The ABC Murders

First Published: 1936

Setting: Andover, Bexhill-on-sea, Churston, Doncaster, London

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Hastings, Japp, Inspector Crome

Important Other People: Alexander Bonaparte Cust, Megan Barnard, Donald Fraser, Franklin Clark, Mary Drower, Thora Grey

I feel like Agatha wanted to take on a story about a serial killer, then realized that it would have to be about the human element (that she understands so well), and so made a serial killer with a twist story that we love so much. There is discussion in the book about the motivation for serial killers, which I don't know how much of I agree with. Poirot basically says that it is a very specific niche that serial killers fall into, so it's quite difficult to be a true one. It is far easier to find a murderer who commits a murder for their own personal motive- going back to the discussion on motives and why these crimes are committed.

Another aspect of this book that I really like is that it is very much in the public eye (in the world of the novel). I often wonder how much people know about these cases that Poirot deals with. Mention is often made about it being in the papers and people remembering various cases, but this is one that was made extremely public and, what's more, it was thought to be a homicidal maniac on the loose, killing people based on an alphabetical complex, and so there was a chance that people in other places could be affected by it (and not just relatives of the victim, as is usually the case with Poirot).

I enjoy the dual narrative of the story because we get to hear about the case from different points of view, which lets us have additional insight. I always enjoy when Hastings narrates because we get to see his thoughts on the case (which are remarkably similar to my own: as in, 'what's going on??'), but I like that we also get to hear about it from the point of view of the...murderer (kind of). A plot device from The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, but different this time because we feel like we're getting two sides of the story, yet there still is something missing...

Interesting facts: Talks about Poirot's idea of a perfect murder- his "crime to order," with 4 people playing bridge ad someone gets murdered. Cards on the Table coming soon! Presented in a dual-narrative form. A VIDEO GAME was made based on the book- what??? Why have I never played it??

Favorite? Yes. (one of them)

Death by: Cosh, strangulation, stabbing

Body Count: 4; Cumulative: 41

The Count: Poirot-11, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-6, Japp-6, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: Time is remorseless. Even the most sober person is liable to have his head turned by success. You can't catch a train earlier than when it leaves. Words are the outer clothing of ideas. A hobby is a great consolation to a man. There is nothing so dangerous for anyone who has something to hide as conversation. Speech is an invention of man's to keep him from thinking. Intuition is really an impression based on logical deduction or experience.

Up Next: Murder in Mesopotamia

Death in the Air (Death in the Clouds)

First Published: 1935

Setting: London, Paris

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Japp, Jane Grey

Important Other People: Fouriner, Norman Gale, Mr. Clancy, the Duponts

The idea of the innocent being affected by a murder as well as the guilty is one which Christie explores in many other novels. Here, we see the characters go back to their lives after the murder, and we see what they experience as people associate them with the crime until the murderer is unmasked. That is especially interesting given that the murderer suffers a lot in their professional life after the murder, so one would wonder why they chose to commit it in such a public manner...but oh well.

Mr. Clancy is introduced as an absent-minded writer, a parody on Agatha herself, as well as a precursor to Mrs. Oliver. I like Mr. Clancy because I feel like Agatha just wrote about herself, and the character did not change throughout subsequent novels in the way that Mrs. Oliver did.

This is one of the first novels that introduces science as one of Agatha's passions. She has two archaeologists, and ends with them going off on an expedition, which is something Agatha herself was passionate about. Also, it leads us to Murder in Mesopotamia, coming up in a few...

Interesting facts: Ariadne Oliver (who has not yet appeared as Agatha's alter ego) in a later novel makes reference to a book she wrote once where she got the length of a blowpipe wrong, and many fans wrote to her to inform her of it. This one small detail, around which so much of the novel revolves, is actually kind of a big deal to get incorrect.

Favorite? I like it in that it happened in an enclosed space, and thus the suspect list is significantly shortened, causing Poirot to really have to use his little grey cells to find the answer (similar to Murder on the Orient Express, Cards on the Table, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Blue Train). I also like that the jury at the inquest finds Poirot guilty of murder...

