Hello, dear reader!
I've been using my little gray cells to solve an age-old mystery - what are the very best Agathe Christie books? After an intense period at looking at the evidence and considering the facts with my peculiar methods, I have finally cracked the case. Now, I'm sitting all of you down as I explain what result I arrived at and just why it all makes sense.
10. 4.50 from Paddington (1957)
There's an interesting twist to the usual murder mystery premise in this Miss Marple story: Mrs. McGillicuddy, the narrator throughout the book, is a direct eyewitness to the murder that starts it all. But she sees it through her train window, as it takes place in a passing train, so momentarily that she doesn't have time to see all that much.
From thereon out, 4.50 from Paddington is an intriguing puzzle, as old friends McGillicuddy and Marple try to solve the mystery clue by clue. As per tradition with Christie's novels, elements like complex family hierarchies and interference by local police enter the mix. It is quite a joy to have two silly old women as the story's main heroes, and their interactions throughout the story are delightful.
9. The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1921)
The first-ever book by Agatha Christie, and the first time the world met legendary detective Hercule Poirot, is a delicious murder mystery. If you've read a lot of Christie, this book might seem a tad 'basic', but when keeping in mind that it's the author's first publication, it's startling how well-thought-out her formula was from the beginning. From the quaint and interesting setting and various fascinating supporting characters all the way to the various suspicion factors that keep the reader guessing who the murderer is, there aren't many signs of the author still finding her style as is often the case with debut works.
Poirot is an amazing character from the start, as is his friend and the story's narrator Arthur Hastings, who would go on to appear in numerous Poirot stories in the following years. My favorite thing about Agatha Christie's novels is how she so often avoided the detective fiction cliché of the ending being anti-climactic because "It's always just one of the few people you knew it would be", as she often found a way to make the final reveal actually surprising in an out-of-the-box way. I won't spoil it here, but the final twist is one you won't see coming, for a reason that my writer's brain had a lot of respect for when I read this book last summer.
8. Evil Under the Sun (1941)
Evil Under The Sun is a classic for good reason. For starters, it has one of the most memorable and intense settings from any Poirot mystery: a secluded holiday resort on a small island, with an eye-opening map provided in the beginning of the book.
The novel also features some of Christie's best character writing, as the major characters aren't just a collection of disposable possible suspects, but rather very interesting individuals with various motivations and complicated relationships with one another. When one reads a lot of Agatha Christie, the characters start to blend together to a point that you don't remember which ones were in which book, but with this one I immediately remember most of the major players as they were so unique and memorable. Also, the final twist is once again a clever one that you likely won't see coming no matter how much brain work you put into trying to figure it out beforehand.
7. The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928)
This one of those Agatha Christie works that you (or at least I) can't read without drawing a map of the various character relationships on a piece of paper that you constantly update and check. There are so many characters in so many interconnected narratives, with their relationships with one another being a glorious mess that is hard to keep up with. But if you take the time to try and keep up with the insanely complicated character dynamics, it is quite the payoff to see the story unfold. The ways in which the different storylines come together, Poirot tackles the crime with his unique charisma and the final reveal is yet again one that shatters your pre-conceived ideas, are equal parts clever and thrilling.
6. The A.B.C. Murders (1936)
The A.B.C. Murders is an untypical Agatha Christie novel, and one that has had a huge influence on the mystery genre - no other book of hers feels as much like a modern action/mystery thriller than this one. That is because the book was vastly ahead of its time, and many authors and filmmakers have been influenced by its intense story. Tropes like the madman killer who keeps tormenting the main detective with cryptic clues, the main detective racing against time to solve the mystery and a certain meticulous theme being present in all of the murders were popularized much thanks to this book, if I remember my literary history correctly.
The main mystery unfolds in a heart-pounding and intense manner, as Poirot and his fellows race to stop the killer before their next murder takes place, and the "this time it's personal" touch of the killer constantly belittling Poirot with letters and clues is a fascinating touch.
