Features
Quotes from And Then There Were None
As well as being Agatha Christie's bestselling novel, And Then There Were None is an ingeniously plotted story which the author was very proud to have created. In an Author's Note that precedes the text she muses on the difficulty of writing it, and her pleasure at the results.
I wrote the book after a tremendous amount of planning, and I was pleased with what I had made of it. It was clear, straight-forward, baffling, and yet had a perfectly reasonable explanation;
A locked room mystery. A country house separated from the rest of civilisation. Ten suspicious characters. The setting, set-up and style of the book is key to its success. These quotes highlight the themes, tension and atmosphere created throughout. In some cases we've removed the speaker to avoid plot spoilers.
The island's reputation has caused a stir amongst the characters...
Soldier Island! Why, there had been nothing else in the papers lately! All sorts of hints and interesting rumours. Though probably they were mostly untrue.
The visitors' anticipation is palpable:
He had little leisure. And so, on this August morning, he was glad that he was leaving London and going to be for some days on an island off the Devon coast.
This island place ought to be rather good fun—if the weather lasted. Who were these Owens, he wondered?
As we're introduced to each character chapter by chapter, the excitement of the invited party is evident. Upon their arrival at Soldier Island, however, the landscape, and its isolation prompts unease and discomfort.
First impressions of the island:
She had pictured it differently, close to shore, crowned with a beautiful white house. But there was no house visible, only the boldly silhouetted rock with its faint resemblance to a giant head. There was something sinister about it.
General Macarthur said: 'Ha! Delightful spot!' But he felt uneasy. Damned odd sort of place.
There was something magical about an island—the mere word suggested fantasy. You lost touch with the world—an island was a world of its own. A world, perhaps, from which you might never return.
As the visitors hide their discomfort at their first dinner together, an eerie and threatening announcement rings out from a record player. This warning seems to come from their unknown host...
Into that silence came The Voice. Without warning, inhuman, penetrating… 'Ladies and gentlemen! Silence please!' […] 'You are charged with the following indictments: […]
The accusation, that each are responsible for the death(s) of another, spark fear, indignation and outrage amongst the gathered party. They also force them to speculate on who invited them to the island, and why they have all been brought together in this way.
Responses vary hugely to the situation at hand:
Oh, yes. I've no doubt in my own mind that we have been invited here by a madman—probably a dangerous homicidal lunatic.
Ought to ferret out the mystery before we go. Whole thing's like a detective story. Positively thrilling.
As the imminent danger facing the visitors crescendos, and one-by-one they begin to die, the hunt for the culprit reaches fever pitch.
There was nothing hidden in this house, nothing concealed. It had no atmosphere about it.
We're not going to leave the island…None of us will ever leave…It's the end, you see—the end of everything…
They're going mad… They'll all go mad… Afraid of death… we're all afraid of death… I'm afraid of death… Yes, but that doesn't stop death coming…
This chilling story has enthralled readers, film and TV viewers, and theatre-goers since Christie wrote it. The plot has inspired plenty of new shows, crime novels and more.
And Then There Were None
Solving the world's most puzzling mystery novel just got even more fiendish in this gorgeous new hardback collector’s edition – with the final solution sealed in an envelope at the back of the book! Can you crack all the clues and catch the killer before you unseal the ending?
Ten strangers are lured to an island mansion on an isolated rock near the Devon coast. Cut off from the mainland, with their generous hosts mysteriously absent, they are each accused of a terrible crime. When one of the party dies suddenly, the guests realise they may be harbouring a murderer among their number.