The Clocks - Agatha Christie: 1963 **

 

'The Clocks' is one of those Agatha Christie books that has so much potential. I started reading and KNEW it was going to be good, knew that Christie would have this almost impossible plot nailed and knew that I would be captivated throughout. Well this didn't happen. It was a rather excellent book right up until the end, when things came out, secrets were told and I was thoroughly disappointed. To make matters worse, Poirot doesn't appear until half way through the book, and was barely present until near the end. Considering this was a Poirot book, this was a bit of a mistake from Christie, who was obviously thoroughly sick of Poirot by now and probably would've happily got away with keeping him absent the whole way through. To be honest he didn't really lend anything to the story in particular, and it seemed he was a bit wasted here.
The plot is intriguing to say the least - a young typist named Sheila is called for personally to go to a house to do some work for a woman, but when she arrives it is to find a dead body on the floor. Added to which, the owner of the house is blind, was not present at the time, and there are 4 clocks on the mantlepiece that don't belong to her. What a fabulous, yet eerie start! It continues in this creepy, strange way, full of gossip and intrigue and then falls flat on it's face. Disappointed.

Valley of the Dolls: Jacqueline Susann - 1966 *****

'Valley of the Dolls' is a really spellbinding novel. Having seen the film many times and loved it (mainly because of my love for beautiful Sharon) I was keen to see how the film would have been transferred from the book.

From start to finish I began a rollercoaster of emotions. At first I was angry, then sad, then jealous, then devastated. 

The novel follows three women on the verge of making it big. Neely is a headstrong, talented and immature performer who is desperate to be on the stage, even if it means popping a few pills to keep her going. Anne, a stunning, intelligent and wary secretary who just wants to find happiness with a man and have her fairy-tale wedding and baby. And Jennifer, the ethereal, beautiful and lonely actress who is only known for her body, and simply wants to be loved for herself. As the years roll by, we see them at their best and worst, we see Anne be used by the men in her life, Neely losing her friends in the process of becoming a star, and Jennifer tipped over the edge by her husband's obsessive sister. Regardless of what happens in their lives, the 'dolls' are always there, waiting to be taken to raise them up, bring them down, and finally destroy their lives forever. 

One of the toughest books I have read, a book that frustrated me and made me wish it was over. Yet when I turned the last page I realised that the thing I was most sad about was that it was over and I would never experience it from the beginning again.

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