Aggie Morton, Mystery Queen: The Body Under the Piano
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- Create Date：2021-05-22 09:52:11
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Marthe Jocelyn
- ISBN：0735265488
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Summary
A smart and charming middle-grade mystery series starring young detective Aggie Morton and her friend Hector， inspired by the imagined life of Agatha Christie as a child and her most popular creation， Hercule Poirot。
Aggie Morton lives in a small town on the coast of England in 1902。 Adventurous and imaginative but deeply shy， Aggie hasn't got much to do since the death of her beloved father 。 。 。 until the fateful day when she crosses paths with twelve-year-old Belgian immigrant Hector Perot and discovers a dead body on the floor of the Mermaid Dance Room！ As the number of suspects grows and the murder threatens to tear the town apart， Aggie and her new friend will need every tool at their disposal -- including their insatiable curiosity， deductive skills and not a little help from their friends -- to solve the case before Aggie's beloved dance instructor is charged with a crime Aggie is sure she didn't commit。
Aggie Morton lives in a small town on the coast of England in 1902。 Adventurous and imaginative but deeply shy， Aggie hasn't got much to do since the death of her beloved father 。 。 。 until the fateful day when she crosses paths with twelve-year-old Belgian immigrant Hector Perot and discovers a dead body on the floor of the Mermaid Dance Room！ As the number of suspects grows and the murder threatens to tear the town apart， Aggie and her new friend will need every tool at their disposal -- including their insatiable curiosity， deductive skills and not a little help from their friends -- to solve the case before Aggie's beloved dance instructor is charged with a crime Aggie is sure she didn't commit。
Reviews
Roberta
，
I am very reluctant to give this book 2 stars but there are no half stars and I can't， in good conscience give it 3。 This book was highly recommended to me by someone who knows what I like to read so I was really surprised to discover that I disliked all of the characters for one reason or another， either for who they were or how they were used。 The Agatha Christie as a child gimmick got old in about 5 minutes。 After that， I couldn't help but compare Aggie Morton to Flavia de Luce or to Daisy We I am very reluctant to give this book 2 stars but there are no half stars and I can't， in good conscience give it 3。 This book was highly recommended to me by someone who knows what I like to read so I was really surprised to discover that I disliked all of the characters for one reason or another， either for who they were or how they were used。 The Agatha Christie as a child gimmick got old in about 5 minutes。 After that， I couldn't help but compare Aggie Morton to Flavia de Luce or to Daisy Wells & Hazel Wong。 The Hector Perot character was a sad mockery and his dialog was painful to read。 It would involve too many spoilers to explain what I didn't like about the suspects， the victim and the murderer。 I didn't hate the dog。 Clues were dropped like bricks。 There are many references to Agatha Christie's life and her books so expect to miss out if you haven't read at least one biography and 30 or so of her mysteries。 Nitpicking: the use of "employed adjective （of a person） having a paid job" to describe a person who isn't apparently paid。 。。。more
Stephanie Reese
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3。5*Was really excited for this one， which might be why I scored it lower than I thought I would。 While I don’t know a lot about Agatha Christie， I enjoyed seeing this version of her as a 12 year old solving a murder with Hector Perot。 There were a lot of characters introduced at the beginning and I feel I only really got to know/understand who was who about middle to the end。 I like her first person narration and her moments of writing her own mystery as well as her past with the loss of her da 3。5*Was really excited for this one， which might be why I scored it lower than I thought I would。 While I don’t know a lot about Agatha Christie， I enjoyed seeing this version of her as a 12 year old solving a murder with Hector Perot。 There were a lot of characters introduced at the beginning and I feel I only really got to know/understand who was who about middle to the end。 I like her first person narration and her moments of writing her own mystery as well as her past with the loss of her dad。 。。。more
Becca Britton
，
This was fun！ I'm such a fan of Agatha Christie and really enjoyed reading this homage to her。 I found myself looking for the clues that nodded to Christie just as much as I looked for the clues to solve the mystery。 I'm looking forward to reading the second book in the series and hope there will be more Aggie Morton adventures to come。 This was fun！ I'm such a fan of Agatha Christie and really enjoyed reading this homage to her。 I found myself looking for the clues that nodded to Christie just as much as I looked for the clues to solve the mystery。 I'm looking forward to reading the second book in the series and hope there will be more Aggie Morton adventures to come。 。。。more
Rachelle
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Fun sleuthing for young Aggie and her new Belgium friend Hector as they figure out who murdered the dance teacher’s sister in law。 Secrets abound！ Delightful read。
Liz Friend
，
