In this first instalment in the Hercule Poirot series, a crime is committed when Mrs Inglethorp is poisoned in her bed and Captain Hastings knows that the only way to find the real culprit and explain the crime is to bring in his old friend and famous Belgian detective Monsieur Hercule Poirot. I’ve got a way to go before I can read that one as I’m going to be reading them in publication order, but I’m really looking forward to each one.

I have watched so many adaptations of Christie films, but personal favourite was the newest film adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express, I really enjoyed it. These books were written nearly 100 years ago and are still loved today, so I knew I needed to start reading them as soon as I could. The Mysterious Affair At Styles by Agatha Christie is the first mystery book in the Hercule Poirot series. Suspects are plentiful, including the victim’s much younger husband, her resentful stepsons, her long-time hired companion, a young family friend working as a nurse, and a London specialist on poisons who just happens to be visiting the nearby village.Īll of them have secrets they are desperate to keep, but none can outwit Poirot as he navigates the ingenious red herrings and plot twists that earned Agatha Christie her well-deserved reputation as the queen of mystery. When Emily is poisoned and the authorities are baffled, Poirot puts his prodigious sleuthing skills to work. I’ve got quite a few other Agatha Christie books, but I’m the type of person who has to read from the first published book otherwise it makes me feel all sick and funny, but I’m very happy to have finally gotten to Agatha Christie’s debut novel, and will hopefully be reading all the rest for a long time to come! Keep on reading for my thoughts on this great mystery and my first meeting with the famous Hercule Poirot!Īgatha Christie’s debut novel was the first to feature Hercule Poirot, her famously eccentric Belgian detective.Ī refugee of the Great War, Poirot is settling in England near Styles Court, the country estate of his wealthy benefactress, the elderly Emily Inglethorp. I received The Mysterious Affair At Styles for Christmas by my mother-in-law, but unfortunately, it was an abridged version for non-native speakers (a strange edition to pick as I’m British but oh well) and it has taken me this long to actually get my hands on a proper edition and read it.

My first book review for August is a really exciting one for me! I have wanted to read the Agatha Christie books for years, and I have heard so many great things about all of them for so long. “Sometimes I feel sure he is as mad as a hatter and then, just as he is at his maddest, I find there is a method in his madness.” – The Mysterious Affair At Styles

Published: 4 th of June 2004 – HarperCollins (first published in October 1920) Title: The Mysterious Affair At Styles (#1 Hercule Poirot)

The mysterious at styles