Book Review – Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie

1. Book Review – Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie

Hickory Dickory Dock by Agatha Christie

Synopsis: Detective Hercule Poirot senses that his secretary, Miss Lemon, is not attentive while typing his dictation as she used to be. Upon inquiring, she says she is worried about her sister, Mrs. Hubbard. She tells Mayur that inside Mrs. Hubbard’s students’ hostel, certain items are missing regularly. The items are not so valuable but causing annoyance to the students and everyone else. Miss Lemon asks Poirot to investigate the matter and relieve her sister.

Poirot decides to investigate and he joins the police inspector, Sharpe. The inspector interviews the students and discusses the details with Poirot. 

During their investigation, one of the female students, Miss Celia Austin, is found dead in her room. They find that she consumed coffee which was mixed with morphine, a poison. Everyone thinks Celia committed suicide, but Poirot thinks otherwise.

He correctly guesses that one of the students, Mrs. Valerie Hubhouse, stole the diamond ring that belongs to Miss Patricia Lane. 

While he continues to investigate with Sharpe, he finds that the hostel owner, Mrs. Nicholetis, is found dead on one of the streets. Also, they both are bewildered when they found Miss Patricia Lane is also found dead in her room.

After chasing down the clues and discussing the details with Inspector Sharpe, he finds that the mystery is deeper than he has initially thought. They find it is a handiwork of smugglers who are taking undue advantage of innocent students.

Characters

– Hercule Poirot

– Miss Lemon

– Mrs. Hubbard’s

– Mrs. Nicholetis

The Students at the Hostel

– Mr. Chandra Lal

– Mr. Leonardo Bateson

– Mr. Gopal Ram

– Genevieve

– Mrs. Patricia Lane

– Mrs. Sally Finch

– Mrs. Elizabeth Jhonston

– Mrs. Valerie Hubhouse

– Mr. Colin McNabb

– Mr. Nigel Chapman

– Mr. Akibombo

– Miss Celia Austin

– Mr. Achmed Ali

– Geronimo (cook)

– Marie (cook)

– Inspector Sharpe

*Who Killed Whom?

One of the hostel residents, Mr. Nigel Chapman, kills Celia Austin. Celia is responsible for the missing items in the hostel. But she acts so as per the directions of Valerie Hubhouse. Valerie is the accomplice of Nigel Chapman.

Nigel also kills Mrs. Nicholetis, the hostel owner, because she knew the smuggling racket run by Nigel and Valerie. 

Nigel also kills Miss Patricia Lane, who knew the person who took the morphine from her drawer.

*Why?

Nigel kills Celia because she knew Nigel has a fake passport. She knew he was the one who cut the rucksack into pieces. Nigel had to silence her because Celia had told everyone she would reveal who was responsible for the other missing items.

*How?

 Nigel mixes morphine into coffee meant for Celia to drink after dinner. He kills Mrs. Nicholetis once again by mixing poison in her drinks at a local bar. He hits Patricia Lane with a hard paperweight that is wrapped in a cloth. He hits the back of her head with it. He places a few strands of hair into Pat’s fingers to misguide the investigators. This red hair belongs to Leonardo Bateson, another student in the hostel.

*Where?

Celia is killed in her room. She consumes her after-dinner coffee that is mixed with morphine. 

Mrs. Nicholetis is killed on a street when she consumes a poison mixed drink in a local bar.

Patricia Lane is killed in her hostel room.

*When?

Celia is killed first in the story after she tells others that she would reveal more details about the person who stole the rest of the missing items.

Mrs. Nicholetis is killed next when the police make progress in the case and the killer, Nigel, realizes she might reveal the smuggling racket to them.

Patricia Lane is killed last when she tells Nigel that she replaced the morphine bottle contents with Soda bicarbonate. And someone took it from her room. Nigel thinks that Pat might reveal to the police that Nigel had morphine in his drawer.

*How is this discovered?

– Poirot thinks that Valerie Hubhouse is the one who put the diamond ring in her soup bowl. He thinks it can not be a chef. He thinks that Valerie replaced the diamond with a fake one. And she pawned it soon after stealing it. The diamond ring belonged to Patricia Lane.

– Poirot thinks that the rucksacks were sold in a nearby shop for cheaper prices. He finds that these rucksacks were used to smuggle the goods—narcotics and diamonds—by having hidden pockets at their bottoms. He then concludes that there is a smuggling racket involved including the students who went abroad and returned home.

–Poirot meets Nigel’s family lawyer. The lawyer says Nigel’s father knew Nigel killed his mother. He left a letter before he dies saying Nigel’s confession letter of the crime should be revealed to the police if Nigel commits the second crime. This makes Poirot suspicious about Nigel.

– When Nigel is with Inspector Sharpe at the police station, he received a call from a lady. Nigel speaks and tells Sharpe that the caller was Patricia Lane and she wants to reveal to him who took the morphine bottle from her room. Upon investigation, Poirot concludes that Nigel actually receives a call from Valerie Hubhouse and not from Patricia, who was already dead. Poirot says Nigel and Valerie tried to create a perfect alibi for themselves.

– Finally, the investigators talk to Valerie. She confesses the crime and says Nigel should be hanged.