The story: Aggie Morton keeps being told that the things she finds interesting aren't proper for young ladies in 1902。 But when she's first to discover the body of her mean-spirited next door neighbor， there's nothing she can do but embrace the situation！ Who could have meant harm to crabby old Mrs。 Eversham？ Her dauther？ Her niece？ The hotel manager？ Even after repeatedly being told to butt out， Aggie and her newfound friend， Hector Perot， keep nosing around until they provoke the murderer into The story: Aggie Morton keeps being told that the things she finds interesting aren't proper for young ladies in 1902。 But when she's first to discover the body of her mean-spirited next door neighbor， there's nothing she can do but embrace the situation！ Who could have meant harm to crabby old Mrs。 Eversham？ Her dauther？ Her niece？ The hotel manager？ Even after repeatedly being told to butt out， Aggie and her newfound friend， Hector Perot， keep nosing around until they provoke the murderer into doing something very rash indeed--and something very dangerous to Miss Aggie Morton， Mystery Queen。June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG （the murder is off-page）; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes （murder， sexism） PG; overall rating PG。Liz's comments: Very loosely based on Agatha Christie's early life experiences （well， except for the part that 12-year-old AC never had a murder turn up in the local dance studio）， this is a fun mystery story that also takes a few well-deserved pokes at the attitudes du jour about what was and was not appropriate for women。 Anyone who likes period murder will like this。 See also Elizabeth C。 Bunce's "Premeditated Myrtle"， which has fun illustrations。 。。。more
Elizabeth
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This was so much fun！ Apparently one of my reading themes this year is child/teenage sleuths。 I love that this author took elements of the child Agatha Christie and created her own child sleuth， Aggie Morton。 Aggie Morton is a great character， and I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series。 I love that Aggie gets a friend named Hector Perot， too， who is a Belgian refugee here too。 He has characteristics of Hercule Poirot， and I love that I’ve finally read enough Poirot to recognize those。 This was so much fun！ Apparently one of my reading themes this year is child/teenage sleuths。 I love that this author took elements of the child Agatha Christie and created her own child sleuth， Aggie Morton。 Aggie Morton is a great character， and I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series。 I love that Aggie gets a friend named Hector Perot， too， who is a Belgian refugee here too。 He has characteristics of Hercule Poirot， and I love that I’ve finally read enough Poirot to recognize those。 There were two big surprises in this book that I didn’t guess at all。 The murderer made me sad though。 。。。more
Book_R。E。C。S
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I have loved mystery books ever since I was a kid， and I wish books like this existed back then。 Not only was it a mystery it is also a historical fiction！ I love kid detectives and Aggie and her friend Hector did not disappoint。 Aggie is based on a young Agatha Christie- the original mystery queen。In this book Aggie discovers a dead body in her dance class。 She is determined to solve the case with Hector。 The mystery was intriguing but I also loved how this book explores how Aggie deals with so I have loved mystery books ever since I was a kid， and I wish books like this existed back then。 Not only was it a mystery it is also a historical fiction！ I love kid detectives and Aggie and her friend Hector did not disappoint。 Aggie is based on a young Agatha Christie- the original mystery queen。In this book Aggie discovers a dead body in her dance class。 She is determined to solve the case with Hector。 The mystery was intriguing but I also loved how this book explores how Aggie deals with some other elements in her life， like grief and fitting in and her shyness。A great read for 9-12 year olds 。。。more
Amy Medeiros
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Queen of the mystery genre when she was a girl。This was a very well done mystery following Aggie and Hector as they solve an intricate who done it murder investigation。 I thought the younger interpretation of Hercule Poirot was so adorable especially with him twisting his imaginary mustache when he was contemplating the mystery。 Can’t wait to read the next book in the series。
Becky B
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Aggie Morton is a most curious young lady。 As in， she is curious about rather unusual things。 Like just what happens after a body dies， where would one procure a particular poison， and who murdered Mrs Irma Eversham （whom Aggie just happened to be the first to see under the piano in the Mermaid Room on Saturday）。 The police are looking at dance instructor and sister-in-law of the deceased， Miss Marianne Eversham， but Aggie just knows Miss Marianne would never have done such a thing。 With the hel Aggie Morton is a most curious young lady。 As in， she is curious about rather unusual things。 Like just what happens after a body dies， where would one procure a particular poison， and who murdered Mrs Irma Eversham （whom Aggie just happened to be the first to see under the piano in the Mermaid Room on Saturday）。 The police are looking at dance instructor and sister-in-law of the deceased， Miss Marianne Eversham， but Aggie just knows Miss Marianne would never have done such a thing。 With the help of her new acquaintance， Hector Perot， Aggie is gathering clues to free Miss Marianne and discover who the real murderer could be。In case you didn't guess from the title， characters， or subject matter， this is historical fiction mystery loosely based on Agatha Christie's childhood。 I love how the author worked in so many nods to Agatha Christie's novels， and of course， Hector Perot reads just like a child version of Hercule Poirot。 