The Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories
Written by Agatha Christie
Narrated by Hugh Fraser and Christopher Lee
4/5
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About this audiobook
Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories is a collection of eleven tantalizing tales of murder and other criminal pursuits—including the classic title story, the basis for the 1957 Oscar-nominated Billy Wilder film starring Marlene Dietrich, Tyrone Power, and Charles Laughton.
A murder trial takes a diabolical turn when the wife of the accused takes the stand. . . . A woman's sixth sense—and a loaded revolver—signal premonitions of doom. . . . A stranded motorist seeks refuge in a remote mansion and is greeted with a dire warning. . . . Detective Hercule Poirot faces his greatest challenge when his services are enlisted—by the victim—in a bizarre locked-room murder.
From the stunning title story (which inspired the classic film thriller) to the rarest gems in detective fiction, these eleven tales of baffling crime and brilliant deduction showcase Agatha Christie at her dazzling best.
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 Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories
201 ratings12 reviews
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This was a quick read. I thought it would be better. I was drawn to it for the title story "Witness for the Prosecution". I've seen the movie so many times, but never read the story. I didn't realize it was a short story. This was the best one of the lot. I didn't understand the "Fourth Man". I saw the ending coming on "Where there's a will". The Blue Jar was very good as was the Mystery of the Spanish Shawl".
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Most all of these stories were written for various magazines.... The most famous is the title of the book & a movie starring Marlene Dietrich.
The stories, many of which deal with "spiritualism" are interesting enough, but much unlike her murder mysteries they are often dark & filled w/ foreboding.
I did not like most of the characters, nor did I feel empathy for any of them.....
The stories are:
Accident
The Fourth Man
The Mystery of the Blue Jar
The Mystery of the Spanish Shawl (a.k.a. Mr. Eastwood's Adventure)
Philomel Cottage
The Red Signal
The Second Gong
Sing a Song of Sixpence
S.O.S.
Where There's a Will (a.k.a. Wireless): This I liked, an Aunt gets even & justice after her death.....
The Witness for the Prosecution
However, if you are tired of T&T, Marple, & Poirot, this might be the break you're waiting for........ - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Review: These are some of Christie's lessor known stories, although one stars Hercule Poirot. They range from 'normal' mysteries to rather creepy tales. In any case, all were fun to read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A collection of short stories by the mystery master (or is it mistress?) including mysteries, puzzles, and simply unbelievable occurences. Great to read when you don't have a lot of time to read a huge chunk.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5if you read a lot of Christie beware as this is essentially the stories from "The Hound of Death" repacked...
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This Agatha Christie short story is packed full of twists and turns around the case of Leonard Vole, accused of murdering an old lady to get her money. I think this story demonstrates the strength of the short story model. No need for superfluous characters, just a straightforward but gripping story.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The majority of these stories have a supernatural bent, which is unusual for Christie, but shows her skill at creating tension in just a short amount of time. "The Fourth Man" is a tale of three orphans, two of whom are at the mercy of their more attractive and cruel friend, and is particularly good. The title story is a good, twisted crime story.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5This BBC radio drama attempts to present the essential elements of Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution in less than half an hour. It's only partially successful. While key parts of the plot are present, too much of the context has been stripped out of the drama. I've seen the play and the films based on it enough times to be familiar with all of the plot twists and I still had trouble making sense of the radio drama. I even re-listened to a couple of segments and still felt like I was missing something. I'd love to have heard the cast in an unabridged audio production of the play. If you haven't seen, heard, or read the play as written by Christie, avoid this plot-spoiling bare bones adaptation.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5I love love love Agatha Christie but this book just didn't do it for me. Not enough "puzzle" and not enough of the great characters I expect from her. A very rare dud for Agatha Christie.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lots of fine twists to the spaghetti. Christie is particularly well served by the short form/script because of her focus on plot. I think I read the play first, then the story for comparison.
Library copies - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This was a delightful discovery of a volume of short mysteries, only one of which was familiar to me—the title story which was the basis for a famous play. Except for the last story, featuring Hercule Poirot, these were tales about ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary circumstances and were nicel surprises for me.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I am always a bit disappointed when Christie puts a supernatural element in her short stories. I prefer the mystery to be explained by human cunning or cleverness. Several of these stories have a hint of the supernatural. Most of them do not. What a writer she is, though - all of them were very compelling reading!