audio cassette
Published Aug. 1, 2003 by Macmillan Audio.
Set in the summer of 1917 in an Essex country estate, the story follows the war-wounded Captain Arthur Hastings to the Styles St. Mary manor of his friend John Cavendish. The Cavendish household is wrought with tension due to the marriage of John's widowed old aunt Emily, she of a sizeable fortune, to a suspicious younger man, Alfred Inglethorp, twenty years her junior. Emily's two stepsons, John and Lawrence Cavendish, as well as John's wife Mary and several other people, also live at Styles. Late one night, the residents of Styles wake to find Emily Inglethorp dying. When Emily's sudden heart attack is found to be attributable to strychnine, Hastings, who had runs into his old friend, the Belgian Hercule Poirot, he recruits him to aid in the local investigation. With impeccable timing, Hercule Poirot, the insightful retired detective, makes his dramatic entrance to solve a most baffling case.
Who …
Set in the summer of 1917 in an Essex country estate, the story follows the war-wounded Captain Arthur Hastings to the Styles St. Mary manor of his friend John Cavendish. The Cavendish household is wrought with tension due to the marriage of John's widowed old aunt Emily, she of a sizeable fortune, to a suspicious younger man, Alfred Inglethorp, twenty years her junior. Emily's two stepsons, John and Lawrence Cavendish, as well as John's wife Mary and several other people, also live at Styles. Late one night, the residents of Styles wake to find Emily Inglethorp dying. When Emily's sudden heart attack is found to be attributable to strychnine, Hastings, who had runs into his old friend, the Belgian Hercule Poirot, he recruits him to aid in the local investigation. With impeccable timing, Hercule Poirot, the insightful retired detective, makes his dramatic entrance to solve a most baffling case.
Who poisoned the wealthy Emily Inglethorpe, and how did the murderer penetrate and escape from her locked bedroom? Suspects abound in the quaint village of Styles St. Mary--from the heiress's fawning new husband to her two stepsons, her volatile housekeeper, and a pretty nurse who works in a hospital dispensary. On the day she was killed, Emily Inglethorp was overheard arguing with someone, most likely her husband, Alfred, or her stepson, John. Afterwards, she seemed quite distressed and, apparently, made a new will--which no one can find. Nobody can explain how or when the strychnine was administered to Mrs. Inglethorp. High on Poirot's list of suspects are: John Cavendish, the elder stepson; Mary Cavendish, his wife; Lawrence Cavendish, the younger stepson; Evelyn Howard, Mrs. Inglethorpe's companion; Cynthia Murdoch, her protegee; and Dr. Bauerstein, a mysterious stranger who lives in Essex. All have motive and opportunity but only Poirot can discover the truth.
Goofy little Belgian man solves mystery, POV character is just smart enough to constantly look like an idiot. It's a classic for a reason. It's an engaging mystery where I was always second-guessing my assumptions, and Poirot is actually such a fun character, shedding light and befuddling everyone in equal parts. Just a great read altogether.
This was my first Agatha Christie ever, and the only comparison I have to make is to the Sherlock Holmes stories. I enjoyed it. I think I was getting used to Doyle's writing by the end of the Holmes stories, because I could pick up on a lot of the clues by then, but with this I didn't clue on to much at all. I wonder if that will change as I read more of Christie's work? What I will say, though, is that Hastings is a bit whiny and petulant compared to Watson...
Enjoyable and I didn’t fully pick up on all the clues or guess the identity of the culprit (unlike The Mousetrap). The general story of the book has aged well, but some of the dialogue has not - characters make casual racist, sexist and antisemitic remarks, which I don’t think would be the case if this book was written today.
But like a really good 3 stars.
It's almost hard to credit this as the beginning of what, to me, was a very enjoyable television series. David Suchet playing Poirot onscreen was a staple of my childhood, the series is, after all, almost as old as I am. Last year's Curtain, broadcast on a Wednesday last November, brought back many memories of sitting down with my grandfather to watch a performance.
Early Poirot is seemingly more clue-based, more your typical detective than his future depictions seem to indicate. Latterly he seemed very much to look for reasons, whereas for the majority of the novel he's seeking clues. I did enjoy poor old Hastings bewilderment throughout, and will I am sure read the rest of these over the years.
It's almost hard to credit this as the beginning of what, to me, was a very enjoyable television series. David Suchet playing Poirot onscreen was a staple of my childhood, the series is, after all, almost as old as I am. Last year's Curtain, broadcast on a Wednesday last November, brought back many memories of sitting down with my grandfather to watch a performance.
Early Poirot is seemingly more clue-based, more your typical detective than his future depictions seem to indicate. Latterly he seemed very much to look for reasons, whereas for the majority of the novel he's seeking clues. I did enjoy poor old Hastings bewilderment throughout, and will I am sure read the rest of these over the years.