*What sort of person the murderer was

Nigel Chapman had a bad upbringing. He poisoned his mother and his father sent him out of his home. He told Nigel to stand on his own and decided not to give any money that he had earned. Nigel was an abandoned child and had harbored an animosity with his bitter upbringing.

– Valerie was greedy and it was evident when she stole Patricia’s diamond ring. She was part of the smuggling racket along with her mother, Mrs. Nicholetis.

*What sort of person was the victim?

All the victims—Celia, Patricia, and Mrs. Nicholetis—were naive. Celia loved her boyfriend. She listened to whatever Valerie told her to steal to attract her boyfriend. 

Patricia believes in Nigel and reveals everything she knew about morphine. Her innocence took her life in the end. 

Mrs. Nicholetis was short-tempered and agreed to meet Nigel at a bar. She never anticipated Nigel would poison her.

*What wring turn, if any, did the investigators take?

Inspector Sharpe believes that Celia committed suicide. They once think that it is Len Bateson, who jumped through Celia’s balcony from his and poisoned her. But Poirot decides to further investigate and finds the real culprit.

*Who, apart from murderers had anything to hide?

The African student, Mr. Akibombo, often makes suspicious statements. He tells the investigators that he had stomach upset after consuming a powder from Patricia’s drawer. 

Colin McNabb also hides his real interest in Celia Austin.

*Summary

The story is a character-oriented mystery with a mind soothing and entertaining setting. The manners of students throughout the story keep the reader interested until the ending. Inspector Sharpe conducts the perfect interviews but is Poirot who makes intelligent guesses and presents a solution. This story is another entertaining mystery from Queen of Crime!

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Dialog Tags – What are they? How to Use Them?

What are Dialogue Tags?

Dialogue tags are ‘he said’, ‘she said’ that are added at the end of the character dialogues.

For Example: “Who do you think is behind the murder?” Aisha said.

“It’s too early to conclude anything about it,” Mayur said.

“I think it’s Suhas who did it,” Prakash said.

The Dialogue Tags helps the reader know who is talking in the scene. But the writers are encouraged to use them sparingly. If it obvious that who is talking in the scene, it is advised to omit the Dialogue tag.

Using the verbs in the Dialogue Tags

Some writers use the verb to convey the message in the dialogue tag.

For Example:

“Mayur, what an excellent idea,” exclaimed Aisha.

“Mr. Menon, it’s you who did it,” shouted Prakash.

In both the above dialogues, the characters are using the verbs – exclaimed and shouted. It is suggested not to use the verbs and instead show the character response with their gestures and actions.

For Example:

Aisha widened her eyes with her lips curled into a smile. “Mayur, what an excellent idea?”

“Mr. Menon.” Prakash clenched his fists. “It’s you who did it.”

The above examples conveys the meaning with the character’s actions instead of a dialogue tag with a verb.

A few wrong examples of Dialogue Tags.

“I Love You,” she kissed

“The food is so tasty,” she licked

“The weather is so cold,” she sneezed

All about Adverbs

It’s a bad idea to use adverbs associated with the dialogue tags.

For Example:

“Mayur, we solved the mystery,” Aisha said jubilantly.

“Mr. Reddy, you need to answer my question,” said Prakash angrily.

Instead of using the adverbs as above, it is suggested to use the characters’ actions and emotional gestures to convey the meaning.

For Example:

Aisha’s face lit up. She straightened in her seat. “Mayur, we solved the mystery.”

Prakash gritted his teeth. His forehead creased. “Mr. Reddy, you need to answer my question.”

Be Creative

The writers are advised to be creative and use minimum dialogue tags.

For Example:

“Aisha, have you noted the details?”

“Yes, Mayur. I did.”

In the above example, it’s implicit that Aisha and Mayur are talking. But don’t overuse the names in the dialogues.

Another best method is to use the action tags.

For Example:

Mayur fiddled with the paperweight. “Where were you last Sunday when the murder took place?”

Prakash steered his Jeep towards right. “I agree with you.”

In the above examples, it is conveyed who spoke the dialogue by using the action beat.

Scene Context

Remember, the lesser the tag, better it is. Sometimes, the context itself will reveal who said the dialogue. There is no need to mention the character name if the information is implicit.

Summary

Dialogue tags are used to reveal to the reader who said it, instead of diverting reader’s attention to it. Don’t decorate the dialogue tags with verbs and adverbs. Keep it simple and avoid the dialogue tag if the context of the scene is enough.

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First Murder Mystery Novel – ‘Mayur Varma Mystery Series’

Book Title: The Mystery of a Techie’s Murder

Dear Fellow Readers/Writers/Followers,

I’m sorry about not being active on my blog for the last few months, but I promise that I write often and share my knowledge with you moving ahead. I hope you read and find my blog posts informative.

About my writing, I’ve been writing Mystery Novels for the past two and a half years after writing five romance novels. The first novel in the mystery series, ‘The Mystery of a Techie’s Murder’ has been released last year and I have received good feedback from the online readers. It’s the first book of the mystery series – Mayur Varma Mysteries.

The blurb and the first sample chapter has been posted for you to read. You can buy a copy of the ebook by clicking on the link below and the book is FREE!!!

