Author : Agatha Christie
I don’t have a large collection of her books, but Agatha Christie’s novels somehow always seem to intrigue me. I step into a book-store looking for a change of flavour, an exciting theme, different from the usual comedy, romantic and thoughtful stuff that I often read and somehow I always seem to stop infront on the shelves displaying Christie’s works. Agreed, they might not be literarily perfect, but they still are a nice way to boost the intuitive mind and some of her murder mysteries are very gripping.
Destination Unknown, unlike the usual Christie stuff, is not a murder thriller. Instead it depicts a journey to a place unknown to the larger part of humanity. A place about which only its inhabitants know. The back-cover of the book reads, when a group of acclaimed scientists disappear without a trace, doubts start rising as to their sudden departure. In order to find out how they went and where, Jessop sends Hillary on a journey of which no-one can predict the end. Will they find out or will she too disappear adding to it all? Sounded interesting..
Jessop is a young American detective who is investigating the case of the disappearing scientists. Through the past several months, acclaimed scientists from all over the world have been disappearing without any rhyme or reason, disappearing without a trace. This has been leading to huge losses to the respective governments in terms of scientific research. Something must be done soon.
He questions Olive Betterton, wife of the scientist who has disappeared most recently, Thomas Betterton in hope to find some leads. He is sure to have found some, when Olive pleads to be allowed to leave the country for she is desperately in need to get away from all the questioning and the journalists hounding her about her husband’s sudden departure. He allows her to go nourishing hopes that Olive will lead them to Thomas, and perhaps the others, for Jessop was sure she was leaving to join her husband.
Hillary Craven is a recently divorced woman with red-hair and bluish green eyes. She has nothing left in her life to live for. She is still pained by the way her husband betrayed her. Her only child from the marraige, a daughter, has died after suffering from a prolonged illness. So much is she depressed by it all that she plans to commit suicide through an over-dose of sleeping pills. But she is interrupted just as she is about to take her own life by Jessop, the detective.
What does Jessop want from Hillary? Why is he preventing her from taking her own life? You’ll have to find answers to these questions yourself when you read the book.
Later, Hillary sets out on the journey that Olive was supposed to embark as a government agent, sent by Jessop. A journey about which she has no clue as to where it would lead her. Through the journey, she meets several people. Some haveing remarkable, distinguished personalities. Mr. Aristides and Mrs Calvin Baker to name two. Hillary is supposed to keep up her pretence and find out as much as she can.
And she does find out a lot of significant stuff. She eventually manages to reach Thomas Betterton, and all the other scientists all of whom were inhabiting a leper colony inside a settlement of gigantic proportions hidden far away near the desert. This settlement appeared no where in records or maps.. no wonder no-one knew about it. It was being run by some rich powerful men, with the aim of using young powerful brains to conjure up scientific stuff that could change the world.
Was everything that was being shown real? Who were these rich powerful people and what was their real aim? If they had such a noble cause, why were they keeping people in hiding. And why did the people who were living here, never try to go back to their lives?
Some more answers left for you to find…… I enjoyed reading it!