The mystery was well done and had me guessing for a little bit， though I was able to figure it out before Hector and Aggie （but it also wasn't glaringly obvious）。 Hector is a child refugee from an unstable Belgium， and helps kids better understand what it is like to be suddenly ripped from your home and family。 He's very likable， and I thought that was a splendid addition to the tale relevant to current events but also very believable for the time period。 （I also learned a teensy bit about Belgium during that time period。） I absolutely loved Aggie's Grannie Jane and how she joins in on some of Aggie's antics and escapades。 If you're looking for a solid middle grade historical mystery， this was very well-done。 I'm really looking forward to book 2。Notes on content: No language issues。 No sexual content。 （A baby born out of wedlock is part of the plot but no sexual details。） There is a murder and two more attempted murders， but none is gory。 There is a near drowning， and severe shaking/knock on the head。 Past deaths of a father and fiancé are mentioned。 。。。more
Carol Stirling
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Great book can't what for the next one Great book can't what for the next one 。。。more
Jennifer Hill
，
Aggie Morton is a young girl living in England。 Her father has died， her older sister has married and moved off， her grandmother lives with she and her mother。 Aggie meets Hector， a refugee from Belgium， in her favorite sweet shop。 As Aggie and her friends put on a fundraiser for the refugees， it later turns into a murder scene。 Aggie finds a body under the piano the next morning at her dance lesson。 One of her friends， Rose， and her dance instructor （Rose's Aunt） is the body！ Aggie and Hector j Aggie Morton is a young girl living in England。 Her father has died， her older sister has married and moved off， her grandmother lives with she and her mother。 Aggie meets Hector， a refugee from Belgium， in her favorite sweet shop。 As Aggie and her friends put on a fundraiser for the refugees， it later turns into a murder scene。 Aggie finds a body under the piano the next morning at her dance lesson。 One of her friends， Rose， and her dance instructor （Rose's Aunt） is the body！ Aggie and Hector join forces to solve the mystery， but will Aggie solve it or become another murder？ Agatha Morton is a character loosely based on Agatha Christie， mystery writer。 It is written as if she is a young girl sleuth， with her friend Hector Perot， who is a character in Christie's books。 Wasn't my favorite mystery， but it did have good writing and also some side conversations Aggie would imagine or have with herself。 。。。more
Heather
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So cute and fun！！！
Debbie Williams
，
An interesting imagining of the young life of Agatha Christie， and the beginnings of her most loved detective， Hercule Poirot。 Lots of twists and turns in the plot， worthy of an Agatha Christie novel。 A great way to introduce younger readers to the crime genre。
Ethan M
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its a very compelling mystery novel with original charecters， and a really great narrative structure。
Mindy Ann
，
3。5
Bookworm
，
A well written mystery， had a lot of fun meeting Hector Poirot and Agatha in a new light; a little on the dark side of things at time， but otherwise enjoyable。
Tiffany
，
3。5 ⭐️ A really cute book about Aggie Morton， a morbid young girl who hopes to grow up to be a writer。 When she stumbles across a dead body， she’s determined to investigate the circumstances with her new friend， Hector Perot （a Belgian immigrant）。 This book was a lot of fun and I enjoyed how Aggie would try to find dramatic phrasing in her head while encountering various people and circumstances。 There were a few circumstances where that felt unlikely （particularly the perilous one toward the en 3。5 ⭐️ A really cute book about Aggie Morton， a morbid young girl who hopes to grow up to be a writer。 When she stumbles across a dead body， she’s determined to investigate the circumstances with her new friend， Hector Perot （a Belgian immigrant）。 This book was a lot of fun and I enjoyed how Aggie would try to find dramatic phrasing in her head while encountering various people and circumstances。 There were a few circumstances where that felt unlikely （particularly the perilous one toward the end of the book）。 Aggie is a bit morbid for young readers and there is a detailed plot point involving a child born out of wedlock， along with mention of a drunken man and some condescension toward Hector because of his ethnicity。 Those elements might prevent parents from handing it off to a younger child without discussion （especially treatment of Hector）。 。。。more
Sarah
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This book is quite charming and I liked following the adventure of Miss Morton as she follows clues to build her fledgling detective skills。 The characters are memorable and the writing is whimsical but authentic to tell a 12-year-old’s story。 I would imagine that young readers would eat up this story and be hungry for more of Aggie’s adventures。
Colleen Earle
，
CuteReminded me a lot of Alan Bradley， only written for childrenGood story。 Good twists。 Will continue on I the series when the library gets the second ebook
Courtney Stofko
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3。5 stars rounded up to 4
LillyBooks
，