Death by: Boomslang (rare poison), prussic acid (cyanide)

Body Count: 2; Cumulative: 37

The Count: Poirot-10, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-5, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: Murder affects the innocent too. Knowledge is security, knowledge is power. Everyone keeps something back. It's no good to regret what is already done. An answer depends on the question that is asked. Girls have to be able to fend for themselves. Meekness doesn't pay. If there's one fellow after a woman, there's sure to be another as well. To men, that women grow old is the great tragedy of life. Nothing is too sensational. Even a nine-day's wonder doesn't last longer than 9 days. Sensationalism dies quickly, fear is long-lived. In one approaches a problem with order and method, there should be no difficulty in solving it. Everyone likes talking about themselves. When everything else fails, music remains. Science is the greatest romance there is. One needs much courage to live. Always start at the beginning.

Up Next: The ABC Murders

Three Act Tragedy

First Published: 1935

Setting: Yorkshire, Cornwall

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Mr. Satterthwaite, Sir Charles Cartwright, Egg Lytton Gore

Important Other People: The Dacres', Oliver Manders, Bartholomew Strange, Miss Temple

The idea that events come to people, not people to events, seems to be Christie's way of explaining Poirot's propensity for murder. Aside from getting called into cases or idiotically asked for help by the murderer, Poirot does seem to stumble upon murder extremely often. I would say that people go to events, as well as events go to people. I mean, Poirot does a lot of traveling, and there seem to be a lot of murders where he goes. He usually gets called into the case if he is in a place where there is a murder. I guess a specialist on murder has to go where a murder could occur- a specialist on some sort of rare animal would have to go to where that animal lives...sort of similar?

A theme that continually pops up throughout Agatha's novels is that of the boasting criminal. The characters talk about how boasting is a sign of an inferiority complex, which relates to murderers- cocky and conceited to cover a deep-seeded belief of unworthiness. I would say that the murderer in this novel is one of the most boastful she writes about, and if we went by that adage, we would know from the beginning who was responsible. Unfortunately, there is still the problem of the motive, which leads to the discussion of motives in this novel. They talk about gain, revenge, fear, and homicidal mania. I would agree with Poirot that the motive in this case is a bit obscure, and not really likely to be used very often.

Interesting facts: One of the few novels where Poirot's life was in danger (due to the carelessness of the murderer). Mentioned in other novels, and other stories are mentioned in this one.

Favorite? Not really. Too much of the plot is uninteresting to me.

Death by: Nicotine poisoning

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 35

The Count: Poirot-9, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-4, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: Events come to people, not people to events. A man hates being run after. Beware of the day when your dreams come true. Everything comes right in the end. Girls are attracted to bad men; they think their love will change him. Not everyone knows the difference between right and wrong. The language might be different but human nature is the same everywhere. Women keep up appearances better than men. Men are dull when they settle down. Women aren't usually cruel to men, only to other women. Bitterness leads nowhere.

Up Next: Death in the Air

The Boomerang Clue (Why Didn't They Ask Evans?)

First Published: 1934

Setting: Wales, Hampshire

Starring: Bobby, Frankie

Important Other People: Roger Bassington-ffrench, Moira, Badger

I hardly took any notes on this book while I was reading it, and there is no mention of it in Agatha's biography. I think because it starts off so promising and with such great characters, but it doesn't really follow through. There's twists, but some of them just peter out. Don't get me wrong- I like this book a lot! I just think it could have been a lot better.

Interesting facts: Only appearance of Bobby and Frankie, who are wonderful and I'm sad they aren't in any other books. The idea of a chance sentence heard by the protagonist was used before in Lord Edgware's Dead, although it was elaborated on here.

Favorite? Yes because of the way it starts off- a chance remark leading to an adventure!

Death by: Shooting, pushed off a cliff

Body Count: 2; Cumulative: 32

The Count: Poirot-8, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-4, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: Men like helpless women (and isn't that annoying!) Don't get sidetracked.

