Eight stars
The great Belgian detective is back in Agatha Christie's next novel in the Hercule Poirot series. While he may not be as salacious as many gumshoes who grace the pages of mystery novels today, Poirot gets to the heart of the matter with ease and leaves readers with a sense of entertainment and some education throughout the process. Christie delves into some interesting realms and keeps the reader alongside her, in hopes of creating a sensational tale for all to enjoy. A long-ago murder has Poirot working overtime in this piece, though it is anything but boring for all involved. With an oddly-named book, Agatha Christie takes the reader on quite the ride until depositing them at the end with a contemplative solution.
No one batted an eye when Caroline Crale was convicted of murdering her husband, even though he gave her quite the motive. She did not fight in court and spent a year in jail before she, too, died. However, not everyone is quite convinced of her guilt, specifically her grown daughter.
Armed with a letter from the late Mrs. Crale, Hercule Poirot is asked to engage in revisiting the case, sixteen years on. Could Mr. Crale, a philandering painter, have had others who wished him dead, eager to frame his wife? Poirot will have to chat with those who knew the Crale and try to piece things together once more. With the letter as his map of sorts, Poirot tries to deduce what is truth and where falsehoods come into play.
Tripping over the recollections of many and the curiosity of the Crale daughter, Poirot thrusts himself into the middle of it all, working to find an amenable solution to this conundrum. The story meanders along, as five elements slowly come together, providing the reader with something well worth their time. Christie is a master of the trade and proves it yet again here!
I have been bingeing the Hercule Poirot series between some other reads as a means of cleansing my mind and keeping me on my toes. Agatha Christie does well at both, while never bogging me down with something too heavy to properly compute. A strong narrative helps the many characters function well and leaves me eager to push through to see how things will come together. Nice plot points develop and are soon handled by the Belgian detective, leaving me to wonder how I could have missed things in the rapid-fire analysis Poirot undertakes. I have a few more stories to go before my next break, which has me excited to see what else Agatha Christie has to offer.
Kudos, Madam Christie, for yet another successful mystery.
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