Partners in Crime audiobook

This may be an unpopular opinion, but Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are my favorite of Agatha Christie's detectives. Poirot is brilliant and much appreciated, but Tommy and Tuppence are charmingly brilliant and absolutely hilarious. I love these short stories, in which the Beresfords take over a detective agency and solve a series of crimes of varying severity. Throughout, they refer to their "shelf of masters", adapting the mannerisms and techniques of various literary detectives, to hilarious effect. My favorite is Tommy's mangled violin playing as he apes Sherlock Holmes.

This is a fun set of Tommy & Tuppence short stories.Once it gets going, our duo decides to pick different fictional detectives to imitate the styles of for each case. It was fun researching who some of the references were for and who was the author of the stories.A Fairy in the FlatThis one isn't really a mystery or a short story. It's just the opening set up that tells you how Tommy and Tuppence take over a detective agency under false names to help the government suss out spies.A Pot of TeaThis shows Tuppence's ability to think outside of the box.With no real clients to speak of, Mrs. Tommy comes up with an ingenious idea that helps the Internation Detective Agency drum up some clients, while simultaneously helping her friend get the man of her dreams.Not a true mystery, but still fun!The Affair of the Pink PearlI'm going to be honest, I wasn't crazy about this story when I read it a few years back and I still didn't find it all that impressive this time around.Sorry. There were some missing jewels in a home that had a few houseguests. There was the socialist no one liked, a potential klepto houseguest, her maid, and a surly daughter who didn't want anyone investigating.The mystery was ish and the best part is just all the banter between T & T.The Adventure of the Sinister StrangerTommy decides that this time around he and Tuppence will be Valentine Williams' famous (at the time, at least) Okewood Brothers.After receiving a blue letter that looks like it might be from the spies, a sinister stranger asks them for help. Is he a bad guy or is he just another client?The ending is one of those that you can kind of see coming from a mile away, but it was still an ok addition to the collection.Finessing the King/The Gentleman Dressed in NewspaperAlthough this story was called Finessing the King when originally published in The Sketch magazine in 1924, the story is sometimes split into 2 parts in certain editions of Partners in Crime and the second half of the story is called The Gentleman Dressed in Newspaper.In this one Tommy and Tuppence decide to act like Isabel Ostrander's fictional detectives McCarty and Riordan.Tuppence wants to dance and convinces Tommy to go to a costume party. A couple sits next to them in a booth (he is dressed in newspaper), and a few minutes later they hear her cry out, him laugh, and then he leaves. They get curious when she doesn't appear and go check it out.Stabbed through the heart, she dies in Tuppence's arms after whispering Bingo did it. But did Bingo do it?The Case of the Missing LadyThe solution to this mystery was funny!An explorer returns after 2 years to find his fiancee missing. Or at least, she's not where he thought she would be and he can't seem to track her down.He doesn't like her aunt because she's fat and he has an aversion to chubby women, so he thinks the woman is lying to him for some unknown reason about the whereabouts of her niece. Now, he doesn't want to call the police because he knows it will embarrass his lady love if she's just somewhere vacationing with friends.Hence, Tommy & Tuppence. They go through a whole thing to find her, and eventually end up thinking she's been kidnapped by a cult-y evil scientist type. They stage a rescue and everything only to find out that(view spoiler)[ the place she's at is actually a secret "health spa" for women who are trying to lose weight. Yes, it's iffy. But the man running it isn't holding her against her will or experimenting on her. She'd just gained quite a bit of weight while her fiancee was out of the country and was trying to drop it before he saw her again. (hide spoiler)]At the end of the story Tommy imitates Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, calling Tuppence Watson and saying, "And you will oblige me by not placing this case upon your records. It has no distinctive features.This one was my favorite just for the laughs.Blindman's BuffTommy & Tuppence have been found out!Tommy has been impersonating a crooked private investigator who was working for nefarious people that British intelligence wanted to keep an eye on. Mr. Carter (Tommy & Tuppence's boss) has informed them to be on the lookout for anyone suspicious because rumor has it that their cover has been blown and they may need to get out of there.As with a lot of these short stories, T & T try on the styles of different literary detectives for each story. In this one, Tommy decides he'll be Clinton H. Stagg's blind detective, Thornley Colton. He's hamming it up for Tuppence when things go wrong.The Man in the MistTommy & Tuppence solve the mystery of an airhead actress.In this one, Tommy is dressed as G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown. Not one of my favorites, but still a decent short. The CracklerA very cute Tommy & Tuppence mystery!First published in the magazine The Sketch in 1924.Inspector Marriot sets the duo on the trail of someone or a gang of someones who are passing fake money. And since bills crackle, Tommy hilariously decides to refer to the unknown leader as The Crackler.Really, Tommy?Tuppence and Mr. Tuppence get sucked into the world of high-stakes gambling and have quite a fun adventure before they uncover the ringleader of the forgers.This was one of my favorites, mostly due to the interactions of the adorable married detectives. The Sunningdale MysteryIn this short story, Tommy emulates Baroness Orczy's nameless armchair detective in The Old Man in the Corner.Another book to add to my TBR. So, Tommy & Tuppence are out to lunch when he pulls out a newspaper clipping of a murder and has her play the part of a reporter (Polly Burton) from the Orczy novel. They decide to try to solve the case with their wits alone.And they do!But how to convince the police of their findings? The House of Lurking DeathA proper mystery!A lot of these Tommy & Tuppence shorts are kind of silly. I mean, one of the fun things about this collection is that it's just these two doing goofy stuff, flirt-fussing at each other, and still managing to solve a case or three. However, this is a twisty poisoning case worthy of Poirot or Marple.Or A.E.W. Mason's Inspector Hanaud? Because that's who the Beresfords attempt to copy this time around. Hanaud is played by Tommy, of course. And Tuppence acts as his assistant, Ricardo, who is (traditionally) left in the dark till the last minute.The Unbreakable AlibiA mystery without a crime.A well-off (but not very bright) young man comes in to get a bit of help winning a bet and hopefully the girl of his dreams. A smart and sassy Australian woman bets Montgomery Jones that he can't prove that she wasn't in TWO places at the same time.And while a first glance it does indeed seem that this lovely young lady has superpowers, the Beresfords aren't ones to be easily fooled. The Clergyman's Daughter / The Red HouseTommy and Tuppence investigate a haunted house!A clergyman's daughter comes to the detective agency because she and her invalid mother inherited a house that may be haunted. They've been trying to let the house to borders but the odd seemingly supernatural disturbances have driven everyone away.Meanwhile, there's a man from the paranormal society that wants to buy the house from her. BUT! She has her doubts that he's what he claims to be. The Ambassador's BootsA US ambassador's bag was given to the wrong man and then returned by the other man's valet.Nothing was missing and it seemed to be an honest mistake.But something doesn't sit right with the ambassador and he asks Tommy & Tuppence to look into it for him. This one is cute but not one of my favorites as it gets a bit convoluted by the end of things.Sherlock Holmes is mentioned in this story, which is cool because at the time this was written Doyle was still writing about Holmes and Watson. The Man Who Was No. 16This is the last case for the Beresfords' fake detective agency!Well, the cases they solve are real enough, but they are actually there as spies. The real Theodore Blunt of The Blunt Detective Agency is rotting away in prison while Tommy impersonates him in the hopes of finding out information useful to British intelligence.This time around Christie goes completely meta and Tommy and Tuppence decide to imitate the famous detective Hercule Poirot.That was probably my favorite thing about the whole story, if I'm going to be honest. Christie has been tipping her hat to all of the other famous writers of her day in the other shorts, and I like that she ended this by tooting her own horn a bit.This one sees Tuppence get kidnapped by the elusive No.16 while Tommy, Albert, and the police in a desperate race against time to try to find her.But of course, it ends with the capture of the agent, Tuppence home safely, and the announcement of her pregnancy. And that is when they decide to retire from all the excitement.For now, at least.Highly recommended for fans of Tommy and Tuppence.["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>["br"]>