Up Next: Three Act Tragedy

Murder on the Orient Express

First Published: 1934

Setting: Somewhere along the line of the Orient Express!

Starring: Poirot, M. Bouc, Dr. Constantine

Important Other People: Armstrong household

Murder on the Orient Express is Poirot in his element. The train is snowed in and cannot be moved, there is no chance of outside help being called in, and the witnesses and suspects are all trapped! The case has to be solved on deduction and intellect only, leading Poirot to triumph in his usual non-humble way, but also showing his compassionate side when he realizes that sometimes, you do have to work outside of the law.

The idea of individuals meting out justice is used again in Appointment with Death, and here, Poirot accepts an official version of the murder. He condones murder because sometimes, man is evil, but goes unpunished. Thus, when justice comes to them, he knows that they deserved it. Which sounds awful, but in both cases, is entirely warranted.

This novel is also rife with stereotypes. The book allowed Agatha to have an international cast of characters meeting in an unlikely place. She was able to assign them to different stations in life based on where they come from- the idea of class with her is quite established. She also exploits stereotypes of different countries, which is useful in assigning them jobs and personalities.

Interesting facts: I cannot find a mention of the book in her autobiography. I don't know why! The book is loosely based off the Lindbergh kidnapping, as well as Agatha's love for the Orient Express. Many parts of her autobiography are about her travels upon it.

Favorite? Of course! I know I say this a lot, but it really is unique among Agatha's novels, and it is so ingenious. (Let's be real; they're all unique.)

Death by: Stabbing (12 times!)

Body Count: 1; Cumulative: 30

The Count: Poirot-8, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-4, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1

Agatha's Life Lessons: The worst of Americans is that they are so sentimental and idealistic. The English are not sympathetic. If the impossible cannot have happened, then the impossible must be possible in spite of appearances.

Up Next: Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (The Boomerang Clue)

Thirteen at Dinner

First Published: 1933

Setting: London

Starring: Poirot, Hastings, Lady Edgware

Important Other People: Japp, Carlotta Adams

First of all: I will never understand why people in Agatha's fictional world constantly call Hercule Poirot in to look into some mystery, when they are the ones culpable in the end. Why do so many people think so little of him?? You think they would have learned by now. Sigh.

The plot of the book revolves around the personality of Lady Edgware, and how self-absorbed she is, to the point of total disregard of the rest of humanity. She is similar to Nick Buckley in that they both know what they want and they don't care who gets hurt so that they can get it.

This is the first of Agatha's books with what I call the "three death pattern." One person is murdered, for some specific motive, and then two other people are eventually killed, usually for safety reasons. Both the second and third murders in this book are purely for the murderer's safety, whereas the first murder is solely for gain. Many of Agatha's next books follow this three death pattern, and while it keeps the book moving and the plot full of twists, it becomes kind of a standard.

There are a lot of allusions to other books in this story. There is a mention of the one clue Poirot ever found, which happened in Murder on the Links. There is also the idea of a chance statement by a stranger leading to the discovery of the crime (The Boomerang Clue). We'll explore that in a few books.

Interesting facts: Dedicated to archaeologists who Agatha and her husband (Max Mallowan) were on a dig with at the time. There was some consternation over an expensive table she wanted to write the book on, and Dr. Thompson was not happy about it. He eventually gave way, which lead to Agatha dedicating the book to him. Also, according to her autobiography, a skeleton they dug up was named Lord Edgware. Oh, archaeological humor!

Favorite? Eh. I like the questions posed by Poirot, although it takes so long for them to get resolved!

Death by: Stabbing, veronal

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 29

The Count: Poirot-7, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-4, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1

Agatha's Life Lessons: People interested only in themselves lead dangerous lives. Every human being has the right to live. One will stand a good deal from a beautiful woman. Everyone has got to put up with something. The less said in life, the better. Each individual should develop his own powers to the utmost, not try to imitate those of someone else (even though Carlotta Adams was praised in the book for her imitation skills). It is a great misfortune for a man to have a wife who loves him. Sons never want to marry the girls their mothers want them to marry.

Up Next: Murder on the Orient Express