The Mysterious Affair at Styles: The First Hercule Poirot Mystery (Hercule Poirot Mysteries) Paperback – Illustrated, January 14, 2020

I don’t usually read mysteries and especially avoid murder mysteries. But I had to read at least one Agatha Christie book. This is the first Poirot book published in 1920. I’m amazed at how prolific she was, considering the complexity of the crimes and obscure clues. I enjoyed the book and wasn’t able to figure out who-done-it. I can see how Christie set the standard for intellectual mysteries to follow with everyone under suspicion at a country estate and the detective gathering the suspects to explain what led to his deductions. She keeps you guessing with all the twists. I can see why her books are so popular.

Love a good mystery novel and the book itself was in great condition

During World War One, Hastings is visiting friends in the British countryside when the matriarch of the family suddenly dies. Suspicion immediately falls upon the husband home everyone dislikes but there’s a mystery to this. Thankfully, the great detective, Hercule Poirot, Is living nearby. At the request of the family and his dear Hastings, Poirot is on the case.—I’ve always loved the Hercule Poirot books. I find the little Belgian detective absolutely delightful especially in his kindness and childlike joy in making people happy. He’s got all of the intelligence of Sherlock Holmes but possesses the kindness of Dr. Watson. Seeing him in his first appearance is fun.This is a classic Agatha Christie novel in every sense. It’s set in the British countryside. At the manor house. With a small cast of characters all of whom have the means more of an opportunity to commit the crime. The foreshadowing is there and it is on point. And then there’s the typical Agatha Christie twist. And it’s a twist because the clothes are in there it’s just the way that they presented you discount them. Much like the characters in the book discount the clothes when they are presented them. This is what makes the twist effective. You have all of the information. You know everything that Poirot knows. And still Christie can surprise you. It’s lovely.As stated before, this is the first published Hercule Poirot mystery. It was written in 1916 at the height of World War I. Which means that cultural and societal conventions of the time are in play. This includes things like casual racism and use of racist language regarding people of color including those of Roma and African descent.It also includes massive amounts of xenophobia which button is still well known for. And there’s also casual anti-Semitism because again this is the 1910s. It’s important to know this going in. The words and the sentiments expressed in this novel are wrong, and they were wrong then. But they are still products of their time. And erasing them or refusing to allow people to read them is trying to erase that history. And our present is build upon this very real history. At the same time it’s important to have this context. As a historian this book is a fascinating trip into the mindset of someone who lived through World War I and was writing about it contemporaneously. Yes there is problematic language used, There always is in primary resources. And this can be considered a primary resource of life in the 1910s.It’s also a fun raiser some really great characters. Which is why I’m going to get this five stars with the caveat that readers understand that they are reading a novel that is a product of its time.Five stars.

If you’re an avid reader you’ll probably relate to this: that empty feeling you get after reading a really excellent book. You wander around, wondering if it will ever be possible to find another excellent book. You know that it might take you some time to find another really excellent book because there are lots of not-so-good books out there.When I have that experience, I reach for an Agatha Christie novel.I read my first Christie book back in the early 80s, when I was a teenager (the first Christie I read was “Curtain”, Christies last book). I’ve read them all several times over the years. I don’t read them because they are excellent (there are only a few I’d consider as a 5-star read). I read them because Christie was good at telling a story. Sure, some of her characterizations may be a little two-dimensional, and some of them are less interesting than others. But, still: Christie had a way of getting you to turn the pages.I’ve decided that perhaps it is time for me to read Christie in order. Not that her series needs to be read in order, like many of the modern detective novels do. There’s little in the way of backstory for Poirot or Miss Marple, so there is really no need to read them in order. It’s more of an experiment, really: to watch her writing style, to see if it changes as she becomes more famous.Hence, “The Mysterious Affair at Styles,” Dame Agatha’s first book, in which we meet the man who (thanks to David Suchet’s definitive portrayal) is now world famous: Hercule Poirot.Poirot is a retired Belgian policeman, now a displaced refugee (the book was written, and takes place during the years of the First World War) who has only recently arrived in England, and is living in the village of Styles St. Mary. A chance encounter with an old friend, Hastings --who is staying at Styles Court, a guest of the Cavendish family – places Poirot on the scene for the first murder he’ll solve in England: the death of Emily Cavendish, the wealthy owner of Styles Court.Compared to the more action-oriented plots of many of today’s mysteries, Christie’s tales are much more leisurely. In this story, the only real action is Poirot, dashing like a madman, trying to find a car to take him to London to search for more information. Other than that, the story unfolds at Styles Court.Others have given more story details, so I’ll stick to the merits. First, and foremost, is Poirot. His characteristic egoism, his funny mannerisms, his little grey cells, all combine to make one of detective fiction’s most memorable characters. And, like the great Sherlock Holmes, Poirot has a sidekick in Hastings, the one who’s always a few steps behind, while thinking that perhaps Poirot has finally gotten too old. (As a side note: Hastings does not appear in all of the Poirot novels).This story, like most of Christie’s tales involve a small handful of suspects, each with motive for murder and plenty of red-herrings. But in the end, Poirot proves that he still has what it takes to solve a complex, devious crime.As I finished reading this book I was surprised that it didn’t feel dated. It reads more like historical fiction than a dated Cold War spy novel. Sure, there’s still servants, and not always a phone; cars and gas can be tough to come by. But, the overall feel of the story feels relatively timeless: love, revenge, hidden passions, and deep secrets never seem to age. It would take very little to change this to a tale set in the present day.The story moves quickly, though there is a part in the middle where things seem to bog down a little, but, in a book that’s less than 300 pages long, the story picks up again.One of the fascinating things about rereading Christie is seeing how good she was at dropping clues and of willfully misdirecting the reader along the way.With the exception of Poirot’s last case, “Curtain”, there really is no need to read them in order, but, if you’re new to Christie, why not start with this one: the one that started it all.

