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Comparative Study of Murder Mysteries Agatha Christie and Sheila Radley     The novels Death of a Maiden and Appointment with Death, written by Sheila Radley and Agatha Christie, are murder mysteries describing a betrayal of trust. While both are similar in this way, it is the differences amid the two novels that make the similarities remarkable. By comparing the victims, the killers, and the investigators, the differences in the novels are revealed.          The victims in the novels, bloody shame Gadge and Mrs. Boynton, were murdered in very different slipway. bloody shame Gedge was drowned in Ashthorpe river in her home town of Godbold     The girl lay face-down, arms outstretched, rushes interweave among her fingers. She wore a long clothes of cotton, sprigged with tiny flowers, and the hem of the dress swung and rippled round her legs with the motion of the water. Gathered flowers--enamelled butt ercups, mauve ladys smock--floated about her body and clung to her hair and her dress wherever they touched. It looked a softened way to die.(pg 6 Radley)Mrs. Boynton on the other hand, died a quiet and unaccountable death. Miss. Gedge was a young woman in the prime of her life love by everyone, while Mrs. Boynton was a grouchy old shrew whom hitherto her family couldnt stand. It was because of the differences between the victims that the police examiners investigations were completely different. In the case of Miss. Gedge inspectors Tait and Quantrill could not find any substantial evidence pointing towards a motive. Tait compared the fate of the Page 2young woman to that of Shakespearess Ophelia. Ophelia attached suicide in the play Hamlet reflecting the inspectors original view of Mary Gedges death. In the case of Mrs. Boynton, on the other hand inspector Poirot had numerous suspects with convincing motives.          The motives of the k illers, were a lot alike. In some ways they can be both viewed as mercy kills. Miss. Gedge was killed by jean Bloomfield who used to be Marys teacher. Jean killed Mary because she cut a lot of herself in Mary, and didnt want to see Mary travel the same downward path that she did in her later years. Mrs. Boynton was endow out of her misery by Lady Westholme, because of the suffering she imposed on herself and them. Mrs. Bloomfield didnt have a reasonable motive, where as in the killing of Mrs. Boynton I can understand. She was described as a mean everywhere powering lady who forced the lives of her children to revolve around her, The old womans mouth widened into a malicious smile as she looked at Raymond.