The Mystery of a Techie’s Murder

BLURB

Murder

A well thought out plot. He takes you with him as he steps by step looks through the evidence to find the murderer – Rosalie Mellas, Barnes and Noble

Meet Detective Mayur Varma: twenty-seven, ex-cop, intelligent, and the founder of Dolphin Detective Agency. In his first assignment, he investigates the murder of a software engineer, Priya Bedi. The murder has happened in Hyderabad, but most of the suspects live in Bangalore, Priya’s home town. Mayur’s ex-colleague, inspector Prakash Malhotra, joins him to unravel the truth behind the brutal act. While Mayur investigates the case with his junior assistant, Aisha Mishra, he is attacked and threatened over the phone. Will he be able to catch the real perpetrator in spite of the hurdles he faces? Read on…

Sample First Chapter

20th October 9 AM – Hyderabad

Inspector Prakash Malhotra, Detective Mayur Varma, and his junior Aisha Mishra entered a bedroom where the dead body of a software engineer, Priya Bedi, was lying flat on the floor. Her throat was soaked in blackish-red blood. The floor was covered with the dried blood; Priya’s eyes were wide open in terror; her face was swollen and her well-groomed boy hair cut was messy. She wore a pale pink night suit. There was no weapon near her.

The room had a single cot and the bedspread on the mattress was messed up. A pillow was lying on the floor, away from the victim. The bed lamp was on and the window and the balcony doors were closed. A flower vase was lying beside the door. The clock of a music system showed 13:45. It was blinking.

Prakash had told Mayur he had visited the crime scene before seven o’clock in the morning.

“Was Priya staying alone here when the murder took place?” Mayur asked, looking at Prakash.

“Her colleague, Julia, shared the flat with her but Julia had gone to Mumbai to meet her parents and hadn’t returned to Hyderabad,” Prakash said. “Priya was alone on the weekend.”

“How long did they stay in the flat?”

“They stayed together for four months.”

“Do you suspect any motive behind the murder?” Mayur asked.

“Robbery,” Prakash said. “There are some valuables missing and according to the security guard, Priya always wore a gold chain and diamond earrings, which are missing. Also, the perpetrator had searched for valuables in the closet as its contents were strewn around the room.”

Mayur remained silent, contemplating. The murderer had struck when Priya was alone in the flat. Was it a coincidence that Priya’s roommate, Julia, was out of the station? Or did the perpetrator know that Priya would be alone?

“Did you find the victim’s cell phone with her?” Aisha asked.

“No,” said Prakash. “That’s one of the reasons why I believe robbery is the motive. And the murder methods are quite different from those of two previous robbery cases. Priya’s throat had been slit open whereas the landlady was strangled. And a case before that, the victim was suffocated with a pillow.”

“I have noticed Priya had protested before she succumbed,” Mayur said.

“I too think so, but we can reach our conclusions about it only after Dr. Sunil conducts an autopsy,” Prakash said.

Mayur turned to the apartment security guard. “Were you on duty last night when the murder took place?”

“No, Sir. Hemant worked in the night until this morning at six o’clock. I worked from six in the morning until five o’clock, sir.”

“Would you like to share any information about Priya?”

“Well,” said the guard. “I’d seen Priya outside her flat with her roommate and her colleague, Julia. She maintained a low profile and never came out of her flat alone in the evenings. She had been quite cheerful and happy whenever I’d seen her.”

Priya might not have had any enemies in her life. And perhaps, she came from an orthodox family background as she never went outside alone.

“Had she been upset lately for any reason?” Aisha asked.

“I don’t think so, Madam. I have seen her cheerful while she went to her office along with Julia.”

Mayur walked back to the main hall of the flat along with Aisha. They sat on a sofa. The room was spacious enough and well-furnished with plush leather sofas and flat-screen television. Two flower pots – medium-sized with crotons in them – sat at the corners of the room. The walls were painted with cream and purple. An intricate chandelier hung from the ceiling and the hall was lit with yellow lamps embedded within the chandelier.

Mayur glanced outside the main entrance. The main door of the guesthouse and the surrounding area was cordoned off with yellow tape. The forensic lab technicians who wore light green masks and gloves were busy analyzing the scene.

Mayur’s glance shifted towards Aisha. In her pink sari with a purple border and a matching blouse, Aisha looked beautiful. Her not so round but slightly oblong, the fair face was lit with a smile. Her golden chain around her neck and diamond earrings shone in the fluorescent light.

“Did you perform some special pooja at home?”

Aisha widened her eyes. She was seemingly surprised at how he found out about the pooja. “Yes. Today was my aunt’s marriage anniversary. But how do you know about it?”

He winked at her. “The sandalwood paste on your neck is still fresh.”

She touched her neck. “Oh, that’s correct. You made a keen observation.”

“How did the commemoration go?”

“It went well,” she said. “It was a private function and only my brother and a few relatives attended it.” She paused, staring down for a few moments. “What about you? How did you spend your weekend?”

“Well, I worked at the office.”

“You worked?” Aisha sounded surprised.

“Yes. You know we ended the ‘Murder of the Land Lady’ case last week. I compiled all the papers relevant to it and closed it.”

“So, you logically ended the case, then.”

He nodded.

“I hope inspector Prakash is quite happy with you for the achievement,” she said.

“Yes, he is. And he is going to host a party to celebrate the success this week.”

“Oh, it sounds interesting.”

