With World War II well under way, and much of England mobilized to defend the homeland, it was perhaps understandable that Tommy and Tuppence Beresford were feeling frustrated over their inability to persuade the Powers That Be to use them for something that could help in the war effort. Quite clearly, they were too old, too unqualified to really be much use to anyone.
And then they are visited by a senior British intelligence officer who wants Tommy to undertake a difficult and quite probably dangerous undercover operation: discover the identities and whereabouts of two senior German spies, known to be operating in Britain. Dangerous? Well, yes; in fact, as the intelligence officer explains, one of the top British counter-agents has just been killed by a hit-and-run driver - and it was, quite clearly, no accident. The only real clue was a message left by the dying officer that seemed to indicate that two senior-level German spies known only as "N" and "M" - one man, one woman - were somehow involved in a mysterious plot centered around an English seaside resort called the Sans Souci. Finding the spies was to be a job only for Tommy; it was deemed too dangerous for Tuppence - or so they thought until Tommy reached the Sans Souci and found Tuppence had beaten him there and was staying there incognito. And, as the pair quickly discover, there is indeed something being plotted at the Sans Souci that could have a critical impact on the war. But who, among the people staying at or living near the Sans Souci are the spies?
Recognize the symptoms? We're talking about Agatha Christie's wartime thriller, N or M?, featuring Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, who appear in just four of Christie's novels and a book of short stories. Originally published in 1941, near the low point of the war, it is the subject of today's audio review on the Classic Mysteries podcast. You can listen to the entire review by clicking here. It’s a story line that may sound far-fetched to some – but it is one which, in those dark years when war was spreading over Europe, would certainly resonate with readers. It is written with Christie’s usual style and wit very much in evidence. There is much to enjoy in N or M? and I do recommend it to you.
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