Murder on the Orient Express (Poirot)

With total sales of over two billion books, Agatha Christie, the “Queen of Crime,” is the best-selling author in the world barring Shakespeare. “Murder on the Orient Express” first published in 1934, is often regarded as the best of her Poirot novels. On the very first page of this book, we encounter “a small lean man, muffled up to the ears, of whom nothing was visible but a pink-tipped nose and the two points of an upward curled moustache.” Needless to say, this is the celebrated Hercule Poirot, who has retired from the Belgian police and is working as a private investigator based in England. He is boarding the Taurus Express from Aleppo, bound for Istanbul, where he intends to break his journey for a few days before returning to London. Poirot is checking into Tokatlian Hotel in Istanbul, when he receives a telegram recalling him to London. He decides to board the Orient Express leaving later that evening. While having dinner, he is pleasantly surprised to meet an old friend M Bouc, who is also travelling on the same train. The train is unusually full for the time of the year – but Bouc, who is a director of the company which operates the train, arranges a berth for Poirot. There is a wide variety of passengers on the train, including an American millionaire with an evil appearance, an elderly Russian princess, a British Colonel serving in India, a governess returning to England, a Greek doctor, an Italian car salesman, a Hungarian diplomat accompanied by his young wife, and so on – seemingly conforming to the respective stereotypes. A few hours after leaving Istanbul, the Orient Express runs into a snow drift and it cannot proceed further. Meanwhile, it is found that Samuel Ratchett, the wealthy American passenger, has been stabbed multiple times and he is lying dead on his berth, with his cabin door locked from inside. Since it is unlikely that anyone could have entered or left the train because of the snow, the murderer must still be on the train. There is no dearth of clues, but Poirot suspects that some of them have been planted; however, he discovers that the dead man was an infamous kidnapper who had managed to evade punishment. An impromptu court of enquiry consisting of M Bouc, M Poirot and Dr Constantine is set up. They collect the statements of all the passengers and Poirot gradually uncovers the identities of the passengers and the relationships between them… Like most of Christie’s works, this book contains some memorable dialogues. When an American passenger is asked about the Englishman who is sharing his cabin, he replies, “He has a low opinion of Americans and no opinion at all of any other nationality.” The author’s acid wit does not spare even Poirot himself. When he announces his name with a flourish and asks the listener if he knows that name, he gets an unexpected reply. “Why, it does seem kind of familiar – only I always thought it was a woman’s dressmaker.” To my mind, the most remarkable feature of this book is the authenticity of the settings of the period in which it is set. Taurus Express, which Poirot boards in the first chapter, used to run between Baghdad and Istanbul, arriving at Haiderpasha station (spelt “Haydapassar”in the book) on the Asian side of the city. The passengers had to cross a bridge over the Bosphorus to reach the European quarter. The Orient Express, running from Istanbul to Paris/London, was a legendary train patronized by the rich and famous before air travel became commonplace. It used to start from Sirkeci station located south of the grand European style hotels, across the Golden Horn. Unfortunately, neither Haiderpasha nor Sirkeci receive long distance trains now. The Tokatlian Hotel was established in Istanbul 1897 to cater to European visitors to the city. It seems rather incongruous that the fastidious Poirot did not choose to stay at the magnificent Pera Palace Hotel owned by Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lit, the company which operated the Orient Express as well. It is still more surprising that M Bouc would choose to stay at the Tokatlian instead of the hotel owned by his own company! The Pera Palace Hotel is still operational in Istanbul, albeit under a different ownership. They have a room named after Agatha Christie, where an old typewriter has been preserved – and they claim that “Murder on the Orient Express” was actually written there!

Did they give bookmark with the novel ?, I didnt get it , novel is in good condition thou

This was my first Agatha Christie book and god it is still the best one I have read from the author. The way Agatha has developed the mystery in this book is commendable and amazing. If you particularly like detective novels like Sherlock Holmes, you would love this book. It is almost like I was investigating the case myself. The book is so engaging that you will not feel like putting it down at all. I so blame myself for not having read Agatha earlier. Used to have library full of her books in school and just never picked one up. The characters in the book are so well developed that you can so distinctly relate with them so much. You would understand them perfectly well. Agatha has very cleverly ensured that characters come up and tone down as per the requirements of the storyline. Poirot has been brought forward and taken off at the right times in the book. The story is very simple where travellers are trapped in a train which is stuck due to snowfall. A murder happens and now it is urgent and important to figure out who the murderer is otherwise everyone is at risk. Now going back to 1934, don't expect any rescue or outside communication. So this is a very difficult situation that travellers are in. Will the murderer be found. It is a very entertaining and engaging read.

The book was really interesting to read, and had a great twist and really kept me wondering what happens next. Although the way of writing takes some time to understand, the read was really worth it. The physical condition of the package after delivering was also good.

This book is one of the most organised work of GODMOTHER AGATHA CHRISTIE! The mystery keeps you guessing till the last chap!