Prakash arrived along with the security guard. “I attended a meeting with my boss.” He looked at Mayur. “He wants us to close this case early as the victim worked for an IT giant. We will have pressure from the company if the case is delayed.”

“We’ve been working together for the past few years and solved multiple cases. I don’t understand why your officials don’t have confidence in us.”

“It may be because you never meet the officials and update them on what’s going on. Their anxiety will be lessened if you talk to them often during and after the cases.”

Mayur looked at Aisha and then at Prakash, smiling. “I don’t want to interfere with you and your bosses. I’m a consultant and work for you and my responsibility is to concentrate on the case.”

A couple of forensic experts, wearing white and green uniforms, entered holding magnifying glasses. They exchanged greetings with Mayur, Prakash, and Aisha and then continued to look for any shreds of evidence using their tools.

“Did you guys find anything significant this morning?” Prakash asked.

One of the technicians stopped searching for the clues and turned to Prakash. “Four important clues have been collected, Sir.” He paused for a moment and swallowed. “A Pizza Hut cap, a shirt button possibly of the Pizza Hut uniform, a cigarette butt, and footprints.”

“Oh,” said Prakash. “We’ve got a considerable amount of clues to proceed with the case.”

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A Book Review – Evil under the Sun by Agatha Christie

Evil Under The Sun – A Book Review

*Synopsis: A beautiful woman called Arlena Marshall has been killed in Smuggler’s Island of Leathercombe Bay. The finger of suspicion points at several guests who stay in Jolly Roger Hotel situated on the island. The major suspects include Arlena’s husband, Kenneth Marshall, her stepdaughter, Linda Marshal, and her love interest Patrick Redfern, but Hercule Poirot suspects that this apparent crime of passion conceals more evil. He chases down the alibis and applies his grey cells though the local police inspector thinks the murder is connected to the drug mafia and decides to hand over the case to Scotland Yard. Eventually, he succeeds in finding out the culprit with the abundance of clues which he comes across along the way.

*Major Characters:

Arlena Marshal – The Victim

Kenneth Marshal – Arlena’s Husband

Linda Marshal – Arlena’s stepdaughter

Patrick Redfern – The Perpetrator

Christine Redfern – Wife of Patrick Redfern

Rosamond Darnley – one of the Guests

Mr. and Mrs. Gardner – Guests

Mrs. Brewster – Guest

Colgate – The inspector

Colonel Weston – Chief Constable

Hercule Poirot – The Detective

*Who Killed Whom, Why, How, Where, and When?

– A guest to the Smuggler’s Island called Patrick Redfern killed Arlena Marshal. Patrick grows intimate with Arlena and gets a considerable sum of money in installments from Arlena. At one point, he thinks Arlena might tell her husband, Kenneth Marshall, that she gave the money to Patrick and Kenneth might question him. Hence, before Kenneth Marshal gets to know that Patrick Redfern took money from his wife, Arlena, Patrick decides to kill her with the help of his accomplice, Christine Redfern.

Patrick chooses a place near the island called Pixy Cove to kill Arlena. He asks Arlena to be there in the morning. He tells his accomplice – Christine Redfern, also go there at the same time. Christine pretends to be dead on the pixy cove by lying on the sand with her chest touching down and a cardboard cap covering her neck and head.

At that time, Patrick goes to Pixy Cove along with Mrs. Brewster in a boat. He falsely declares to Mrs. Brewster that the woman lying on the sand is Arlena and she is dead. Immediately, Mrs. Brewster returns to the island to get the police to the pixy cove. Once her boat disappears from the sight, Christine hurries to return to the hotel. At this time, Arlena has been hiding at the rocks of the Pixy cove. After Christine leaves, Patrick goes to her and strangles her to death.

*How the murderer is found by the detective?

The following are the clues which Hercule Poirot chased down.

– A scent, Gabrielle No 8

– A pair of scissors

– A broken pipe Stem

– A bottle thrown from the window

– A green calendar

– A packet of candles

– A mirror and a typewriter

– A skin of magenta wool

– A girl’s wrist watch

– Bath water rushing down the waste-pipe

*Details of the clues

– A scent of Gabrielle No. 8

During the investigation, Poirot finds that inside the pixy cove and between the narrow rocks, where Arlena hides, there is a smell of the above scent. He finds that there are only two people on the island who uses that scent – Arlena Marshall and Rosamond Darnley. He rules out the possibility of Mrs. Darnley and concludes that Arlena hid there when Christine came to the pixy cave followed by Patrick and Mrs. Brewster.

– A pair of Scissors

This is the clue left by Christine at the Pixy Cove which proves costly for her and which helps Hercule Poirot to trace the culprit. These scissors are used by Christine to cut the cardboard hat into small pieces.

– Brown pipe stem

This belongs to Kenneth Marshall and is left by Patrick and Christine to misguide the investigator and point the finger of suspicion towards Kenneth.

– A bottle thrown from the window

This is the suntan used by Christine Redfern to turn her skin brownish, similar to that of Arlena Marshall. Christine applies this suntan from her room and then throws the bottle which falls on Mrs. Emily Brewster on the beach.

– A green calendar

This is found in the fire of Linda’s room. It is burnt along with the pieces of cardboard hat. This is burnt to hide the evidence of hat.