Everything a detective novel should be

Agatha Christie was a very skilled writer. Affair at Styles does not read like a first novel, nor does Poirot come across as anything other than a well-established character. It almost seems as though he had been living in her head for a while, rather that being birthed by a challenge from Mrs. Christie's sister.This is a good mystery. I never suspected the actual murderer.

As always a good mystery without the blood and guts. I have just started Agatha Christie. Always read spy and mystery but never got around to her, glad I started. ENJOYABLE

the book was in perfect condition. However, I was unable to read the book because the print was so small. The book was delivered timely.

I bought this book in good faith and was appalled to find that it is written in gobbledegook. The English is atrocious and gives the impression that it has been translated (badly) from a foreign language. On the first page a sentence reads, "I were invalided domestic from the front." This barely made sense so I checked with a printed version of the same book: "I had been invalided home from the front." That was just a start and it got progressively worse.Someone offered a five-star review, saying the book was "written in the language of the time". This is not the language of the time but the language of someone who can barely speak the English. I thought perhaps it was an OCR version of the original, but even that would have been preferable.Shame on Amazon for allowing this book to be listed. it is a pure confidence trick.I returned it and bought an another kindle edition which is true to the original text.

The Mysterious Affair At Styles is set during the First World War and is Agatha Christie’s debut novel. In it, we meet Hastings who, on a visit to the country estate of his old chum and his extended family, finds himself slap-bang in the middle of a case of intrigue and suspense.John Cavendish, Hastings’ friend, lives in his childhood home with his wife, his stepmother, his stepmother’s new husband, his stepmother’s secretary/companion, and her ward.No one likes the new husband. Being much younger than the stepmother, it’s clear he’s a money-grabber with a ridiculous beard. But the rest of the family is close to broke and largely unhappy, so, when the old lady is poisoned, the murderer might be anybody.Luckily, Belgian former detective, Hercule Poirot is in the area and is willing to put his extraordinary brainpower to the test to solve the case.The writing is stunning, expansive and beautiful, and - worth mentioning - of its time. There is a racial slur in the dialogue.I’ll say this: it’s shocking from the perspective of now. When this book was written, it would have been a common enough word, and no one would have been surprised by it.I am not suggesting that certain words should be redacted from classical literature, but I do think it’s important to remember the age and the time of certain works, and to understand there are words we use now for which future generations might judge us.Okay, so that’s that explained. Otherwise, the writing is amazing. There are motives everywhere, plenty of likeable characters, some wonderful language, a very cleverly constructed story. I loved it. I’d been reading for seven minutes when I decided not to get off the sofa until I’d finished.This particular print comes as the original book nears its hundredth birthday and, aside from the misprint on the cover (which is pretty devastating), it’s complete and includes the original drawings.

Hastings and Poirot are first introduced to us in this debut novel of Agatha Christie’s, and I found the story captivating. I loved the characterisation of the fastidious little Belgian detective and his rather dim but very loyal sidekick, who serves as narrator. Agatha had, with this first novel, already mastered the technique of clear delineation of characters by their very distinct speech patterns.All the classic ingredients are here: the tricky, complicated family relationships, the elaborate and devious attempt at deception by the murderer and accomplice, and the painstaking attention to detail by Poirot – along with the failure of Hastings to pick up on anything important at all.A delightful and compelling read, and I was fascinated to read Agatha’s original unpublished ending, then the one which the publisher suggested, and which she finally chose. At the end we are able to reflect upon how that decision to have Poirot call the family into the library to reveal the solution, was then to become Agatha’s most celebrated device, beloved by millions of readers throughout her prolific output, and over the next hundred years.

This is the very first Agatha Christie novel, written and set during the First World War, though not published until 1921. It is also the first Hercule Poirot novel, with the famous Belgian detective being a refugee in England having fled the invasion and subjugation of his country by the Kaiser's army. He is first described as follows:"Poirot was an extraordinary-looking little man. He was hardly more than five feet four inches, but carried himself with great dignity. His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side. His moustache was very stiff and military. The neatness of his attire was almost incredible; I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound."Even on his first appearance, he is regarded by several characters as an old eccentric who is already past his prime). Nevertheless, he of course sees through a tortuous set of clues to solve a murder, the final resolution of which seemed even more than usually convoluted and, frankly, absurdly risky from the murderer's point of view. The narrative did not feel particularly dated to me, unlike the last Christie novel I read, the Tommy and Tuppence novel The Secret Adversary, set in the 1920s. One interesting touch in this edition is the inclusion as an appendix of an alternative penultimate chapter where the plot threads are resolved, discovered in one of Christie's notebooks decades later; though the essential difference rests only in its taking place in a courtroom where Poirot is being cross-examined, rather than in the Styles House with the detective doing his standard presentation in the drawing room in front of all the principal actors.

downloaded onto kindle. gave up reading it after getting annoyed with spelling mistakes words that made no sense.total waste of money. will now buy the book instead.