There's a reason why Agatha Christie knew so much about poisons.

This archive episode of Shedunnit was first published on 1st April 2020.

Books and sources:
—The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
—A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie by Kathryn Harkup
—"In a Dispensary" by Agatha Christie from the collection The Road of Dreams
—Agatha Christie: A Biography by Janet Morgan
—An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
—Guardian Obituary: Rosalind Hicks by Janet Morgan
—The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
—Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
—"Dame Agatha's Dispensary" by Eunice Bonow Bardell in Pharmacy in History, Vol. 26, No. 1 (1984)

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Ronaldo Fagarazzi joins Caroline for a 1920s serial killer mystery.

No major plot spoilers until you hear Caroline say we are "entering the spoiler zone", at 21:21. After that, expect full spoilers.

Read more about John Rhode at Ronaldo's blog, witnesstothecrime.wordpress.com.

A full list of titles in the Penguin series can be found at penguinfirsteditions.com. The next book discussed in this series will be Mr Justice Raffles by E.W. Hornung.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Have His Carcase by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode
— Bloody Murder by Julian Symons
— Dead Men at the Folly by John Rhode
— The Secret of High Eldersham by Miles Burton
— Devil's Reckoning by Miles Burton
— The Thinking Machine by Jacques Futrelle
— Hendon's First Case by John Rhode
— Death in the Tunnel by Miles Burton
— The Lodger by Marie Belloc Lowndes
— The Silk Stocking Murders by Anthony Berkeley
— Murder Gone Mad by Philip MacDonald
— Some Must Watch by Ethel Lina White
— The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie
— The Case of the Monday Murders by Christopher Bush
— Howard's End by E.M. Forster
— The Paddington Mystery by John Rhode
— Dr Priestley's Quest by John Rhode
— The Mystery of Angelina Frood by R. Austin Freeman
— The Aluminium Dagger by R. Austin Freeman
— The Wheel Spins by Ethel Lina White
— Green for Danger by Christianna Brand

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Telephone Call
— The Detection Club

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Why did Dorothy L. Sayers hate the first Peter Wimsey film so much?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Floating Admiral by the Detection Club
— Ask A Policeman by the Detection Club
— Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace
— The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Five Red Herrings by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Busman's Honeymoon by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Murder Must Advertise by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Blood and Sand by Vicente Blasco Ibañez
— "The Silent Passenger" by Dorothy L. Sayers
— Death at Broadcasting House by Val Gielgud and Holt Marvell
— The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club by Dorothy L. Sayers
— "The Mystery of the Spanish Chest" by Agatha Christie
— The Cask by Freeman Wills Crofts
— Lord Peter Views the Body by Dorothy L. Sayers

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Are Agatha Christie’s stories as chaste as they seem?

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— Lady Chatterley’s Lover by DH Lawrence
— A Question of Proof by Nicholas Blake
— There’s Trouble Brewing by Nicholas Blake
— End of Chapter by Nicholas Blake
— The Sad Variety by Nicholas Blake
— Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— The Plumed Serpent by DH Lawrence
— Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence
— The White Peacock by DH Lawrence
— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
— The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
— The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie
— The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie
— They Do it with Mirrors by Agatha Christie
— What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw! by Agatha Christie
— Double Sin by Agatha Christie
— "The Herb of Death" by Agatha Christie
— A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie
— The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side by Agatha Christie
— A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie
— Nemesis by Agatha Christie
— Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie
— "The Tuesday Night Club" by Agatha Christie
— Towards Zero by Agatha Christie
— The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie
— Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie
— Lady C: The Long Sensational Life of Lady Chatterley’s Lover by Guy Cuthbertson

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What George Orwell can teach us about detective fiction.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books and essays mentioned in this episode:
— "Decline of the English Murder" by George Orwell
— Animal Farm by George Orwell
— The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins
— "The Vernon Murder" by George Orwell
— The Return of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle
— "The Ethics of the Detective Story from Raffles to Miss Blandish" by George Orwell
— No Orchids for Miss Blandish by James Hadley
— "The Simple Art of Murder" by Raymond Chandler

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The childhood nightmare that informed a crime writing career.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— An Autobiography by Agatha Christie
— Giant's Bread by Mary Westmacott
— Unfinished Portrait by Mary Westmacott
— "The House of Dreams" by Agatha Christie
— Come, Tell Me How You Live by Agatha Christie
— Peril at End House by Agatha Christie
— Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie
— Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie
— Third Girl by Agatha Christie
— At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie
— Elephants Can Remember by Agatha Christie
— Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie
— Sleeping Murder by Agatha Christie
— Absent in the Spring by Mary Westmacott

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Jim Noy joins Caroline for some Jolly Adventures in a castle.

No major plot spoilers until you hear Caroline say we are "entering the spoiler zone", at 14:58. After that, expect full spoilers.

Please note: This book contains the deliberate killing of an animal, which is discussed from 36:57 to 40:18.

A full list of titles in the Penguin series can be found at penguinfirsteditions.com. The next book discussed in this series will be The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Sanfield Scandal by Richard Keverne
— Carteret's Cure by Richard Keverne
— The Pretender by Clifford Hosken
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L. Sayers and Robert Eustace
— The Famous Five adventure novels by Enid Blyton
— The Abbey Girls Series by Elsie J. Oxenham
— The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie
— The Nine Tailors by Dorothy L. Sayers
— The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey
— The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie
— The Problem of the Green Capsule by John Dickson Carr
— The Murders in Praed Street by John Rhode

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Locked Room
— The Long Shadow of Edgar Allan Poe

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What could possibly go wrong?

Books and stories mentioned in this episode:

— "The Perfect Plan" by James Hilton

— Lost Horizon by James Hilton

— Goodbye, Mr. Chips by James Hilton

— Murder at School by James Hilton

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The fascinating history of divorce in detective fiction.

My guest was Dr Jen Aston, Associate Professor in Law at Northumbria University. In addition to her other academic work, she's currently leading a project looking at approaches to the history of divorce. Learn more about that at northumbria.ac.uk/divorce_history.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— "Murder!" by Arnold Bennett, collected in Resorting to Murder
— Jumping Jenny by Anthony Berkeley
— “The Case of the Discontented Husband” by Agatha Christie, collected in Parker Pyne Investigates
— Death in High Heels by Christianna Brand
— Busman's Honeymoon by Dorothy L Sayers
— The Documents in the Case by Dorothy L Sayers and Robert Eustace
— Malice Aforethought by Francis Iles
— Holy Deadlock by A.P. Herbert
— Love All by Dorothy L Sayers
— Clouds of Witness by Dorothy L Sayers
— "The Incredible Elopement" by Dorothy L Sayers, collected in Hangman's Holiday

Related Shedunnit episodes:
— The Lady Detective

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Some book links are affiliate links, meaning that the podcast receives a small commission when you purchase a book there (the price remains the same for you).

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The best murder mysteries transport us to another era.

Support the podcast by joining the Shedunnit Book Club and get extra Shedunnit episodes every month plus access to the monthly reading discussions and community: shedunnitbookclub.com/join.

Books mentioned in this episode:
— The Conjure-Man Dies by Rudolph Fisher
— Mystery in the Channel by Freeman Wills Croft
— The Walls of Jericho by Rudolph Fisher

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