Murder on the Orient Express [Mass Market Paperback]

Agatha Christie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1991

Hercule Poirot refuses a stranger's request to help and then within six hours is asked to find the stranger's killer.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Murder on the Orient Express is a tour-de-force variation on the theme of the English house-party, gathering a remarkable set of characters, each a secretive soul, for a journey on the fabled Orient Express train as it travels from Istanbul to Paris. On hand to resolve the murder of an American passenger is Hercule Poirot, the dapper Belgian detective, dependent only on his wit, who tucks away obscure, seemingly unrelated minutiae in his facile mind. When he determines that the corpse was a renowned child kidnapper/killer, he begins to wonder about connections between the passengers and the victim. A misplaced button, overheard conversations, a monogrammed handkerchief, and an elusive figure clad in a scarlet kimono all become clues as Hercule Poirot interrogates the snow-trapped travelers and comes to his own conclusions. Murder on the Orient Express, with its skill plot construction, adroit writing, and thought-provoking revelations, reminds us that what is "just" is not always what is legal. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. -- From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Vickie Sears

About the Author

Agatha Christie was born in Torquay in 1890 and became, quite simply, the best-selling novelist in history. Her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, written towards the end of the First World War, introduced us to Hercule Poirot, who was to become the most popular detective in crime fiction since Sherlock Holmes. She is known throughout the world as the Queen of Crime. Her books have sold over a billion copies in the English language and another billion in over 100 foreign countries. She is the author of 80 crime novels and short story collections, 19 plays, and six novels under the name of Mary Westmacott. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins (Mm) (November 1991)
• ISBN-10: 0061002747
• ISBN-13: 978-0061002748
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (231 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #333,234 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Foreign Language Fiction > French

More About the Author

Agatha Christie was born in 1890 and created the detective Hercule Poirot in her debut novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920). She achieved wide popularity with The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) and produced a total of eighty novels and short-story collections over six decades.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dated but still, and always will be, ingenious, March 11, 2002

By 

K. H. ZAINAL (Malaysia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot Mysteries) (Paperback)

Ah, yes. The world famous case of the "Murder on the Orient Express" (MotOE). It is so famous, even people who have never read Christie know who did it. I first read it 12 years ago even though someone had already revealed to me the identity of the murderer. I've never forgiven him. But I read it anyway to find out for myself how Agatha Christie constructed the story in order to fool her readers.

Christie was probably inspired by the true story of the 'Lindbergh baby' kidnapping. Charles Lindbergh (he who flew across the Atlantic alone) had an infant child who was kidnapped and murdered even after the ransom had been paid.

The background to MotOE is also similar to the Lindbergh case. The victim is revealed to have been involved in a kidnap-murder case a few years back and got away with it. Was he punished for his crimes at last? Was he murdered for something totally unrelated? Or was he a victim of mistaken identity?

The usual suspects remind one of the typical English drawing room murder mysteries: an English colonel, a Russian princess, a count, a beautiful mysterious woman...they are all here. And Hercule Poirot has to discover who the murderer is and why, all by using his "little grey cells, mon ami."

The revelation in the final pages will surprise the reader yet it will not strain belief too much. MotOE has been accused of being incredulous and downright silly but I disagree. Those who feel that way probably forgot that they are reading a fiction novel. I am sure one will find it a lot of fun if only to find out who from among the varied cast did it. You'll be gobsmacked, I assure you :)

The solution will also show the reader why MotOE is famous in its uniqueness and has never been copied (no writer dares to).

Another Agatha Christie mystery that features an incredible revelation and giving an "I would never have guessed that" feeling to the reader is "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd". Both the Ackroyd and the Orient Express books should be in the Murder Mysteries Hall of Fame, if there is one.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Ultimate Christie Puzzle, December 5, 2001

By 

Gary F. Taylor "GFT" (Biloxi, MS USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot Mysteries) (Paperback)

If I had to select a single Christie novel to read again for the first time, this would be my choice; more than twenty years after my first encounter with the novel I can still recall my complete amazement. I strongly urge those who have not seen the film version to avoid it until you have experienced the sheer pleasure of being being tricked by the master trickster herself. For MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS, superlatives are not enough.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A dramatic reading of a great mystery novel, May 1, 2001

By 

F. Behrens "Frank Behrens" (Keene, NH USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on the Orient Express: A Hercule Poirot Mystery (Audio CD)

One problem with audiobooks is the dialogue. Very often an author does not supply the "he said/she said" before or after each quotation and the listener is often at a loss as to who is speaking. David Suchet, the ultimate Poirot, gets around this by using a different voice for each character. He had accomplished this in his reading of the complete "Death on the Nile" for Audio Partners and he does it again with a superlative <Murder on the Orient Express> for that same label.

This set was designed for a release to coincide with the CBS dramatization of the classic whodunit, but Audio Partners need not have bothered. That telecast was an utter disaster with a lusterless Poirot, a cast that for the most part could scarcely create a character, and an updating of the decor (among other ludicrous changes) to the present. So the older film with its starry cast can rest unchallenged; but the public is entitled to enjoy the original and this audiobook is just the ticket.

Christie uses the usual "closed environment" setting (an island, a cruiser, a train) to give us a small number of suspects; and then she hits us with Poirot's "gather everyone together while I explain the solution" scene. One of the gimmicks of this novel is that Poirot comes up with two solutions! But for the sake of those very few who do not know the ending, I will say no more. And even for those who do, there is always the joy of Suchet's reading.

I have the CD edition, a format that makes it difficult to find where you last left off since each full chapter is usually given a single track number. Here Audio Partners has thoughtfully broken each chapter into several tracks so you pretty much can get back to where you were with a minimum of trouble. Tapes, of course, stay where they are--and are much better for use in autos.

So by all means choose this as your next purchase, and do not forget the "Death on the Nile" offering while you are about it.