If you are contemplating dashing off some correspondence to Hercule Poirot, perhaps you should think again - as a reasonable chance you will end up dead afterwards.

The guy here, as the title suggests, has been planted on a golf course. Those who might have done it? Probably any of his family, among others.

Not going to be that simple of course.

http://notfreesf.blogspot.com/2009/11... ( )

This book suffered from simply having too much in it. Perhaps some would like the twists, turns, flips, and surprises at the end, but I failed to enjoy them because of M. Poirot. What an insufferably cruel man to sit back content with his knowledge while allowing others to emotionally react to each new, but false, development. Obviously, Christie wrote him that way so that she could delight her readers with a plot that had more twists than the Colorado River. Unfortunately for me, the story's ending was fatiguing.

I do commend Christie for capturing personalities so delightfully. Many of the characters parading across her stage felt different from one another except for the French investigators and the servants. I also enjoyed the vivid imagery she employed to detail this time capsule of European aristocracy.

It was a good story, but not a great one, and I wouldn't recommend it for any but diehard Agatha Christie fans. ( )

This was my third book in the challenge and not one I had read before. I must say it's not my favorite. I don't know if I could really even explain why I didn't love it. The writing was good the storyline was believable and the characters were well written. I may be that I haven't been feeling well the last few days and that got in the way of my enjoyment of this mystery.

Now I can't say I hated it either. I think I'm more neutral on it than anything else. I was glad that the third book brought Hercule Poirot back into my life. His methods are always a joy to read.

The highlight for me was Hastings meeting his future wife. It is a relationship that is talked about in future books but it wasn't a relationship I had seen from the beginning. For that reason alone I'm glad I read this book. Dulcie "Cinderella" Duveen was a fascinating character and I'm honored to meet her after all these years.

Synopsis From The Back Cover:

"For God's sake, come!" Unfortunately, by the time Hercule Poirot received Monsieur Renauld's urgent plea, the millionaire was already dead--stabbed in the back, lying in a freshly dug grave on the golf course of his adjoining Merlinville estate. There's no lack of suspects: his wife, whose dagger serves as the weapon; his embittered son, who would have killed for independence; and his mistress, who refused to be ignored--and each felt deserving of the dead man's fortune. The police think they've found the culprit. Poirot has his doubts. A second murder proves him right. ( )

Hercules Poirot and Hastings are off to France at the bequest of a South American millionaire who is in fear of his life.
It takes some getting used to the English overstuffiness, but the storyline is okay. The ending actually had too many twists which got tedious after a while. I'll will probably still read more Christie novels, though. ( )

It is SO hard for me to read these books and not picture David Suchet as Poirot. While the man is perfect in the role, I hear his voice in my head while I'm reading. But...okay, moving right along...

In this episode, we find the friendly little Belgian detective spending his time rescuing cats and he's fed up. Along comes a letter from one M. Renaud in France, asking for Poirot's help because his life is in danger. Off rush Poirot and his friend and erstwhile sidekick, Captain Hastings. But it's too late...when they arrive at Renaud's villa, Renaud is already dead. While Poirot has no official standing there, he is allowed to help the police, and they'll need it: there are a number of suspects from which to choose. With his usual energy, Poirot has to work fast to prevent the wrong person from going to the guillotine.

This is installment #2 in the Poirot series, and it's easy to see that neither Poirot nor Hastings are in their fully developed selves yet. It's not one of her best but on the other hand, it's still early in the series. Originally written in 1923, the language is a bit stilted at times, and Poirot is a bit more long-winded than he will turn out to be later. A lot of this novel is based on coincidence, but you can sort of overlook it because it's interesting to see how Poirot uses zee little grey cells. However, a couple of plot twists will keep you guessing right up until the end so it's a good enough mystery and will keep readers turning pages.

Recommended definitely for Christie (and Poirot) fans; readers of golden-age mysteries will enjoy this and readers of British mysteries in general will probably have fun with it. Overall...an average story from a great writer. ( )