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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
WOW. I did not see that coming, and again Agatha’s whit and sarcasm weaves beautifully into this mystery.
Also thank the lord for Agatha’s books - almost done with my capstone and her books are my best breaks away from reading scientific studies!
Also thank the lord for Agatha’s books - almost done with my capstone and her books are my best breaks away from reading scientific studies!
Agatha is just the best. Totally did not guess this one.
This is my favorite type of mystery (because I have never liked them much before). It has analysis, missed clues, random conversations, etc that all lead to the conclusion. And of course there is the big scene with everyone at the house! I loved how Poirot had to struggle through this one.
Great mystery with satisfyingly clever twist - though the usual cringe at the casual prejudices of the day. It's sobering to see what used to be so commonplace.
mysterious
medium-paced
i can't get that post that's like world famous detectives aren't actually a THING irl out of my head like poirot rly walks around like hes a household name ??? AND HE IS ??? ok agatha
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Peril at End House has all the traits of a traditional Poirot story. Unlike the two previous novels, The Mystery of the Blue Train (where Poirot enters the scene only late) and The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (that is told from the perspective of another member of the cast), here we have Poirot and Captain Hastings finally reunited. It's again Hastings who narrates the story and in no chapter do we leave their side.
Poirot and Hastings stay at the Majestic Hotel in Cornwall (the South West tail of England). They make the acquaintance with Magdala "Nick" Buckley, heir to the so-called End House. They realize that someone tried to shoot her, in broad daylight and right there at the garden of the hotel. Upon further investigation they discover that the past few days she almost fell victim to strange "accidents": a heavy painting fell off the wall, a rock rolled past her, and she had trouble with the breaks of her car. From then on Poirot makes it his duty to protect her. Tragically, he is not able to prevent a murder.
There is a memorable cast of characters, all friends of Nick. Firstly, there is her best friend, Freddie Rice, who had been abused by her husband but who is now living happily with art dealer Jim Lazarus. Additionally, there are her cousin, the lawyer Charles Vyse, her housekeeper Ellen, her admirer George Challenger, and two Australians, Mr and Mrs Croft, who live in the parsonage on the premises. To not be alone, Poirot advises her to invite someone to spend time with her, so Nick's cousin Maggie arrives.
Of all the Poirot novels I've read so far, Peril at End House offers my favorite portrayal of the famous detective. His demeanor is particularly whimsical. For instance, he cannot believe his ears when Nick claims she had never heard of him. And what's that, "he is a great detective" is all that Hastings can think of? What an understatement, "the greatest detective" more like! He reveals more depths, though. Unable to prevent the murder from happening, he expresses unfamiliar self-doubts and even admits that he is still haunted by a big mistake of his past. In this way his characterization finds the perfect balance of comedic effect and seriousness.
The murder mystery is ingeniously construed. The first couple of chapters you feel uncomfortable for how jauntily Nick still goes about her business. She even celebrates a party. It's at this event that tragedy strikes. But it's not her who is found dead—it's Maggie! Poirot begins to have his suspicions about what is really going on.
Even the great detective struggles to find the motive to the crime. He enters theoretical musings on the kind of motives that may lead to murder. I loved how explicit Poirot is about his methodology. Unlike other stories, here it's not perfectly evident who is even member of the play's cast (Nick herself expressed the desire to celebrate a play at End House). He creates a list of all suspects (leaving a "J." to represent someone who may have yet to be revealed) with potential motives, opportunity and additional information. The list is later supplemented by the crucial questions whose answer may solve the case.
Eventually, the issue of the motive is surprisingly straight-forward. We learn of a significant inheritance that would go to Nick, so that the people in her own testament—her best friend and the lawyer—become the main suspects. I quite liked how Christie built up a chain of inheritances to veil the motivation for the murder. We learn of a famous pilot and the attentive reader will be wary of his repeated mention. Things are more complicated than you may have guessed, though.
To go into full-on spoiler territory, the revelation is delightfully complex. Poirot likes to fully celebrate his glorious moments, so he again thought of a special tidbit. There was another attack on Nick's life and he convinces her to play along when they would announce her death—only for her to reemerge at a seance held at End House. In this way we find out what happened to her testament that strangely disappeared. It was part of a con: the all-too-friendly Australians waited for her death to pose as the heirs with a forged document. They pulled the trick many times before. Quite brilliant, I have to admit.
Amusingly, this had nothing to do with the murder (attempted or successful) at all. Coincidentally, the seance also revealed the existence and identity of the posited J.. It turns out to be Mrs. Rice's ex-husband. In a state of fierce confusion (mainly due to years of drug-abuse) he attacks her. Mrs. Rice suspected that he was behind the killings, but kept the information for herself. Poirot had early noticed that not all crimes have a motive in a narrower sense; in case of madness murder may occur for causes unfathomable for the rational mind.
