med lidt åndemaneri, men det holder op med at være sjovt, da bordet staver til "Trevelyan, død, mord". Kaptajn Trevelyan findes myrdet i sin hytte, som han er flyttet hen til for at kunne leje Sittaford House ud.Nevøen John Pearson bliver anholdt af politiassistent Narracott, men Johns forlovede Emily Trefusis tror på hans uskyld og leger detektiv sammen med journalisten Charles Enderby. Til sidst finder hun nogle støvler, der er gemt for at politiet ikke skal komme til at tænke over at Major Burnaby ikke har et alibi, hvis han har haft adgang til ski.Emily afslører Burnaby som morder og hans motiv var at få fingre i en pengepræmie, som egentlig var Trevelyans.Emily holder på sin John og lader Charles gå.Der er også flettet en historie ind med nogle australiere, som udgiver sig for at være sydafrikanere, og som har til hensigt at befri deres far fra det nærliggende fængsel.Udmærket krimi, men politibetjent Narracott er lidt for tam.
    • 4/5
      Murder and fun in a small, snow-bound English village. You may think you know who dunnit, but you'll be surprised who actually did, and for what reason.
    • 2/5
      okay for a long boring trip=otherwise too formulaic
    • 4/5
      One of Christie’s stand-alone novels, it’s another standard cozy – a locked room mystery with a pretty obvious perpetrator. Although it wasn’t Christie’s best, I always enjoy the settings and her sleight-of-hand, even after I’m onto her.
    • 4/5
      Fun read. I read all the Agatha Christie when I was around 10(my mom had all the collection) but I don't remember half of them so rediscovering them 3 decades later is pure joy. Good story, fun characters and ltos of secrets to discover, as always.
    • 1/5
      Dull and predictable
    • 4/5
      The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie - Good

      Ah, needed some comfort reading and AC never fails me. This one is a standalone ie not Miss Marple or Poirot (although the TV turned it into a Miss Marple).

      Usual stuff, someone is murdered and there are a number of people who could have done it and one that is arrested for it. His girlfriend doesn't believe he did it & sets about finding out who really did.

      One or too ouch moments with the non-pc language of the time, but still one of the better Agatha Christies - mainly because the TV version was so different as to not spoil it.

    • 3/5
      (#3 in the 2007 book challenge)Another find at the used book store, this one featuring a fab 1950s cover. It was one of those mysteries that you read and then immediately forget all the details. I am sure you will be surprised to learn that someone is murdered in a small English village, and then there are a bunch of suspects who are all hiding something.Grade: B-Recommended: Absolutely fine to pick up if you come across it while visiting an English country home while on vacation.
    • 5/5
      A wonderful mystery with some great characters. Though I admit to not being entirely satisfied with the ending, it is surprising and still makes sense, so I can't -really- complain.
    • 4/5
      This is an OK Christie which features her some of her signatures, a group of people who are isolated from the rest of the world, in this case snowed in, a murder (obviously) but unusually everyone who is snowed in can't have committed the murder. As usual not everyone is what they seem, she also introduces one of her signature characters, the strong capable women in love with a flawed weak man. What is unusual is a supernatural element, with a rational explanation - she would repeat this in The Pale Horse - and the murderer is one of the last people you would suspect.
    • 3/5
      Despite ITV twisting this to be a Marple story, Marple (nor Poirot) is anywhere to be found in this story. Instead we have an intelligent young woman who gets involved investigating a murder when her fiancée gets accused of doing the crime.

      Big houses, death of the owner, small villages, suspicious characters, ouija boards predicting death (apparently correctly), money, snow drifts on Dartmoor and an escaped prisoner from the local criminal mental facility all leads to a compact mystery story.

      Christie does write rather strong, forward women investigators, especially if they're on the young side - lots of vigour etc.
    • 4/5
      The Sittaford Mystery is the very first Agatha Christie novel I have ever read, and it certainly lived up to the author's reputation. This book is very easy to read, the simple prose style belying the complexity of the plot. I formed a theory as to the culprit fairly early on, only to find myself second guessing my guess as the story progressed. I worked my way through several suspects before discovering that my original theory was correct. In today's world of graphic serial killer thrillers, The Sittaford Mystery was a breath of fresh air. I shall definitely be reading more books by this author.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book very much. It is not my favorite Christie story but it kept me guessing until the end.
    • 3/5
      Not overly satisfying mystery from a relatively early (1931) period of Christie's career. We have a Retired Military Man murdered, and two of the other figures in the story are Retired Military Men, too, one a foul-tempered one with an Indian manservant. Useless Nephew, Brash Journalist and Plucky Heroine all figure in the story, not to mention Stolid Police Detective with Even More Stolid Sergeant. Once you read things through, you can spot the clews, but Christie does do a bit of the Least Expected Suspect here, and does hide the ball a little bit by not having the key clues turn up until very late in the book. Some atmosphere with the Dartmoor setting -- there's a call out to Conan Doyle at one point -- but the sheer plethora of red herrings strewn across the path annoys more than anything else. Not one of Dame Agatha's works that I would personally recommend. (And the designer of the cover of my Dell edition needs to be spanked.)
    • 5/5
      It was interesting to read an Agatha without the regulars! Poirot and Miss Marple and the rest!
    • 4/5
      A murder in a tiny Dartmoor village in the dead of winter sets the stage for this classic Christie whodunit. Several had a motive, few had an opportunity. The most likely suspect is quickly imprisoned, but his fiance remains unsatisfied with the law's conclusions. Determined to clear James Pearson's name, Emily Trefusis sets off with intrepid newspaper reporter Charles Enderby to seek out the circumstances of Major Treveylan's murder. As with all of Christie's books, we get plenty of atmosphere as the plot unfolds in the Dartmoor countryside. Here we see the deepest depths of winter. This novel has all of the elements of a juicy, quick read. The plot and suspense build as we follow Emily on her quest for answers. This is classic Christie- a bit of brain-fluff, for sure, but engaging and well-written.
    • 4/5
      The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie is a 1931 whodunit that starts with a seance being held in a country home during a heavy winter storm. A message comes through from “the other side” to say that the owner of the home, Captain Trevelyan is dead. His body is indeed found later that evening. The seance was being held by Mrs. Willett, the Captain’s winter tenant, who along with her daughter have taken residence for the winter months.Agatha Christie has done it again, I was so sure that I had worked out the answer to this murder puzzle, but when all is revealed in the closing chapter, I wasn’t even close. The story is full of red herrings and false clues. The police charge one of the Captain’s nephews with the murder, but his clever fiancee, Emily makes it her mission to clear him. I really enjoyed The Sittaford Mystery. The characters are well drawn, and the plot is well engineered. This book is considered her homage to The Hound of Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and there are certain elements that both stories have in common, such as the setting of Dartmoor and an escaped prisoner wandering the moor. But this is Agatha Christie and her style shines through with the country house setting and the big reveal at the end of the book. A fun and imaginative read.
    • 2/5
      Typical Agatha Christie fare, though I can't say I loved it. The prose was uninteresting and the final "twist" is one that can be seen a mile away. It's decent entertainment for a long car ride, but if you're not interested in having a laugh at dated gender stereotyping, give this one a pass.