Wine Women and Books rang in the holiday season and all things Agatha Christie with a Merry Murder Christmas party and a discussion of The Woman on the Orient Express by Lindsay Jayne Ashford. The book is a reimagining of Christie’s first voyage on the Orient Express in 1928. As the train goes towards Istanbul, Christie befriends two mysterious women, secrets are revealed, and intrigues abound. The trio makes its way to the archaeological dig at Ur, where even more is uncovered. Fans of The Christie Affair will like this book even better. Testing their own powers of observation, club members competed in a memory game, Agatha Christie trivia, and a game of Wink Murder, while exchanging favorite mystery and thriller books.  Votes were spread wide for favorite book of the year, but The Woman on the Orient Express nosed out The Secret Life of Flora Lea, Klara and the Sun, The Buried, and others, taking top honors. The group also shared their favorite books for 2023:

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. A giant Pacific Octopus named Marcellus helps Tova solve the mystery of her 18-year-ild son’s disappearance.

House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson. A drama detailing the lives of two young black women pursuing college and motherhood set in 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, DC.

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano. The story of a young boy who is the sole survivor of a plane crash recovers from trauma with the help of letters written to him by the families of those killed in the crash. For what it’s worth, I thought this book was MUCH better than his year’s Hello, Beautiful, which won a ton of “Best of” contests this year. 

Tommorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrille Zevin. The Goodreads award-winner for best fiction in 2022, this is the story of two video game developers and their unusual journey of friendship from college through adulthood. A very different kind of love story and thoroughly charming.

Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore. Club members loved the multi-character narrated audio version of this fun mystery about a magician who disappeared, her sister, and the podcaster who won’t leave the story alone.