Tag Archives: I try to solve an Agatha Christie mystery

I Try to Solve an Agatha Christie Mystery | Peril at End House (Hercule Poirot)

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PerilAtEndHouse

It feels like forever since I’ve attempted to match my little grey cells with those of the brilliant Queen of Mystery! I was in the mood for a bit of a treat this Friday — I’d taken the day off work to make it an extra long Canada Day long weekend — and what better treat than a brand new Christie adventure?! I bought the Hercule Poirot classic Peril at End House a few months ago and haven’t had a chance to read it yet, so, armed with my trusty purple pen and dubious art skills, I made myself a cup of coffee and set to work.

In this mystery, Hercule Poirot and his trusty sidekick Captain Hastings are on holiday when they meet a vivacious young woman, Nick Buckley, who owns the nearby End House. Nick has had a streak of bad luck, with three near-fatal ‘accidents’ over the past few days, and while chatting with Poirot and Hastings, what she thought was a pesky wasp turns out to be a bullet shot through her hat. Poirot decides to help her out, and catch the would-be murderer before Nick gets killed.

I just paused my reading at the end of Chapter 18. Poirot has figured it all out, and is about to put on a play a la Hamlet, and for once I’m feeling really confident that I’ve actually figured this one out. More exciting: if I’m right, I will have figured it out even before the world’s greatest detective himself, as I’d had this major gut feel theory fairly early on, and while Poirot was pursuing several leads, all the little twists seemed to fit into the theory I’d formed.

Of course, that likely means my theory is completely off-base, and I’d missed some valuable clue somewhere amongst the pages. Still, this is turning out to be such a fun mystery! There’s a full cast of colourful characters, an atmospheric location in End House, and lots of fun twists along the way. So, as per usual, I’ll post my guess below the spoiler tag, and will only note up here whether or not I’ve succeeded.

Did I Succeed? (No Spoilers)

YES I DID!!!! I figured out the murderer even before the great Hercule Poirot did! I got their motive, their method, and even one of the (several) valuable clues!

WOOHOO!!! I finally solve an Agatha Christie mystery!

Now, which Christie should I read next?

***SPOILERS AHEAD***

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I Try to Solve an Agatha Christie Mystery | A Caribbean Mystery (Miss Marple)

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A challenge of reading Agatha Christie mysteries with the goal of attempting to solve them is that I have to be in a particular type of mood to give it a go. I started the Miss Marple classic A Caribbean Mystery about a month ago, and only managed to get into the mystery-solving stage today, not because the story wasn’t gripping. On the contrary, this is one of my favourite Marples, and certainly one that showcases her sharp wit, sly humour, and undercover brilliance to perfection. I was intrigued by the mystery, and eager to find out what twists and turns the Queen of Crime had in store.

Unfortunately for my curiosity, I knew that figuring out this mystery would require all of my little grey cells, and as it turns out, I am very rarely in the mood these days to exercise those little grey cells. This means that, for the last few weeks, I’ve been very happily devouring Baby-Sitters Club ebooks from the library, whilst poor Major Palgrave’s murder remained (at least to me) unsolved.

Fortunately for truth, justice, and all that jazz, my grey cells have finally reawakened, and today, I read my notes and re-read the earlier chapters, then read all the way to right before the big reveal and tried to cobble all the clues together. My verdict: I have no idea who killed the Major. Or rather, I have two suspects and a gut-feel third suspect, and true to the Queen of Crime’s twists and turns, none of them were on my suspect list early on. I have vague theories about what their motives could be, and random bits of information that I think support my claims. And a whole jumble of thoughts about how they all fit together.

The Setup:

Miss Marple is on holiday in the Caribbean politely pretending to listen as an old soldier, Major Palgrave, regales her with tales of his adventures. Then he tells her about a murder he heard about and, reaching into his wallet, asks if she wants to see a snapshot of a murderer. He’s about to show her the photo when he catches sight of something — or someone — behind her, and hurriedly changes the subject.

The next day, he’s found dead. Doctors chalk it up to high blood pressure, mostly because of a bottle of blood pressure pills at his bedside, but one of the hotel staff swears that bottle wasn’t there before his death. Whodunit?