I have no words It is so so good

Many of us have a fascination for crime thriller. If the crime involves a murder and is investigated by a detective, then this thriller becomes ever more absorbing. Since you have an interest on this genre that’s why you are here, reading this review. Have you ever wondered why we are attracted towards murder mysteries? Human being by nature love challenges and cannot resist puzzles and mysteries. As the story goes on, it stimulates the reader to figure out the killer. The stories help readers to get a glimpse of the people that they would never encounter in real life. The likes of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot and Hardy boys lead us to the psyches of the killer and the dead. The list also includes home grown detectives like Feluda and Byomkesh Bakshi. A group of international passengers are on Orient Express, which is on a route from Istanbul to London. They are trapped and stranded inside due to a snow storm. To their horror, one of the passenger had been murdered. To the killer’s sheer bad luck, Hercule Poirot had boarded too. To find the identity of the killer becomes an intricate mystery that revolves around a group of characters. The conundrum investigation responsibility is entrusted obviously on Hercule Poirat and he had to purely rely on clues only. To add to his woes, the carriage is full of international passengers which makes interrogation difficult and no help can be expected from outside. As a prima facie evidence, the case looks evasive. The twelve passengers and wagon master in the coach are interrogated. The objective of the questions seem to be inscrutable. The number of suspicions increases and later on you anxiously wait for the tailpiece to know the real killer. If you are reading it for the first time, the end surely is going to astonish you. The book is considered as one of Agatha Christie’s finest. Each chapter is dedicated to the questioning of passengers and their views and thoughts on the murder. The evidence provided by each, leads toward or misleads away from the possible murderer. This makes you glued to the book till the mystery is solved. The book was adapted into a movie first in 1974. The movie had an impressive star cast consisting of Sean Connery and Ingrid Bergman; the latter won an Oscar for her role. It was re-adapted in 2017 with an ensemble star cast that includes Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Willem Dafoe and Penelope Cruz. Apart from movie, the story was remade for TV in 2001 and adapted by BBC radio in 2004. The old fashioned murder mystery interest is still intact. I had seen the 2017 version of the movie. Though it takes you to a deluxe and royal journey to the past, supported by excellent direction but still it cannot replace the suspense build in the book. The character Hercule Poirot is a venerated and renowned private detective. He is unsurpassed in his understanding of the criminal mind and scrupulously go along in pursuit of a case. His moustache is as famous as his demeanour. In fact, his moustache along with disposition are his talking point. Though there are various interpretations on stage and screen, but he is of short height. His dress sense is immaculate and he takes immense pride in his appearance. He uses his extensive knowledge on human being and sagacity to weed out the culprit. He appeared first in “Mysterious Affair as Styles”, way back in 1920. His final appearance was in the novel “Curtain”, where this fictional detective dies at the end. Agatha Christie needs no introduction. Still, let me share some interesting trivia about her in case you are not aware. Though she was an English writer of crime and romantic novels but she is better known for her detective stories that includes diverse characters – Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. By her own admission, she preferred Miss Marple more but Hercule Poirot was much more popular. Her works have been translated into more languages than any other individual writers in the world. The time, era and century have changed but her popularity still refuse to die down. Her works have not still not become antiquated. Her murder mystery play “The Mousetrap” holds the world record for longest continuous run at one theatre, with stratospheric statistics like over 9000 performances and running for more than two decades. Overall, there have been around 25000 shows spanning six decades across other theatres. In her books, murders are usually committed using poison. There is a standard pattern that you are likely to come across in most of her stories. A detective asks all the key characters to assemble in a room after interrogating all the main suspects, before revealing the identity of the murderer. The psychological suspense challenge readers to solve the riddle. This is one key reason which adds to its popularity. She was trained as a nurse and treated wounded soldiers in the First World War. Later she got herself involved in the field of pharmacy which gave her ideas regarding some of the murder methods employed in her book.

The greatest book by Agatha Christie

I’ve read these books like a thousand times and I love it

I really love the mass-market paperback version of this novel as it is very portable due to being lightweight and small. This is the first Agatha Christie book that I have ever read. I read it for a summer book club and I LOVED it. It is so captivating and I made my way through the book very quickly, which usually does not happen. The story was very suspenseful and I had no clue who had committed the murder until it was revealed. I really love Agatha Christie's writing style and the way the characters were crafted. I will be purchasing and reading more Agatha Christie books.

This is a genius plot from a genius writer. Agatha Christie is, for me, the queen of the golden age of British crime stories. However, this edition is amazingly full of typos, mainly in the French sentences, but in the English text also. It's not the first time I read this book, and I'm pretty sure that Dame Agatha did know how to write correctly in both languages. Unbelievable that editors should be so neglectful.

Ich möchte in der Rezension zwei Dinge unterscheiden, zum einen die Kindle-Version und zum anderen den Inhalt des Buches. Zur Kindle-Version: Die Kindle-Version ist absolut in Ordnung. Man kann da wirklich nicht meckern. Zum Inhalt: Da ich nicht zu viel verraten will, hier nur ganz grob, worum es geht. Wie der Titel schon verrät, geht es um einen Mord im Zug, im sogenannten Orient Express. Da der Zug in einem Schneesturm stecken bleibt, muss Poirot, der Fahrgast ist, die Sache übernehmen, da niemand in bzw. aus dem Zug gelangen kann. Alle Fahrgäste sind verdächtigt. Doch wer hat den Fahrgast ermordet? Der Kriminalfall hat mir wirklich sehr gut gefallen. Zunächst wirkte er etwas konstruiert auf mich, doch wird dies später aufgelöst und damit logisch. Wirklich tolle, spannende Geschichte. Auch als Nicht-Muttersprachler ist der Text gut zu verstehen. Vielleicht hilft das ja als Orientierung. Vielen Dank für das Lesen meiner Rezension. Ich hoffe, sie ist hilfreich. 😀

Having watched the movies and TV series and the beginnings of them were all different. So decided to read the book to clarify. Agatha is such a skilled writer and it is a well crafted and executed so brilliantly. Poriot is pure magic with his deduction and the solving of the case. If you don't know anything about the plot and the solution l won't spoil it for you here. Well worth the read.