The Sittaford Mystery

For listeners who know and love Agatha Christie, this BBC Radio production satisfies moderately. For those who know Christie less well, it will satisfy admirably. The story is a classic. In the midst of a Dartmoor blizzard, cocktail-party friends play a table-tipping séance-game during which a murder is announced. What silliness, they think, until they learn that someone was murdered at the moment they were playing their game. Quality British actors render the mix of village characters expertly, and sound effects--from closing doors to crunching snow--add to the pleasure. A couple of complaints: Springtime chirping birds are used repeatedly to signal winter outdoor scenes, and the story's Australian characters sound so English that listeners miss an important plot point. But don't let those problems stop you, as this is a satisfying listen. A.C.S. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

The beautiful, resourceful, and highly intelligent Emily Trefuses really deserves her own series in the Christie oeuvre, but instead she appears the one time in this neat little charmer. Emily arrives on the scene to rescue her ne'er-do-well fiancé, Jim, who is the prime suspect in the death of his uncle, one Captain Enderby. The fun comes in when neighbors, pursuing a party game known as "making the table talk," receive a message from beyond: M-U-R-D-E-R! Fine entertainment, that. Nathaniel Parker has a finely nuanced voice that lends itself perfectly to the steadily plodding DCI and the over-the-top-Australians who come over just to see a real winter. Great fun and an extra little surprise ending. No one does it better than Agatha Christie. D.G. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine