This imaginative short story collection, inspired by Hercule Poirot’s first name, riffs on the ancient Greek myths but with little grey cells replacing muscles.
Murder, stolen plans, locked room mystery and a menage a trois. Hercule Poirot is faced with four mystifying cases in what is by far the strongest and most re-readable collection of Christie’s short stories.
I’m always delighted to come across a Christie mystery I’ve never read before. This Poirot and Hastings adventure, dedicated to Dame Agatha’s beloved dog Peter, is held back from the true vintage status by some glaring plot weaknesses, but still had enough ingenuity and light humour to keep me happy from page to page.
A fun collection of crimes solved by the one and only Hercule Poirot, with a bonus Miss Marple short story. I was slightly disappointed that only one of the stories is actually set at Christmas.
This foray into the swinging sixties doesn’t seem to be highly thought of among Agatha Christie fans, but I enjoyed it quite a lot, maybe because the idea of Hercule Poirot among mods and beatniks is just too much fun.
This collection of short stories, first published in 1924 and featuring Christie’s own Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, may not be as satisfying as Christie’s Poirot novels, but it showcases the future Queen of Crime honing her craft.
One of my personal favourites, After the Funeral may not have the sort of shocking and daring high-concept solution that marks Christie’s most popular novels, but for me it’s simply a great example of the Queen of Crime excelling at her craft.
This solid Poirot mystery has the prettiest title of all Christie novels, which I didn’t realise was borrowed from an equally beautiful passage from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.