– A mirror and the typewriter

This provides an alibi for Kenneth Marshall who is seen typing between quarter to eleven and quarter to twelve as seen by Rosamond Darnley.

– A girl’s wrist watch

Christine forwards Linda’s watch by twenty minutes to provide an alibi for herself. Between these twenty minutes, she changes her dress, goes to the pixy cove, pretend herself as dead in the form of Arlena and return to the Jolly Roger Hotel.

– Bath water rushing down the waste pipe

The evidence says that the heard someone taking bath and heard the water rushing down the waste pipe. Poirot thinks and later finds that it is Christine Redfern who took bath to wash off the suntan soon after returning from Pixy Cove and before going to the tennis court with Linda.

* What sort of person was the murderer?

Patrick Redfern has a history of killing someone with the help of Christine Redfern. The previous successful murder encourages him to commit the current second murder. Edward Corrigan (Patrick Redfern) kills his wife, Alice Corrigan, in the same way. He comes from the office to a café, finds that Alice is not there and then goes and kills her before returning to the café.

*What sort of person was the victim?

Arlena Marshall is considered a fool and stupid by other characters in the story. Everyone says she attracted many men towards her, but Poirot says it is other way around. Patrick Redfern fools her by saying he will invest her money in the stock market and make it grow. But Arlena fails to understand his motive.

*What wrong turn, if any, did the investigator take?

Police-constable Weston decides the case is of smugglers who killed Arlena and decides to handover it to the Scotland Yard. Poirot too thinks it might be Kenneth Marshal or Linda who killed Arlena.

*Who apart from the murderer had anything to hide?

Kenneth Marshal and Rosamond Darnley plan for an alibi for Kenneth by saying he was busy typing a letter and saw Rosamond in the mirror. But Poirot thinks why Kenneth moved the table from near the window to the middle of them?

*Summary

It was a fun to read yet another story by Agatha Christie. The plot is well structured and takes the reader from the beginning to the end without boring. The Entire story is narrated in a third person omniscient point of view. The best chapter is the place where Hercule Poirot reveals the findings of the investigation in an interesting manner.

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Creating Characters in Fiction

The role of characters is important in fiction. They are essential elements of your novel and without them, your story becomes banal. One should make sure that the characters have overall purposes as well as a scene purpose. They should fit the story world which we have built and must be different from one another in both major and minor ways. All the major characters should have a well defined motive. Without motive, your story will become mundane. They should have goals and those goals should be compatible with the goals of the other characters.

For example, in my second novel, ‘Rohita a Love Story’, the protagonist Milind has a goal of leaving Rohita in America and come back and wed his girlfriend, Esha. And the antagonist, Rohita has a motive of settling in America as a physician and she takes help of another major character, Ravi to achieve her goal.

The characters should need to want something – an object, success etcetera. They should also share the related goals wants with the other characters.

Characters must respond when something eventful happens in the scene containing a set of characters. All those characters must respond. In order for the plot to move forward and tension to build up, characters need to respond. The response includes thought, dialogue and action.

In my novel, the scenes contain the dialogues between Milind and Rohita where in the characters acts and responds to move the plot forward. The story contains enough thoughts of the pov character which shows what that character is thinking in his mind.

Characters need challenges for the story to move forward. One should make sure the major character’s challenge will last until the end of the story as otherwise, the novel will be bound to finish early. The characters in the story should make the reader feel emotional through their responses, action, dialogues, and thoughts.

In my novel, Milind has enough challenges until the end of the story and he finally succeeds in returning to India after leaving Rohita in America but only to find that his girlfriend Esha is engaged to someone else.

The following are the categories of the characters:

Protagonist (Milind): The protagonist is the lead character of the story. In mysteries, he is the sleuth. In romances, it can be either hero or heroine. Make sure that your story has the lead character and she has the predefined goal. The protagonist should be introduced early in the story. He should have an internal opposition. One should make the major character stand out from the rest of the characters in the story. They should be memorable and vulnerable.

Antagonist (Rohita, Ravi): He stands in opposition to the main character. He can be the viewpoint character for some scenes. The antagonist can also have his strength and weaknesses.

Secondary characters (Rishi, Brinda etcetera): These can appear quite often in the story. They could be friends or family members of the protagonist. They have a major role in the story as they can include problem, setup barriers to the main character, or provide assistant to the major character. One should link the secondary character to the protagonist and antagonist with emotion and background story.

Supporting characters (Larry, Snehal): These will get a decent amount of page time in the novel. They fall between secondary characters and background characters. They include co-workers, family members and the contacts of major characters.

Background characters (Waiter, taxi driver): These are the nameless characters. They don’t need history, any detailed description, and very little dialogue. These characters include the taxi drivers, delivery boys, receptionist etcetera.

Viewpoint characters (Milind and Rohita): Any character can be a viewpoint character, but one usually has the protagonist as a viewpoint character. He is the one who has a major stake in the story. One may have one character viewpoint to one particular scene or a chapter.

In my novel, I have an alternating pov between Milind and Rohita.

What kind of characters have you created in your story which you wrote recently? Can you share who the pov character is and their goals and motivations?

