Death at Greenway

Agatha Christie would be pleased with Rader-Day’s sixth novel (after The Lucky One), which takes place during World War II. Bridey Kelly, a trainee nurse who suffered a tragedy during the Blitz, has been assigned to assist in the evacuation and care of 10 children under the age of five, including two infants. Mr. and Mrs. Arbuthnot have rented Greenway, the house in the country that belongs to Mrs. Mallowan (better known as Agatha Christie), to house the evacuees. Bridey is joined by a second nurse who possesses neither skills nor a sense of responsibility. The two care for the children, navigate resentful townspeople, and try to decipher the role of the house servants. A drowning, unexplained deaths, missing pots of jam, possible espionage, and the specter of a frightening local legend wrap around the story of difficulties and fears in wartime Britain. While Agatha Christie makes very few appearances, her ownership of the house looms large.