Eight-year-old me would have lapped this novel up like a chocolat chaud with double whipped cream。My love for Agatha Christie started in elementary school and remains strong to this day。 And this novel would have been a perfect introduction to that world， I think， maybe a year or two before I was ready to read the real thing。 As sad as I am this book didn’t exist then， I’m thrilled for the youngsters of today getting introduced to the genre at an earlier age。When I stumbled upon this on a librar Eight-year-old me would have lapped this novel up like a chocolat chaud with double whipped cream。My love for Agatha Christie started in elementary school and remains strong to this day。 And this novel would have been a perfect introduction to that world， I think， maybe a year or two before I was ready to read the real thing。 As sad as I am this book didn’t exist then， I’m thrilled for the youngsters of today getting introduced to the genre at an earlier age。When I stumbled upon this on a library list and put it on hold， I had my doubts。 A （renamed） Agatha Christie and Hercule Poirot solving mysteries together as children？ At best， I suspected a farce。 But no， this book is perfect*！ Many of the Christie hallmarks are there: dead body but in a gory way， everyone has a motive， timing is everything， etc。 Although no one really knows what Agatha Christie was like as a child， the characterization of Poirot （excuse me， Hector） is spot-on。 The mystery was easily solvable to me， an adult， but I think there are enough red herrings to mislead a younger mind。 I especially loved catching all the Easter eggs for adults - brief mentions of future book titles or locations， the dawning of an idea that would remain for the rest of one’s life （gray cells！）， the earlier， child-like versions of one’s adult habits。 In addition， this book is very well written。 No pandering or dumbing down to young minds。 Grab a dictionary， kids， you’ll need it！ {Child-me goes running with glee。}*This is why I wait a few days to review books。 Initially， I thought there was too much action in this book。 And the quintessential Christie denouement in the drawing room is missing。 Not a perfect ode to Christie。 But then I thought more about it and it’s a book about children for children。 Children act rashly before they think。 Children would not be given the opportunity to assemble all the suspects in the drawing room and patiently explain the crime and reveal the killer。 They would be required to try something more dramatic - and unwise， yes， because they’re children - to draw attention to what they believe to be true。 The characters learn a lesson from their mistakes， hopefully teaching the reading children in the process。 。。。more
Kristi Clemow
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Super cute。 I love Hercule Poirot so this was fun to read。
Tanya
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3。5⭐ This is a good introduction to Agatha Christie books， the mystery was good and the characters were fun。 It was a little slow in the beginning but halfway through things begin to pick up！
LadyMcClousen
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My 9 year old son found this one boring。 He’s more of a super hero fan。 I’m going to see if my middle school daughter might like it。
Shannon
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Read Harder 2021: Middle Grade MysteryThis book was disappointingly slow and cumbersome for a fictionalized account of Agatha Christie as a young girl。 I did love imagining a young Hector Perot as inspiration for Hercule Poirot。
Rena
，
Bizarrely morbid。 I loved the idea of Agatha Christie as a girl but it really feels awkward how she is so morbid。
Jessica
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Saw this book in the library and I was intrigued by the cover which reminded me of Nancy Drew so I decided to give it a read。 love Nancy Drew， Hardy Boys， Famous Five etc。 However I felt the protagonist Aggie was too young didn’t seem to have a grasp for sleuthing。 She always seemed to be a step behind the police and almost everyone else; most of her “detective work” was based on rumours and newspaper articles and assumptions/guesswork。 However since it’s the first book， Aggie’s first case， I wi Saw this book in the library and I was intrigued by the cover which reminded me of Nancy Drew so I decided to give it a read。 love Nancy Drew， Hardy Boys， Famous Five etc。 However I felt the protagonist Aggie was too young didn’t seem to have a grasp for sleuthing。 She always seemed to be a step behind the police and almost everyone else; most of her “detective work” was based on rumours and newspaper articles and assumptions/guesswork。 However since it’s the first book， Aggie’s first case， I will give it a chance and read the second one。 Hopefully she has better skills then。 。。。more
Amita
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It took me a little while to get into this one。 The first third or so wasn't boring or confusing （in fact， the mystery started almost right away）， I was just somewhat iffy on character motivations and personalities。 But after a 3 star start， the book definitely picked up and ended up being really good。 I don't usually read many mysteries， but I enjoyed this one a lot！ Especially the climax？？？？ SO GOOD。 We went from 0 to 100 really fast and I love it so much when that happens。 It took me a little while to get into this one。 The first third or so wasn't boring or confusing （in fact， the mystery started almost right away）， I was just somewhat iffy on character motivations and personalities。 But after a 3 star start， the book definitely picked up and ended up being really good。 I don't usually read many mysteries， but I enjoyed this one a lot！ Especially the climax？？？？ SO GOOD。 We went from 0 to 100 really fast and I love it so much when that happens。 。。。more
Elyse
，
This super cute middle grade novel actually had such a great storyline。 I loved the idea of a young Agatha Christie and “Hector Perot” and the mystery kept me guessing until the very end！
Becka
，