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Book Review: The Murder On The Links by Agatha Christie

It is one of the best and cleverly plotted novels by Agatha Christie. I’ve read a few of her books (Murder on the Orient Express, The Lord Edgware Dies, And Then There Were None, Death on the Nile) but this one stands out from the rest because of the plot twists and red herrings planted in the story.

The book is written in the first person point of view with Poirot’s friend, Hastings as the narrator. He describes the story in an appealing way from beginning to the end as he works with Poirot to unravel the mystery. I can say Hastings becomes a reliable source of information and is believable throughout the novel.

The story is set in Paris and England and a small suburb called Merlinvillae. And the characters in the story are the residents of Villa Genevieve and Villa Margareta. The book begins with a letter sent to the detective Poirot by a character, Paul T. Renauld, seeking help. But when Poirot goes there along with Hastings, they find that M. Renauld is already dead. As per the request by the commissary of the police, M. Bex and the examining magistrate M. Hautet, Poirot decides to investigate the case and find the perpetrator.

Poirot finds a letter in the overcoat pocket of M. Renauld, written by a woman called Bella. Madame Renauld (Paul Renauld’s wife) tells Poirot that two masked men came to her house and bound and gagged her before taking M Renauld away. She says the men in mask asked her husband some secret which M. Renauld refused to reveal it to them. The dead body of M. Renauld is found in a golf link in an open grave. Poirot finds that M. Renauld wore an oversized coat and he was stabbed at his back by an airplane dagger.

Poirot comes across another detective, M. Giraud, who often mocks at Poirot during their investigations. At one stage in the story, Poirot tells Hastings that he will not go to places like Giraud to get the leads but rather wait for people like Giraud to bring the clues for him.

The main suspects in the story include M. Renauld’s son, Jack Renauld, his girlfriend, Marthe Daubreuil, Bella Duveen (who wrote a letter which is found in the overcoat), and the masked men as told by Madame Renauld.

The clues found at the crime scene are an airplane dagger, a letter by Bella Duveen, over sized coat, a medicine bottle used for changing the facial appearance.

In the middle of the story, another dead body is found which complicates the matter. The body found is of a tramp who looks almost similar in physique as that of M. Renauld.

Poirot links the identity of Madame Daubreuil (Marthe’s mother) and M. Renauld to a past history of Beroldy case)which becomes a major twist and breakthrough in the story.

Overall the novel is interesting and well plotted similar to the other works by the author. But this novel has more twists and turns and interesting red herrings which makes special.

I like this story and the single person Hastings’s point of view makes the story more appealing. I would recommend this book to everyone who likes to read ‘Who did it’ genre of fiction.

You can check out my Mystery and Romance Books

HERE!

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My Next Writing Project – ‘I Still Love You’

 

I have been writing my fifth novel, ‘I Still LoveYou’, which is a full-length novel spanning around 65K words.
The novel is about Murali who is betrayed after the demise of his girlfriend, Falguni. He falls in love with a Software Engineer, Pratibha, who has been transferred to Hyderabad from Bangalore on a short time project assignment. But Pratibha is already dating Rahul and planning to get married to him after returning to Bangalore. Will Murali be successful in retaining Pratibha in his life and uniting with her?
I would like to share a portion of an initial chapter, and I hope you like the snippet.

 

Murali’s glance shifted to his buzzing cell phone placed on his desk at his office. His close friend, Prakash’s name lit the screen. He grabbed the phone and pressed the green button.
“Hey, Prakash,” Murali said, sounding jovial. It had been more than a week since they spoke last.
“Where are-” Prakash stumbled for words.
Murali’s heart started racing. What had happened to Prakash? Why is he mumbling? “Yes, tell me, Prakash. Is everything all right with you?”
“I have a bad news,” Prakash said. “But you need to control yourself.”
Bad news? Murali’s pulse quickened. What had really happened? “Yes, go ahead. What’s that bad news you’re talking about?”
“Your fiancé, Falguni -”
Why Prakash stopped in between? “Yes, tell me, Prakash.” Murali sounded excited. “What has happened to Falguni?”
“She has met with an accident.”
Murali’s heart sank. Nausea filled his mind and his vision blurred. He waited for a moment to compose himself. “Where is she now?”
“You need to control yourself, Murali. She is battling for her life in the Apollo hospital.”
Murali’s breath caught in his chest. He heaved a heavy sigh. “What the doctors are saying?”
“They’re not committing anything.” Prakash paused. “Are you planning to go and see her?”
“Yes, I should. I leave my office in a few minutes.” Murali paused and then said, “How did you get to know this?”
“Falguni’s friend called and told me the news a while ago. She wanted me to tell you the matter. She couldn’t dare to speak directly with you.”
Murali longed to see his fiancé. “Why don’t you join me? I’ll come and pick you up.”
“But Falguni’s brother-” Prakash stopped short of his words.
Even though Murali feared for Falguni’s brother, who had been trying to break their love affair, Murali needed to go there and see her. “I want to see Falguni, Prakash. And I’m not scared of her brother.” He waited for a moment and composed himself. “Where are you now?”
“I’m at my home.”
“You be there. I’ll come and pick you up.”
“All right, call me when you arrive here.”
“I will.”
Murali pressed the red button and gently threw his phone on his desk. He hadn’t expected things would turn so unfavourable to him. He had been dating Falguni for two years and they had been trying to convince their parents for the union. Everything turned upside down because of this accident. He hoped Almighty would save Falguni’s life. And he would unite with her.
Murali would’ve married to Falguni had they both belonged to the same caste. He hated Falguni’s parents for their stubborn stance over their friendship. Her parents and her brother were hindrances to their efforts to unite. Falguni’s parents were a hard nut to crack.
Murali believed his mother, Payal, would not bother whom he married because his parents belonged to two different castes.
He shifted his glance to the computer clock. It was just before noon, and he would ask for half day leave to his manager, Vikram. He needed to see Falguni. I am sure Falguni will survive and she will feel relieved after seeing me.
He crossed a few cubicles and approached Vikram, whose eyes were glued to his laptop screen; he was busy reading a technical document.
Murali cleared his throat. “Hello, Vikram.”
Vikram turned around. “Hey, Murali. What’s up?” His cheerfulness faded after seeing Murali.
“I am taking time off this afternoon.”
“Time-off? Why?” Vikram sounded curious. “Is there anything urgent?”
“Yes. I need to go to the Apollo Hospital.”
“Apollo Hospital?” Vikram looked sideways. “Is someone not well?”
“My girlfriend, Falguni, is admitted there.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Vikram knotted his brows. “What has happened to her?”
“Well-” Murali swallowed a lump in his throat. He wasn’t sure how to reveal the news.
“Yes, tell me, Murali,” Vikram said, his tone reassuring. “I’ll try to help you.”
“Falguni met with an accident.” Murali stared down at the floor.
“Oh, I’m so sorry.” Vikram paused. “Yes, you can go and see her.”
“Thank you, Vikram. I will keep you updated.”
“All right.” Vikram raised his palm, gesturing him the best.

