Agatha Raisin And The Terrible Tourist (2006) - Plot & Excerpts
Agatha Raisin è un personaggio molto intrigante. Più giovane di Miss Marple (evidente l’omaggio di M.C. Beaton ad Agatha Christie), ma comunque di mezza età, l’investigatrice si porta dietro tutte le contraddizioni dei suoi cinquant’anni: il volersi mantenere in forma e non farsi sconfiggere dal passare del tempo; il voler trovare l’uomo giusto dopo aver trascorso i precedenti decenni a costruirsi una carriera che l’ha resa sì indipendente, ma l’ha anche inaridita e resa cinica. Prendiamo oggi in esame due casi di questa detective, rispettivamente il sesto e il settimo della serie.Dopo la mia prima esperienza con Agatha Raisin (Agatha Raisin e i camminatori di Dembley), malgrado quel quarto episodio non mi avesse coinvolto in modo particolare, sono arrivata ad appassionarmi alle avventure e alle indagini di questa ultracinquantenne dal carattere non facile e alle sue vicissitudini col vicino di casa James Lacey, di cui è innamorata e per cui è arrivata a smussare i lati più affilati del suo carattere, inghiottendo un bel po’ d’orgoglio. Così ho letto gli altri casi, un po’ in italiano, un po’ in inglese, arrivando a questo sesto episodio.Nel caso precedente Agatha Raisin e il matrimonio assassino, Agatha ha dovuto rinunciare al suo matrimonio con James, a causa del ritorno del marito da cui non aveva mai divorziato e che si è presentato a Carsley, nei Cotswolds dove Agatha si è ritirata, andando prematuramente in pensione, dopo una vita da squalo delle pubbliche relazioni a Londra. Agatha non aveva mai divorziato perché credeva che Jimmy Raisin fosse morto da tempo; invece l’uomo ha la malaugurata idea di morire subito dopo aver mandato a monte il matrimonio di Agatha e James. E, dopo che la nostra investigatrice risolve il caso che l’ha vista prima sospettata di omicidio e poi costretta forzatamente a letto a causa di un tentato omicidio ai suoi danni, James va via da Carsley per rifugiarsi a Cipro Nord, luogo che sarebbe dovuto essere la meta del suo viaggio di nozze con Agatha. La nostra protagonista, inghiottendo un bel po’ del suo orgoglio e comportandosi quasi da adolescente, decide di seguirlo per recuperare il loro rapporto.A Cipro la donna... http://bit.ly/1laSEpP
I picked this up for two reasons. 1) M.C. Beaton has a huge place on library shelves so I figured the books must be good; and 2) I needed a book set in Cyprus. This is the first (and last) book I'll read by M.C. Beaton. I understand from other reviews that this is not her finest work (in fact the reviews are atrocious). However the heroine (if you could call her that) Agatha Raisin is a pathetic old woman who blatantly stalks a man who has no interest in her and acts like a slut which normally isn't a problem for me but Agatha travels all the way to Cyprus following a man she professes to love and then has sex with a virtual stranger. Granted the man (James Lacey) is a real jerk but then again you have to be mean in order to get rid of a pest.I also had issues with the travel info dumps sporadically dished up by Agatha. They were interesting but more travel guide-ish and drew your attention from the mystery of who killed Rose. Their really wasn't a likeable character in the whole bunch. Definitely not an author I would read again.
What do You think about Agatha Raisin And The Terrible Tourist (2006)?
I'm not sure why I keep reading these books, except perhaps because I bought a boxed set of them at a car boot sale?! The books appeared unread, and I can understand why a more discerning reader may so readily part with them. But, I am not always a discerning reader; sometimes I just want a bit of lightweight, non-challenging 'fluff' to read, & these fit the bill. That said, this was the worst of them I've read so far - possibly because it was set away from the village, & so (apart from James) none of the other familiar characters appeared to dilute Agatha's irritating nature. I read it in one sitting: not so much because I couldn't wait to find out what happened next, but to get it over with!
—Fi
"Her dreams had turned upside down" p 83. Aggie never scripts romances how her life really happens. Bright blue sea doesn't warm her heart when men are cold. Laughs and tears coincide. Sixth in series, Agatha Raisin 50s chases ex-fiancé James Lacey, neighbor in Cotswold village, to intended honeymoon villa in north Cyprus. Two sets of terrible tourists, one posh and rude, other nouveau riche and vulgar are unlikely match, especially when flashy temptress Rose thrusts thin needle-like weapon into spine after disco dance. Agatha and James pair to solve murder. Sir Charles Fraith gets Aggie drunk and slips into her bed then James gives her grief. Aggie's younger England pal Bill Wong 20s faxes crucial suspect backgrounds. Both couples have infatuated wrinklies funding holidays - debt-free farmer Harry for wealthy penny-pincher Rose and bankrupt plumber Trevor "on the skids" p 82, retired Glasgow shop-owner Angus for aristocratic Olivia and unwise stock exchange gambler George Debenham. Place descriptions are quoted verbatim from tourist guides, so unlike rest of series where we feel present. Dorothy Gilman's Emily Pollifax series are usualy better travelogues.
—An Odd1
Agatha is a lovely character and she makes me laugh, which is fun and entertaining. But this book was annoying in more than one way. Agatha's pubescent swooning over James got on my nerves: 'get a grip woman!', was all I could think of when she was hoping for him to express affection, even after she'd seen him having it on with a prostitute!Furthermore, the main characters in the book involved in the murder were strikingly superficial and unlikeable. And finally, the setting was simply not as charming as an English village... PS I cannot believe how much the characters all drank throughout the story?!
—tinne