Did I Succeed? (No Spoilers)

No, alas, I did not. I missed a key clue (that to Christie’s credit was mentioned more than once), and totally fixated on the wrong characters and plot elements.

Still, this is definitely one of my favourite Marple mysteries and overall Christie stories. Twisty, convoluted, and oh-so-much fun. This is a mystery and a cast of characters I’d very much love to see on the screen, so I’ll have to find out which of the Marple shows covered this!

My first wine-fuelled attempt at solving Agatha Christie… which may be why this case seems especially mysterious?

***SPOILERS BELOW***

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I Try to Solve An Agatha Christie Mystery: Murder in Mesopotamia (Hercule Poirot)

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MurderInMesopotamiaOkay, this is a very, very good book. I started reading it late one Saturday evening, and had to tear myself away about a third of the way in because it was getting close to midnight and I wanted to sleep, but also, I COULDN’T PUT THE BOOK DOWN!

The premise is delightfully spooky: archaeologist Dr Leidner hires a nurse to care for his wife while she accompanied his team on a dig in Mesopotamia. Mrs Leidner has been having a tough time — she’s been hearing odd noises like scratching on the walls, and seeing stuff like, once, a creepy face at her window. The whole thing was making her extra jumpy, and Dr Leidner hoped Nurse Leatheran — who is also our narrator — can help with her nerves.

My Kindle copy had highlights galore, and the notes in my detective notebook were filled with clusters of exclamation points. Here’s a reveal! There’s a reveal! And oh my god, I can’t believe this was just revealed!!! There was a chapter where Mrs Leidner was telling Nurse Leatheran about some experiences she’d had, and I was gasping as if I were watching things unfold in a theatre. The simple phrase “I have arrived” made me jump. Seriously: a chill ran down my spine, and I clutched my poor cat for comfort. Nurse Leatheran had a much more rational response to the incident, and a matter-of-fact explanation for it. Which only goes to show me that in the world of Poirot, I’m more likely to be the ‘hysterical’ woman in need of a nurse than the level-headed nurse herself.

MurderInMesopotamia

My detective set-up includes hot cocoa, detective notebook, and (not pictured) little grey cells!

Ironically, despite the title of the novel, the murder itself took me by surprise. Partly because, shortly before it occurred, a revelation turned suspicion on a particular character. So when the murder happened and definitely proved that character innocent, I was thrown aback. But also, and this is yet another sign of Christie’s genius, the scene right before the murder was calm and low-key. Characters went off to their daily tasks, Nurse Leatheran settled in with a good book about a nursing home… and honestly, the scene lulled me into a false sense of security. So when Nurse Leatheran realized two hours had passed, and then a murder is discovered, it took a moment for my brain to catch up. So, well done, Dame Agatha, for pulling me in so masterfully!

Among all the Agatha Christie mysteries I’ve tried to solve so far, this one feels the most cinematic. In fact, when the characters call Hercule Poirot in for help at the 33% mark, I even cheered out loud. Because, the hero has arrived, and the story is about to ramp all the way up to full throttle. Poirot, as always, lays out the facts and possible theories with admirable precision, and by the 44% mark, I was ready to lock my prime suspect in as the murderer. I’d found them suspicious from the start, and further clues only seemed to confirm my suspicions. Of course, this being Agatha Christie, the level of my confidence is often in direct opposition to the level of my accuracy, and I knew many more things had yet to be revealed.

…Okay, I’m 81% in, a second murder has occurred, a character has disappeared, and Hercule Poirot has requested for all suspects to be gathered together. It’s time for me to make my final deductions. I make my bold proclamation and explain my rationale after the spoiler tag, and we shall see how my little grey cells stood up to this task!

Conclusion

Ok, hats off to you, Dame Agatha. No, I did not solve this mystery, but to be honest, I don’t even mind. Because the actual reveal blew my mind. I yelled “WHAT???” when Poirot made his accusation. I had my hand to my mouth as he explained the means the murder was committed. And I legit gasped out loud when I learned the motive. My poor cat had been cuddling with me as I read, and she shot me a look and inched away as I read these pages.

Bravo, Dame Agatha. Brilliant work!

***SPOILERS BELOW***

My Theory / My Detective Big Reveal:

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