Murali stepped out of his office. The moderate, cold wind made him shiver; the sun glowed in the centre of the clear, blue sky. The cold winter breeze obscured the warmth of the intense sun rays. Murali crossed his arms to feel balmy as he strode towards his car.
He needed to pick up Prakash before he went to the hospital. Murali had enough courage to face Falguni’s brother, who hated him. But he had promised Prakash he would pick him up; he needed to go with him.

The afternoon traffic was heavy. He waited at the intersection with patience for the red light to turn green. A traffic police tried to ease the congestion in spite of the signal lights.
Murali accelerated to cross the intersection and headed down the street. He parked his car outside Prakash’s house and called him. Prakash arrived and sat in the passenger’s seat. Murali drove out of the residential area and headed down the main street.

“You better be calm if Falguni’s brother tried to brawl with you,” Prakash said, gingerly.
Murali looked at Prakash for a moment before he fixed his gaze back on the road. “I don’t think he will argue with me as Falguni is admitted to the hospital. He will stay calm to keep up his dignity.”
Prakash remained silent. He seemingly agreed with what Murali said.
“Do you know how and where it happened?” Murali asked.
Prakash remained silent.
Murali waited for Prakash to answer; he continued looking ahead at the road.
“She was driving her scooter on the state highway,” Prakash said. “And she tried to pass a heavy vehicle.”
Murali’s hearts sank. She is hit by a heavy vehicle!
“Perhaps, it was Falguni’s fault as well. She didn’t slow her scooter even though the driver signalled her not to pass. The truck driver has confessed these facts to the police.”
Murali couldn’t believe Falguni made a mistake. She drove her scooter with care. She had been driving for the past five years. There must be some other reason for the accident. “What else her friend said?”
“Well-” Prakash stumbled for words.
“Yes, tell me. What else she told?” Murali repeated.
Prakash remained silent.
Prakash must be hiding something from me.
The hospital neared. Murali didn’t want to pursue the matter. There is no point in knowing the past. I will meet Falguni and see how she is doing. I will pray God she becomes all right.
The parking place was almost full. Murali drove past the parked vehicles and found a vacant slot; he parked and stepped out of his car.
“Where has she been admitted?” Murali asked as they marched towards the main entrance.
“In the ICU.”
Murali’s chest constricted. He hoped God would be kind to Falguni.
“We will get it confirmed,” Murali said. He walked along with Prakash to the counter located at the centre of the hall.
An attendant, in his white uniform, shifted his gaze from computer screen to Murali.
Murali cleared his throat. “I would like to meet a patient admitted to the ICU.”
The man behind the counter took a register book. “What’s the name of the patient?”
“Falguni.”
He opened the book and glanced at the contents. “The patient has been discharged.”
“Has she become alright?” Murali sounded excited.
The man paused. He started down for a moment and then said, “I am sorry. She is no more.”
Murali’s breath caught in his chest. He looked at Prakash with his eyes widened. He tried to say something but words failed him. He went to a nearby seat and collapsed on it.
Tears touched Murali’s lashes. He blamed God for snatching his girlfriend from him. He couldn’t believe Falguni died. He had taken her to the Chat Bandar at Koti the previous evening. What had happened now? I don’t think she is no more. I’ll go to her home and see she is still alive. God can’t snatch my love from me.
He buried his face in his palms and cried. He cried and cried until Pradeep put his hand on Murali’s shoulder.
“Murali, please console yourself. We don’t have any control over births and deaths. It’s all in Almighty’s hands.”
“No, Prakash. I can’t believe Falguni is no more. She is still alive. I want to go to her home and see her alive. She can’t leave me alone.”
“I told you to relieve yourself. You need to believe what the hospital staff said.” Prakash paused, holding Murali’s hand. “It is better you don’t go to her home.”
“How can I-”
“I know,” Prakash said. “I know you loved her and want to see her. But you need to safeguard yourself. Her brother has already threatened you not to see her, right?”
Murali stared down, contemplating. He did scare when Falguni’s brother had cautioned him. But Falguni loved him; she had told Murali not to care about what her brother had said. And her assurance had made Murali continue his friendship. “Let him do whatever he wants to. I would like to see my friend.” Murali rose. He waited for Pradeep to join him.
But Prakash remained seated on the chair. Maybe, he was scared of some backlashes at Falguni’s home.
“I can go alone if you don’t want to join me.” Murali grimaced.
Prakash stared down; he sighed; he shifted his glance back to Murali. “Okay, let’s go.”