5. Five Little Pigs (1942)
The best Christie novels are those that stick out from the rest due to some especially memorable setting or storytelling gimmick, and Five Little Pigs certainly does that - in this book, we follow Hercule Poirot solving the case of a murder that took place sixteen years ago. After receiving a letter from a young woman whose mother was convicted for a murder she didn't commit, Poirot looks into the case by asking the five possible perpetrators to write their own account on what happened on that fateful day sixteen years ago.
A majority of the novel consists of those five letters, with just a few chapters before them to set up the story and few afterwards to wrap them up. It's fun to read five different accounts of the same events, trying to piece together who the murderer might be, and it's quite a payoff to follow Poirot solving the case based on what he saw in those letters.
4. And Then There Were None (1939)
And Then There Were None, also known by its original title [REDACTED], is one of the four Christie novels that cross the "Masterpiece" threshold for me. It would probably be at third or even second place on my list, if it weren't for the fact that the resolution of the story isn't quite top-notch Agatha Christie - don't get me wrong, it is a good ending, but not as amazing as her best endings, and I'm always one for a mind-blowing final twist. That being said, the ending is right enough for this particular book, and everything leading up to it is absolute literary gold.
For starters, the premise is one of the coolest and spookiest to ever grace the mystery genre. Ten total strangers are invited to a secluded island, where they find out that some mysterious party has invited them to "pay for their wrongs" in some sort of elaborate revenge ploy. Soon enough, one of them is dead. And then another. And then another. We all know that one of the remaining people is the killer, but the suspicions on who it might be keep changing with rapid succession. Just when you think you might be on to something, Agatha proves you wrong. The escalating tension of the story comes through in a brilliant manner, making for one of the ultimate classics in the genre.
3. Curtain (1975)
Written during World War II, intended to be released as the final Poirot adventure, and released by Christie's daughter a year before the author's death, Curtain is quite the swan song. The parallel between the author who wasn't in good enough shape to release the book on her own and the fictional Belgian detective who is old, frail and on his last breaths in the book is gripping. Poirot may be in poor physical health and nearing the end of his life, but his brain is sharp as ever, making for a glorious final mystery.
Appropriately enough, the case takes place at Styles Court, the setting of the very first Poirot novel, as Poirot and his friend Hastings are reunited to solve their last murder mystery together. It is also appropriate that the murderer in question is the smartest and most terrifying antagonist that Poirot has gone up against, and that the final set of twists and reveals is nothing short of ultimate. While not quite the most clever Christie novel, Curtain is certainly the most emotional, as Hercule Poirot is sent off in a majestic and poetic manner.
2. Murder on the Orient Express (1934)
First of all, the setting. The Orient Express, making its way from Istanbul to Paris with its passengers being a melting pot of all sorts of cultures, makes for a delicious murder mystery milieu - especially once (first-act spoiler alert) the train breaks down and they're stuck in the middle of a snow storm. Within this intense setting, the story takes a conventional Agatha Christie approach: one by one, Poirot interviews all of the suspects, after which he comes to a conclusion.
And what a conclusion it is. Truly one of the most imaginative twists I have come across in the detective fiction genre. Although, there is one even better conclusion to be found from the very same author...
1. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)
I can't do this. I can't discuss what makes this book great without giving away major spoilers. The setting is interesting but quite average for a Christie novel, Poirot is delightful as ever, the locked-room circumstances of the murder are eyebrow-raising, but none of that is why this is my favorite book from the author. Read it for yourself, and see just what Christie as an author is capable of. The unconventional nature of the way the story is told and the final twist unfolds is nothing short of creative genius, making The Murder of Roger Ackroyd into a game-changer in detective fiction and even literature history, in addition to being a personal favorite.
And so, the mystery is solved. While I suspected many different books as my #1 favorite, the overwhelming majority of the evidence points to The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. Case closed.
Thank you for reading! Tune in next week, as my Literature Month continues with my ranking of the top 10 Shakespeare plays.
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