One of my favourite Agatha Christie books so far. Great fun and completely delightful.

I really do love me some early Christie short stories... I thought this was just such a fun time. There are definitely some weaker stories in here, but overall, the banter between T&T was delightful & I enjoyed watching them ape different detectives from Golden Age detective fiction (we even get a Poirot shout out!). This isn't the best of the short story collections, but it's definitely one that shouldn't be missed

A collection of short stories within a story. Tommy and Tuppence impersonate Mr Blunt who runs an international detective agency which is a front for Russian spies. The two detectives undertake a series of investigations which parodies the styles of well-known detective writers of that era. A Fairy in the Flat/A Pot of Tea introduces Tommy and Tuppence at the International Detective Agency. There first case is an amusing one about a missing girl which Tuppence solves. The Affair of the Pink Pearl – This first real case is over missing pearls. A bit of a soapy tale. The Adventure of the Sinister Stranger is an espionage story where the Russians suspect something amiss. Thanks to a silver cigarette case Tommy lives to investigate another day. Finessing the King Is a two part story where a woman is murdered and the clues lead to her lover or do they? Her husband appears innocent. The ending is a bit gruesome. The Case of the Missing Lady is amusing and goes over where a Norwegians explorer fiancée has disappeared too. Her obese aunt is very vague about her whereabouts. T&T find her with a twist. The Man in the Mist is about Gilda Glen a Star who T&T are to meet. On a misty night on there way to the rendezvous they encounter a policeman on a misty night. Murder occurs and it points to an unlikely suspect or does it?The Crackler – A comical story about counterfeit one pound notes. A gambler and apparently rich American. The crosses and n the door fail but Tommy has something up his sleeve. The Sunningdale Mystery tells the story of a man stabbed to death on a golf course. T&T over lunch go over the details during lunch and come up with the answer which exonerates the suspected woman. The House of Lurking Death is about Lois Hargreaves and who is trying to kill her. Recently inheriting a fortune and suspecting her cousin after several members of the family are poisoned by arsenic tainted chocolates. Things take a grim turn with fig paste. Always follow the money motive. The Unbreakable Alibi is an amusing story about how someone can be in two places at the same time.The Clergyman's Daughter/The Red House is about a poor woman who inherits a house with strange apparent supernatural events and which someone wants to buy. Buried treasure is involved. The Ambassador's Boots a tale of switched bags and smuggling. The Man Who Was No. 16 ties everything up and is a parody of Christie's own The Big Four. I liked where they found Tommy and the book ends with the happy news of a visit from the stork.

