Problem at Pollensa Bay and Other Stories
By Agatha Christie
Charnwood Large Print, 1993
ISBN: 0-7089-8689-7
Genre: Mystery - Short Stories
Reviewed by Auggie Moore - July 20, 2005
Problem at Pollensa Bay is a collections of Agatha Christie short stories that was published after her death. Christie passed away on January 12, 1976 and this collection was first released in 1991. It contains eight thrilling mysteries that were written over the course of Christie's incredible career. This collection includes two stories each featuring the famed detectives Parker Pyne, Hercule Poirot, and the strange team of Harley Quin and Mr. Satterthwaite. The other two stories included in this collection are solved by inadvertent amateur detectives.
The stories in this collection include:
Problem at Pollensa Bay
The Second Gong
Yellow Iris
The Harlequin Tea Set
The Regatta mystery
The Love Detectives
Next to a Dog
Magnolia Blossom
The stories in this collection run the gamut from murder mysteries to one story that verges upon being a pure romance. I don't want to say anything too much about these stories as I don't want to chance giving anything away. What I can say is that all the stories feature some sort of ingenious puzzle - whether it is murder, theft, or mistaken identity that must be solved. The challenge for the reader is to solve the puzzle before Christie's sleuths do. In short, these stories are a delicious way to fritter away a couple of free hours - either in one large gulp. Or, for those who like to savor their readings, you can spread the stories out and leisurely read them one at a time.
Each story is annotated with a short history of the story that describes where and when it was first published, and how the story evolved over time. In some cases, Christie entirely rewrote a given story, even changing the detective. In other cases the stories later evolved into full length books. For example, Christie expanded the Hercule Poirot short story, Yellow Iris into the novel Sparkling Cyanide, but in the process, Poirot was written out of the story! I found these brief histories of the stories almost as fascinating as the stories themselves.
Problem at Pollensa Bay is a wonderful collection of stories that not only entertain, but which also show the breadth of Christie's writing styles, her detectives, and her imagination.
Problem at Pollensa Bay can be purchased directly from Ulverscroft, the parent company of Charnwood Large Print.
Click Here for a complete list of all the books written by Agatha Christie.
Related Reviews:
Sad Cypress, by Agatha Christie.
Poirot usually tries to prove someone innocent - before they are brought to trial. However, in this intriguing case, he tries to save Elinor Carlisle from the gallows after she is accused, and found guilty, of having killed Mary Gerrard.
The Secret of Chimneys, by Agatha Christie.
This is the first Christie novel to feature Detective Battle of Scotland Yard. In this case he must uncover the truth regarding a series of murders and how they are tied to the plot to restore the monarchy to Herzoslovakia.
