Aghata Christie

Looking for a book meant for good reading (defining “good reading” as a story that pulls you in and keeps you interested)? Get “The Mysterious Affair at Styles,” with detectives Hercule Poirot and Arthur Hastings, and the first published book of Agatha Christie. This Agatha Christie murder mystery is the first appearance of her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, and his “Doctor Watson”, Arthur Hastings. Supposedly, Agatha Christie wrote this, her first book, as the result of a bet — she could write a book, a murder mystery, (Agatha Christie claimed) that would provide the reader not only with good reading, but also with all the same clues uncovered by the detective, yet she (Agatha Christie) would still confound the reader until the moment at the climax of the book when the detective (and Agatha Christie) would reveal “whodunnit” .

At the start of the book, Agatha Christie shows us the arrival of Arthur Hastings, at Styles Manor, in Essex, England (which, in a symmetrical way, is also the setting for the very last case of Hercule Poirot, documented by Agatha Christie in her book entitled “Curtain”). The “mysterious affair” that Agatha Christie uses as the title of the book occurs during the middle years of World War One, with Arthur Hastings temporarily home from the war and visiting an old friend, John Cavendish. Arthur Hastings is the narrator throughout the book, and, in the manner of a mystery book meant for good reading, Arthur Hastings keeps us all well-informed concerning all the characters, their actions, and the resulting clues.

At the same time, Arthur Hastings acts as an unwitting foil to the pithy comments of Hercule Poirot on the mystery. We find out early on in this book that Arthur Hastings had worked with Hercule Poirot in years past, when Hercule Poirot was an active police officer in Europe. And, though, at first, it seems a great coincidence that Hercule Poroit is living in the village so nearby to the murder, Agatha Christie lets Arthur Hastings find a convincing explanation — another example of Agatha Christie providing the reader an easy reading. But you want another example of good reading from the book?

A groan burst from Hercule Poirot. “What have I always told you? Everything, everything must be taken into account. If fact will not fit the theory — let the theory go.”

The murder victim in this Hercule Poirot mystery is Emily Inglethorp, the elderly mistress of Styles Manor, and John’s mother. Agatha Christie, aiding in our appreciation of good reading, has made everyone in the house a suspect in the mystery of her murder. Arthur Hastings has his own solutions to the murder mystery, many of them shot down by Hercule Poirot throughout the book — an example of double-barreled good reading. The way in which Arthur Hastings attempts to woo the pretty women involved in the murder mystery is quite comic — it’s more good reading.

Murder in this book of mystery is by strychnine, a fact both Hercule Poirot and Arthur Hastings discover, such a discovery being an essential element to the good reading of a mystery. Agatha Christie, while keeping all action within the scope of the narration by Arthur Hastings (which adds to the intimacy and the reader’s feel for good reading), lets us see through the eyes of Arthur Hastings the actions of all the murder suspects, and of Hercule Poirot collecting clues to the murder. And, as Agatha Christie had promised in her murder mystery bet (in addition to good reading), Agatha Christie does indeed provide in this book all the clues that the reader needs to solve the murder mystery.

True, for those readers going beyond the reading of a Hercule Poirot murder mystery, Agatha Christie does require the reader to have a background in chemistry (as, apparently, Hercule Poirot does have, and Arthur Hastings does not), and you must understand that Agatha Christie, Hercule Poirot, and Arthur Hastings pointing out someone with a beard does not necessarily mean a beard. But, Agatha Christie does indeed play fair with the reader of this murder mystery, and, as Hercule Poirot would say, a workout for “the little grey cells.” What more to add, but to say that good reading for some of a murder mystery is still good reading for all.

"Black Cofee" was originally a three-act play written by Agatha Christie in 1930. It was the first work that Agatha Christie wrote for the stage. "Black Cofee" went on to become a theater favorite. Twenty two years after Agatha Christie’s death, "Black Cofee" was adapted into a novel by Charles Osborne, a renowned theater and opera critic and Agatha Christie biographer.

The lead character in "Black Cofee" is well-known physicist Sir Claud Armory, who lives in a beautiful home in the English countryside, about 25 miles from London. The scientist has been working on a valuable new atomic formula to be used in England’s defense in the World War. He begins to suspect that someone in his family is trying to steal it.

This mysterious formula can be used in the making of a bomb that could cause untold devastation. When the powerful formula is actually stolen, Armory gathers all members of his large household in the library with the door locked, and summons Detective Hercule Poirot and Captain Arthur Hastings to his estate to find out who the culprit might be. Before they can arrive, however, Sir Claud Armory is murdered by someone who poisons his cofee. Poirot and Hastings must now discover who stole the formula and tainted Armory’s cofee, thus murdering him.

Hercule Poirot was, of course, the diminutive lead detective in many of Agatha Christie’s television episodes and short stories, including "Black Cofee." Poirot’s ability to solve crimes was dependent largely upon logic, method, and his skill in getting characters to talk to him. Agatha Christie described Poirot as having dark hair, a mustache, and green eyes that were almost luminous when he had a brilliant idea or observation. The detective was fond of patent leather shoes and was known to have a somewhat sensitive stomach. Poirot practiced punctuality, and he carried a turnip pocket watch throughout his career.

Arthur Hastings was once an Army officer who met Poirot during the years he spent as a private detective in Europe. Agatha Christie created Arthur Hastings so that he resembled Sherlock Holmes’ sidekick, Dr. Watson. Neither the auburn-haired Hastings nor Watson were quick to realize the importance of clues, and both narrated in the first person. Hastings met and married a woman named Dulcie, and together they had four children.

Although Poirot didn’t consider Hastings to be very intelligent, and sometimes teased him for being dim-witted, Poirot did find Hastings to be helpful and instrumental in solving some cases. Poirot and Hastings became lifelong friends. "Black Cofee" is what Agatha Christie herself called a "conventional spy thriller." The following excerpt takes place at the beginning of the novel:

"…and so I took the liberty, sir, of promising that you would return the call this morning,’ George was saying. ‘I do beg your pardon, my dear George,’ replied Poirot. ‘My attention was wandering. Someone has telephoned, you say?’ ‘Yes, sir. It was last night, sir, while you were out at the theatre with Mrs Oliver. I had retired to bed before you arrived home, and thought it unnecessary to leave a message for you at that late hour.’ ‘Who was it who called?’ ‘The gentleman said he was Sir Claud Amory, sir. He left his telephone number, which would appear to be somewhere in Surrey. The matter, he said, was a somewhat delicate one, and when you rang you were not to give your name to anyone else, but were to insist on speaking to Sir Claud himself.’

There are many suspects in Agatha Christie’s "Black Cofee," any one of whom would have the motivation to steal Sir Claud’s invention and to kill him. It turns out that Sir Claud Armory wasn’t a very nice man and the household was pleased to have him gone. So, "who done it?" Who was Agatha Christie’s villain? Was it a family member, one of the servants, or a house guest? It is left to Hastings and Poirot to find out. One thing is certain: the reader will be kept in suspense until the very end of "Black Cofee."