Loved all of Tommy and Tuppence's banter and the cleverly placed references to other famous sleuths of the 'Golden age of crime'. Some mysteries were definitely better than others, but overall this collection was just a lot of fun to read!

I think I’m addicted to Agatha Christie’s books! I love her writing style. And I love the mystery in all her cases. I decided that I’m going to buy all her books. No matter how many did she write, I want them all! 😍

4.5 *Aceasta parte a doua a seriei Tommy si Tuppence este o colectie de investigatii scurte dar bine puse la punct de catre sotii Beresford. Intreaga naratiune este comica, Tommy fiind un personaj tare simpatic.Preferatul meu, insa, ramane Hercule Poirot.

Ratings - 4/5

The best Tommy and Tuppence I've read. It's a collection of short stories - maybe that's why. The characters get to shine without bogging down the whole thing with their antics. T&T are my least favorite Christie characters by far, I really didn't expect to like this book. It also helped that the stories were centered more on simpler, cosier mystery, not espionage.

Written as a series of connected but also mostly stand-alone short stories, Partners in Crime shows Tommy and Tuppence a little older, hopefully wiser, and enjoying life as detectives of their "own" agency.Once again, I'm amazed at the fact that I still love Miss Marple a little more than these two, because really, they are marvelous. Each comes out swinging at just the right times and still makes blunders. I love it and I love the relationship she gives this couple. So often there are petty jealousies in detective partnerships, and they're even worse if married. I love how Christie kept the marriage strong and yet not too perfect, either.The various stories kept my interest, although a few were a little too easy to figure out. Then again, I enjoyed reading them so much that I kept the five stars for enjoyment rather than bumping it down one for difficulty.

I love Tommy and Tuppence I find their stories entertaining and fun to read and these short stories are no different to the full books.Witty (and yes dated but it was written in 1929) and a hark back to books that romped through adventure after adventure.A cracking read, a full 4 star book.

This is a book of short, light tales featuring Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, a young married couple. Life has been dull lately so when Inspector Marriott arrives with a proposition for the young couple, they jump at the chance to run Mr. Blount's detective agency. While they wait to catch a Communist spy, they solve several other cases ranging from missing people, to stolen goods to murder! Each case is in the style of a famous fictional detective. Tommy has been reading a lot and pretends to be the detective from a story. There's a wide variety of sleuths from armchair sleuths to Sherlock Holmes, even Hercule Poirot! That was a little weird.I love this young couple. They're a lot of fun. Their witty banter is entertaining and gives a good sense of the time period following the first World War. I didn't get much of a romantic vibe until the end when it becomes clear home much Tommy cares for Tuppence and what their next adventure will be. I liked the lighter stories more than the murder mysteries. I didn't like how they don't really show any shock or sadness at the deaths they encounter, except for once and mainly because Tommy feels guilty for waiting to deal with his client's problem until the next day. That murder was really, truly horribly sad. The other female victim was a true victim of male patriarchy and that one made me upset too. Some of the mysteries are quite fun. I enjoyed figuring out how a woman could be in two places at once. That one was easy. I also liked figuring out the treasure hunt clues. Basically I fail at sleuthing because the only case I figured out before the sleuths was the alibi. The stories about Communist spies are pretty scary. I was on the edge of my bed wondering how our sleuths were going to get out of trouble! The last story was especially tense and I stayed up late to finish it. I don't appreciate the attitudes towards women being more fragile and needing to be protected. Tuppence cares not a penny for that and she throws herself into the investigation. However, she does succumb to the mainstream ideal at the end but only after she's ready to retire after this particular harrowing adventure. I listened to the first few stories on audio book and they were hard for me to hear and understand without headphones. I switched to the e-book and it was easier to follow. I would recommend either the audio or the print book or both depending on your situation. This is a good introduction to the characters. You can go back and read The Secret Adversary if you like them.