FORGOTTEN BOOKS # 348: HERCULE POIROT’S CHRISTMAS By Agatha Christie

murder for christmashercule poirot's christmas
a holiday for murder
The murder in Hercule Poirot’s Christmas (aka, A Holiday for Murder and Murder for Christmas) happens on Christmas Eve in a locked room. The mystery was first published in 1938 in England and Dodd, Mead published it in the U. S. in 1939. Christie was at the height of her powers and this puzzle is clever. A wealthy, dying man calls his sons and their wives together for a “holiday” party. But when the father announces he’s going to change his Will, multiple motives spring up. When the body is found, Hercule Poirot investigates and finds a tangled web of lies. Herclule Poirot’s Christmas is one of the best Poirots I’ve read. If you’re looking for a dandy holiday mystery, you’ll find it here.

19 thoughts on “FORGOTTEN BOOKS # 348: HERCULE POIROT’S CHRISTMAS By Agatha Christie

  1. Jeff Meyerson

    In the end I got too lazy (or lost track of the time), but this is the exact book that came to mind for the holiday theme! Excellent choice.

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      1. maggie mason

        I think of rest ye merry by Charlotte MacLeod at the holidays

        I’ve read all the Christies, and the premise sounds familiar but not the solution.

      2. george Post author

        Maggie, I’ve read about 80% of the mysteries Agatha Christie wrote. I read only a couple per year just to make them last. I know how sad I felt when I read the last 87th Precinct novel. Coming to the end of a great series is tragic.

  2. Wolf Böhrendt

    I have to confess that I also read Agatha’s books when I was younger – but somehow they all seemed the same to me after a while. Those mysteries weren’t really convincing …
    maybe the translations into German were part of the problem?
    Though later the films were funny again – but just on tv. The good news: It didn’t really matter if you had to get up and leave for a few minutes, because you could be sure that nothing really important to the story happened. And they always had good actors!

    A bit OT:
    A distinct relative of mine used to read one detective novel every evening – and then put the books away …
    So I was very happy when I visited them as a student (maybe once a year) and took home at least one crate of books – almost new. I even sold some of them in the second hand book shop or rather bought some science fiction from the money I got …

    Reply
  3. Richard R.

    A good choice, George, I considered it, but decided to pick something I hadn’t already read. The theme for Winter as a character / holiday time mystery is perfectly addressed by your choice!

    Reply
    1. george Post author

      Rick, I’ve read most of the Christie Poirot mysteries, but not HERCULE POIROT’S CHRISTMAS. This FFB was the perfect opportunity to remedy that situation!

      Reply
  4. Jerry House

    Good choice. Like you, George, I did not read this one until this year when I (alas) finished reading all of Christie’s mysteries.

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