Murali slid behind the wheel and drove towards Falguni’s home. Seated in the car, he glanced at her home premises through the main gate. A few people, in their white dresses, stood in groups. Murali located a vacant slot among the parked vehicles and parked his car.
His heart sank and it pounded to his ribcage. Falguni really went to the almighty. Many people had gathered to pay their homage.
“I still suggest you not to attend the funeral, Murali,” Prakash said.
“You are too scared, Prakash.” Murali stepped out of his car. He pressed the remote; the car chirped, locking its doors.
He went past the people in white dresses and stepped into the porch. Prakash followed him. Murali’s eyes welled with tears. Falguni was laid on the floor of the living room with a white sheet draped over her body. The face was also covered. Perhaps, her head was also injured. Murali wailed aloud and hid his face in Prakash’s chest. Prakash rubbed his back and tried to take him to the living room.
“Don’t get inside.” Someone shouted while Murali approached the main door.
He shifted his glace towards the source, his eyes widened. Falguni’s brother, his nostrils flared, looked at Murali. His breath increased when Murali continued looking at him.
“It’s all because of you, you know that?” Falguni’s brother approached and held Murali’s collar tight. “I told you to leave my sister alone. Had you listened, my sister would’ve been alive.”
Murali held his hands and tried to loosen his clutches. He wondered how he was responsible for Falguni’s death. Falguni too loved him and she often told him not to care what her brother said. Her brother’s claim that Murali was responsible for her death puzzled him.
Falguni’s brother dragged him by his collar. “Leave the premises, now.”
“But-”
“I don’t want to listen to your words anymore.” Falguni’s brother dragged him towards the porch steps.
Prakash held his hands. “Let me take him outside.” He freed Murali from his clutches. He shoved Murali out of the scene by placing his hands on Murali’s back.
Murali continued looking back at the porch as they went out of the main gate.
“I told you not to attend the funeral,” Prakash breathed heavy. “Thank God I’m with you.”
Murali remained silent. He wiped his tears with a hanky. “I never expected God will snatch Falguni from me.” He composed himself, seated in the car.
Falguni’s brother complained Murali was responsible for her death. Murali tried hard to understand his words. “Did you hear what her brother said?” Murali sounded astonished.
Prakash avoided his gaze.
Murali suspected something took place before Falguni met with an accident. “Prakash, do you know what really happened before the accident?” He waited, hoping for Murali to tell the truth.
Prakash continued staring down for a moment and then said, “She argued with her parents and brother about your affair before she met with her accident.”
Murali’s blood rushed through his veins. Falguni had been trying to seek her parents’ consent to marry Murali. It is her parents and brother who is responsible for her death, and not me.
Murali prayed God may Falguni’s soul rest in peace.

Did it create an interest in you? Share your thoughts and let me know!

 

 

 

The First Draft

Once you conceive an idea of a story in your mind, the next important thing is to create 75,000 words or so of entertaining fiction. You can start writing with only the kernel of an idea. The kernel will guide you till you write the last chapter. Or you can plot the novel well in advance with proper events that take place in your story.

Plotters will plan and write the story events before writing the first word of the novel. And pantsers are known to write with their seats of the pants, writing with some sense of freedom. Both plotters and pantsers will reach their end of the novel, but the quality of the story depends on how well the novel is written.

Write events, scenes, dialogues, and descriptions. Let the words flow from your mind and hands in the first draft. Write whatever comes to your mind. But write.

It’s okay to skip the scene as you’re writing and add it later when you feel comfortable writing it. Use your imagination to turn that initial draft into a complete story. Make sure that you complete the first draft before you rewrite or edit.

First drafts have a lot of errors and problems. Writers need not worry about its weaknesses. It is allowed to be lacking. But it’s not allowed to remain that way. The first draft is just a beginning which means there is more. You don’t need to be ashamed of it and don’t need to show it to others. The first draft is allowed to be messy, bloated and full of loopholes. It’s allowed to be too much and too little at the same time. The first draft is meant to rip apart and reform it; to change it and to mangle it.

Give yourself something to with a first draft and then go to work. Tackle the deep and wide tasks of rewriting and editing.

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You can check out my Mystery and Romance Books

HERE!

My Social Media Accounts are:

https://www.instagram.com/author_vijay_kerji

https://www.facebook.com/vkkerji

So, please stay tuned for my next post!