N or M?

Starred review from March 29, 2010
James Warwick delivers a virtuoso performance in this rendition of Agatha Christie's spy thriller. As WWII spreads across Europe, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford, former British Intelligence agents and a married couple, are enlisted to uncover Nazi spies at Sans Souci, a hotel in Leahampton. Taking on assumed identities, Tommy and Tuppence arrive at Sans Souci, where they must search for the German agents—known only as N and M—navigate a hotel full of suspicious guests, preserve their secret identities, and, above all else, defend national security. Warwick's portrayals of Tommy and Tuppence are spot-on, as is his evocation of life in a small English hotel in 1940s England. As the story unfolds and each new character—male, female, English, German, adult and child alike—is introduced, Warwick outdoes himself, producing one unique voice after another in an energetic and fully committed performance. A must for Christie fans and devotees of spy stories and cozy mysteries. A Signet paperback.

The dying words of a British agent lead Tommy and Tuppence Beresford to a holiday boarding house to find out which of the guests is delivering secrets to Germany. In the process, a child is kidnapped, Tommy is captured, and clues are found in a book of nursery rhymes. Published in 1941 as WWII raged over Europe, N OR M? reintroduces Tommy and Tuppence. Now middle-aged and bored with their inability to help with the war effort, they can't resist when the opportunity to go undercover to flush out a team of Nazi spies presents itself. Samantha Bond does a delightful job telling the story of Tommy and Tuppence and their stay at the Sans Souci guest house, delivering the story with energy and enthusiasm. S.E.S. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine