BOOK VILLAINS

I am fascinated by people. Who they are, why they do what they do, and how all of this plays out in fiction.

I think this is where Agatha Christie had me hooked.

Because the more I read, the more I realise that art really does imitate life. These people may be fictional, but spend a weekend watching true crime documentaries and you will realise quickly that greed, jealousy, entitlement, resentment, obsession are all very much alive in the real world.

I was watching a re-run of The Dream recently, and as I watched it play out, I found myself thinking about someone wanting access to another person’s wealth.

And Christie gives us variations of this again and again.

Sad Cypress

Elephants Can Remember.

The Mystery of the Blue Train.

Ordeal by Innocence.

Death on the Nile.

I could go on.

I guess what I am trying to say is both the good and bad characters can be fascinating subjects in a story and they can be equally memorable.

I often come away thinking, the most interesting question isn’t who did it?

It’s why?

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