The disposal of a corpse holds a lot of comedic possibilities, and it’s been used in memorable films such as The Trouble with Harry, plays such as Arsenic and Old Lace, and even in the staging of the opera Gianni Schicchi. It should be no surprise that Agatha Christie would take a stab at this plot. This is one of Christie’s original dramas that wasn’t based on an earlier novel or story. Charles Osborne provides a readable novelization of Christie’s play, but while the plot is obviously Christie’s, it doesn’t read like a novel Christie would have written. Christie had a knack for conveying action through dialogue. Osborne’s novelization is heavy on description, and reads as if he turned stage directions into prose without much editing (which is probably exactly what he did). ( )

Spider’s Web - Christie/Osborn
Audio performance by Hugh Fraser
4 stars

A bit of mystery, more than a bit of comedy, this book is a ‘novelization’ of a stage play. It was very easy to visualize the set, costumes, and all of the convenient entries and exits. There’s constant movement in and out of a single room through french doors, hall entry, and a not-so-hidden passage. Several red herrings and a bit of a plot twist are all typical of Agatha Christie. Hugh Fraser is always easy listening. I don’t think this book would work as well in print. ( )

I think this should have stayed a play - as a novel it didn't quite work. The one scene setting and limited cast of characters got boring, and the solution of the mystery was obvious very early on. ( )

This was a quick read and seemed a light hearted stand alone book with Clarissa the wife of a diplomat. She likes to tell stories and play jokes on friends. Then one night when her husband has gone to pick up a secret Russian diplomat to bring back, she stumbles over a dead body in her own drawing room. She calls some friends who are at a nearby golf course to come help her hide the body knowing her husband will soon arrive with the important foreign diplomat and she can't really tell her friends why she wants to hide the body instead of her husband coming home to police, etc. However, the killer called the police and they don't believe any of the stories Clarissa comes up with. She and a long time friend, Sir Roland Delahaye, figure it out in time.

This is the first Christie that I owned, rather than what was lent by my sister, mother, friend, or the library. I remember wishing I could live in the big fancy house Clarissa lives in where you dress for dinner and eat chocolate mousse late at night, even if murders do happen there. ( )