C is for Agatha Christie (Teaser Tuesday) & Colorado Territory

We've made it to Day 3! Keep it up! I may be running a day behind in responding to comments, but I WILL visit everyone!

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:



1. Grab your current read
2. Open to a random page
3. Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
4. BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
5. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Today's teaser is from Crooked House, by Agatha Christie.

"'But I don't suppose,' I said, 'that she'd murder anyone just because she didn't approve of their aims and mode of life. Perhaps if she really hated the old man - but are any murders committed just out of pure hate?'" p. 57.






C is also for...

olorado Territory!

Yay! Look at that, I managed to get Colorado history in here, anyway. Colorado is the epitome of the west with its rugged setting, semi-arid climate and homesteads and gold mines still standing. When I'm out exploring and sight seeing, I often try to put myself into the mindset of the pioneers and gold miners that made their way out here.

On these tours, one idea stands out, one slogan: Pikes Peak or Bust. You can still see old wagons decorated with those words, such as the one at Rock Ledge Ranch, or the one outside the Wild West Ghost Town Museum. The Colorado Gold Rush started in 1859, pulling people in from both the east and the west. Those who were busted in California sped back to Colorado, hoping to make it big with this second chance.

Prospectors flooded Colorado, mining towns springing up left and right. Cripple Creek (1890's), Denver City & Boulder City. In Leadville, copious amounts of silver were discovered in the gold mines, creating another rush.

All these prospectors (and those who wished to capitalize and open stores, hotels, etc.) caused this area to be named Colorado Territory in 1861. However, prospectors weren't the only ones who came this way. Outlaws like Clay Allison ventured through parts of Colorado, as did Bat Masterson, Buffalo Bill Cody, Kit Carson, Doc Holliday, and more. Nikola Tesla had a lab here in Colorado Springs, having arrived here from New York in 1899.

The Unsinkable Molly Brown lived in Denver, the wife of a man who struck gold. What does that tell you? Coloradans are hardy enough to survive the Titanic!

Before all of these people began flooding in, though, the Ute, Arapaho and Cheyenne Indians made their homes here. Unfortunately, they were removed to other states, but their impact is seen all around, including places like Manitou Springs, where the healing springs they utilized are still appreciated by visitors.

Beyond those mentioned, Colorado Territory was famous for mountain men and fur trappers, as well. There were also farmers/ranchers and gamblers, and anyone else who yearned for the free and rugged life that Colorado Territory offered. In short, Colorado Territory drew just about anyone with a sense of adventure and determination to succeed.

What are you reading? Ever visited Colorado?

May you find your Muse.

*Letter C courtesy of Mohamed Ibrahim at clker.com
**Pikes Peak wagon image courtesy of Pikes Peak History
***Chief Ouray and Chipeta image courtesy of Cynthia Becker

Real Life Author Mysteries

Authors create stories, worlds, characters...mysteries. They give us entertainment, draw us into another time or place, another reality. But sometimes authors are drawn into mysteries of their own.

Probably the most famous mystery surrounding an author was that of Agatha Christie, best-selling mystery novelist.

In 1926, Agatha Christie's husband, Archie, told her he was in love with another woman, one Nancy Neele. She had just lost her mother that year, and his betrayal hit her hard. One night, when Archie was staying with friends (or his mistress, depending upon who's telling the story), Agatha disappeared.

As far as the country knew, Agatha's car was discovered, abandoned, a short distance from a lake called Silent Pool, which she had used for inspiration in one of her stories. There was clothing in her car, her identification. She had left her secretary a note that she was going to Yorkshire. People started pointing the finger at Archie, accusing him of having killed her. Others thought perhaps she'd killed herself, as she was known to suffer from depression.

In reality, she had ditched her car and her things, and walked to the train station, heading to Harrogate circa London. She even bought herself a lovely new coat in London. She then checked herself into a spa.

During the eleven days she was missing, police searched the countryside. She was in the news. People at the spa she was staying at even asked if she was that famous missing writer, but she told them she wasn't. She'd checked in under the name Theresa Neele (notice the last name is the same as Archie's mistress's).  She sent a letter to Archie's brother telling him she was going to Yorkshire for a rest, and she took out an ad in a paper saying she, Theresa Neele, was looking for her family, and that they could contact her at the spa.

Finally, police were notified and Archie showed up at the spa in Harrogate to collect Agatha. Doctors examined her and stated she had been in a fugue state. Archie announced to the press that she was suffering amnesia, and hadn't known who she really was.

Agatha Christie died in 1976, never having given the real story. Was she in a fugue state? Did she set it up so her husband would be accused of a murder he hadn't committed? Or did she simply need to get away?

Close behind Agatha Christie is Edgar Allan Poe, another mystery writer. The circumstances surrounding his death on October 7, 1849 are a mystery. He was found, delirious, on October 3 outside a bar, wearing someone else's clothing. This was after having last been seen September 28. His whereabouts during that time period have never been discovered.

It is claimed that he said the name "Reynolds" over and over throughout his delirium. During his stay in the hospital he swung back and forth between brief lucid moments and delirium and hallucinations, even slipping into a brief coma. He was never able to tell anyone where he had been or what had happened, and the true cause of death is unknown. He was listed as having died of congestion of the brain.

Many feel he died from alcohol withdrawal or alcohol poisoning. Experts say his symptoms don't fit this theory. Also, he had been alcohol-free for six months. The University of Maryland Medical Center released a report in 1996 claiming they felt he had died of rabies, and that his symptoms fit with this theory (University of Maryland Report). Another theory says he was a victim of cooping, where a victim is plied with liquor and forced to go to all the polling places to vote for a candidate who has paid for this treatment. However, there were no reports of an issue like a drunken man having issues at any polling place.

It would seem those missing days and the cause of his death will forever remain a mystery. Was it rabies? Cooping? Alcoholism? Or something more dire? And who was Reynolds?

What do you think happened to Poe? How about Agatha Christie? Know of any other real life author mysteries?

Come back tomorrow for an interview with author, j.a. kazimer! Thursday, author Stephen Tremp will be guest posting!

May you find your Muse.