Detectives on Vacation
by Kathryn Carroll

Don't you hate when you finally get to take a long-awaited vacation and then work from the office intrudes? Many of the best-loved detectives know just how you feel. For them taking a few days off can be murder—literally. Of course that's good news for us who love nothing better than settling in with a nice cuppa to watch our favorite detectives. Now that many of the best British and American mystery series are available on DVD, it's even easier to take a vicarious vacation full of excitement and danger. If you'd like to head off to the English countryside or seaside, a French seaside resort or even the Caribbean , you might like to check out some of these favorites.

Agatha Christie was famous for sending her sleuths into exotic locales where they invariably found themselves investigating tragic circumstances while also trying to enjoy a well-deserved break.

In Murder on the Links , Poirot, played by David Suchet and Hastings, played by Hugh Fraser, take a holiday to the beautiful French resort, Deauville . On the very first evening, the hotel's owner asks to consult with Poirot about fraud in his other business of precious stones. When the businessman is subsequently abducted and murdered, Poirot becomes enmeshed in an investigation that pits him against a top French detective. Treachery, mistaken identities, lost love and a 10-year-old murder case as well as flashes of humor and a wager between the two detectives (will Poirot lose his famous mustache or go home with a most unique souvenir?) make Murder of the Links an excellent get-away.

Another Christie classic is A Caribbean Mystery . In this atmospheric tale, Joan Hickson's Miss Jane Marple, finds herself vacationing in the West Indies . While the scenery may be stunning and the guests charming, Miss Marple is a bit of a fish out of water until one of the guests is murdered. Now Miss Marple is in her element, but the clues are clouded by native superstitions, eerie occurrences and even more murders. Will Miss Marple solve the case in time to save the real intended victim?

Agatha Christie's Miss Marple gets another, incomparable treatment when Margaret Rutherford applies her unique style to the role. Part camp, part serious, Murder She Said , based on Christie's 4:50 from Paddington, finds Miss Marple on a train from which she witnesses a murder aboard a passing train. When the police dismiss her story, Miss Marple begins her own investigation, which culminates at a large, mysterious mansion. To continue her inquiries, she takes a job as a maid to the querulous owner and his adult children. The mystery has plenty of twists and turns, but the real pleasure of this movie, as well as the series, is watching Rutherford in her many guises.

Most people would identify Sherlock Holmes with his flat at 221B Bakers Street . But in The Devil's Foot , Holmes takes Dr. Watson's advice and travels to the Cornish coast to soothe his nerves and strengthen his health. Of course, nothing is as restorative to Holmes as a good murder so when a beautiful woman is discovered dead in the presence of her brothers who have gone mad, his recovery and a very compelling story are assured. The Devil's Foot , with its themes of revenge and torment finds Conan Doyle and Jeremy Brett as Holmes at their best.

If you enjoy Ngaio Marsh's Inspector Alleyn novels, you'll want to check out the BBC series. In A Man Lay Dead, Roderick Alleyn, as played by Patrick Malahide, travels with his friend Agatha Troy to a weekend party given by her uncle. When a party game of murder turns out to be the real thing, Alleyn finds himself the villain in this family drama. Will he be able to extract the clues he needs to solve the case? And with whom do Agatha's Troy 's loyalties lie?

A relatively new entry into television mystery movies is the Inspector Lynley Mysteries based on the novels by Elizabeth George. In Deception on His Mind, while Thomas Lynley and his wife honeymoon in Mexico , Lynley's partner Barbara Havers takes her own vacation in the seaside town of Essex . Is this a trip for pleasure or is it more than coincidence that her handsome neighbor is also vacationing there? Perhaps Havers was drawn by the fact that an old school mate is the investigating officer of a recent murder. As Havers insinuates herself onto the case, she discovers that nothing is what it seems. With an action-packed, surprising ending Deception on His Mind offers compelling performances by Nathaniel Parker as Lynley and Sharon Small as Havers.

So if you want to get away, but don't want to leave the comfort of your family room, schedule a break with one of these DVDs or your own favorite detectives.