Lo and behold, the ex-husband again wasn't behind the crime under investigation! For most of the time we suspected the pilot to be Nick's fiancé, and when we learn that the pilot's father was one of the wealthiest men of England we see where the money is coming from. As it turns out, Magdala (Nick's real name) is quite common in her family. In fact, Maggie too was really a Magdala. Poirot realized that the letters of the pilot where in fact addressed to the victim. As Poirot experienced himself at the beginning of the story, men only fall briefly for Nick's charms—but it was Maggie who was able to conquer the pilot's heart. Since the engagement was a secret, Nick saw the chance to obtain the inheritance. For this reason she had to kill her cousin.
Peril at End House was pure fun. It's greatly inviting to guess along and Poirot is in peak form. Hastings commentary is amusing and there is even a small cameo of Chief Inspector Japp. This has the potential to become one of my favorites!
Rating: 4/5
Poirot and Hastings stay at the Majestic Hotel in Cornwall (the South West tail of England). They make the acquaintance with Magdala "Nick" Buckley, heir to the so-called End House. They realize that someone tried to shoot her, in broad daylight and right there at the garden of the hotel. Upon further investigation they discover that the past few days she almost fell victim to strange "accidents": a heavy painting fell off the wall, a rock rolled past her, and she had trouble with the breaks of her car. From then on Poirot makes it his duty to protect her. Tragically, he is not able to prevent a murder.
There is a memorable cast of characters, all friends of Nick. Firstly, there is her best friend, Freddie Rice, who had been abused by her husband but who is now living happily with art dealer Jim Lazarus. Additionally, there are her cousin, the lawyer Charles Vyse, her housekeeper Ellen, her admirer George Challenger, and two Australians, Mr and Mrs Croft, who live in the parsonage on the premises. To not be alone, Poirot advises her to invite someone to spend time with her, so Nick's cousin Maggie arrives.
Of all the Poirot novels I've read so far, Peril at End House offers my favorite portrayal of the famous detective. His demeanor is particularly whimsical. For instance, he cannot believe his ears when Nick claims she had never heard of him. And what's that, "he is a great detective" is all that Hastings can think of? What an understatement, "the greatest detective" more like! He reveals more depths, though. Unable to prevent the murder from happening, he expresses unfamiliar self-doubts and even admits that he is still haunted by a big mistake of his past. In this way his characterization finds the perfect balance of comedic effect and seriousness.
The murder mystery is ingeniously construed. The first couple of chapters you feel uncomfortable for how jauntily Nick still goes about her business. She even celebrates a party. It's at this event that tragedy strikes. But it's not her who is found dead—it's Maggie! Poirot begins to have his suspicions about what is really going on.
Even the great detective struggles to find the motive to the crime. He enters theoretical musings on the kind of motives that may lead to murder. I loved how explicit Poirot is about his methodology. Unlike other stories, here it's not perfectly evident who is even member of the play's cast (Nick herself expressed the desire to celebrate a play at End House). He creates a list of all suspects (leaving a "J." to represent someone who may have yet to be revealed) with potential motives, opportunity and additional information. The list is later supplemented by the crucial questions whose answer may solve the case.
Eventually, the issue of the motive is surprisingly straight-forward. We learn of a significant inheritance that would go to Nick, so that the people in her own testament—her best friend and the lawyer—become the main suspects. I quite liked how Christie built up a chain of inheritances to veil the motivation for the murder. We learn of a famous pilot and the attentive reader will be wary of his repeated mention. Things are more complicated than you may have guessed, though.
To go into full-on spoiler territory, the revelation is delightfully complex. Poirot likes to fully celebrate his glorious moments, so he again thought of a special tidbit. There was another attack on Nick's life and he convinces her to play along when they would announce her death—only for her to reemerge at a seance held at End House. In this way we find out what happened to her testament that strangely disappeared. It was part of a con: the all-too-friendly Australians waited for her death to pose as the heirs with a forged document. They pulled the trick many times before. Quite brilliant, I have to admit.
Amusingly, this had nothing to do with the murder (attempted or successful) at all. Coincidentally, the seance also revealed the existence and identity of the posited J.. It turns out to be Mrs. Rice's ex-husband. In a state of fierce confusion (mainly due to years of drug-abuse) he attacks her. Mrs. Rice suspected that he was behind the killings, but kept the information for herself. Poirot had early noticed that not all crimes have a motive in a narrower sense; in case of madness murder may occur for causes unfathomable for the rational mind.
Lo and behold, the ex-husband again wasn't behind the crime under investigation! For most of the time we suspected the pilot to be Nick's fiancé, and when we learn that the pilot's father was one of the wealthiest men of England we see where the money is coming from. As it turns out, Magdala (Nick's real name) is quite common in her family. In fact, Maggie too was really a Magdala. Poirot realized that the letters of the pilot where in fact addressed to the victim. As Poirot experienced himself at the beginning of the story, men only fall briefly for Nick's charms—but it was Maggie who was able to conquer the pilot's heart. Since the engagement was a secret, Nick saw the chance to obtain the inheritance. For this reason she had to kill her cousin.
Peril at End House was pure fun. It's greatly inviting to guess along and Poirot is in peak form. Hastings commentary is amusing and there is even a small cameo of Chief Inspector Japp. This has the potential to become one of my favorites!
Rating: 4/5