This was originally tagged to appear on my "book rape" shelf because, generally speaking, I would rather slam my head in a car door than read a straight-up mystery. This may be because of burn out at a young age. After devouring the entire Nancy Drew series, I had an epiphany one day that went something like this: "I don't give a damn who did it." It was like someone flipped a switch and I went cold turkey on mysteries (I even remember starting Murder on the Orient Express as a teen and thinking, "Nope. I think I'll go get a Piers Anthony book instead").

However, I have since retracted this book's status as being forcibly thrust upon me because I actually enjoyed it. Color me surprised. Normally, I have these suckers figured out long before the end. After much sighing as I turned each page, knowing in my heart of hearts who the murderer was, imagine my shock when I was wrong. Really. I was. Dead wrong. The ending was, well, genius--and I shall say no more.

Having said that, this is not great writing. I had to roll my eyes every time Poirot's eyes "twinkled" and it's chockfull of stereotypes, but that's not the point. The mark of a good mystery is that it keeps one guessing until the end, and Aggie (that's what I like to call her) certainly did her job well. ( )

My first and favorite Agatha. And, surprise surprise, the movie is fantastic as well, with an ensemble cast including Albert Finney, Sean Connery, Ingrid Bergman, Vanessa Redgrave, Lauren Bacall and Anthony Perkins, just to name a few.

Read it, then see it. I never get tired of this one. It makes me want to book tickets on the Calais Coach. ( )

This book is realy interestingand it has an unexpected twist. If you like mysteries, I suggest you read this book.

I avoided reading this for a long time, not least because I remember not liking the film, but having booked a sleeping car for the first time in many years (only from Holland to Switzerland, not across the Balkans!), I thought "What could be more appropriate reading matter?".

This is one of those detective stories where the ending is more famous than the story itself, so I knew how it was going to end and had the sense of cogs grinding inevitably towards a solution. Thereś not much else to enjoy in Christie besides the mystery itself - characterisation and dialogue are always a bit wooden - but it was a pleasant enough read to keep me amused until Basel. There does seem to be rather a lot of product placement for the Wagons-Lits Company - I hope she got more than a complimentary ticket out of them for all that publicity! ( )

What has delighted me so much in this audio book has been Suchet's superb characterisation of each person. I have particularly enjoyed Mrs Hubbard - the depiction has had me laughing out loud as I'm driving. It contrasts so beautifully with Poirot's calm voice of reason, and Monsieur Bouc's willingness to jump to conclusions. I must admit, I really already knew how this novel turned out, so the element of surprise that a new reader gets from this novel is not there for me. But that has given me a chance to appreciate how carefully Christie constructed the plot, how meticulously she laid the red herrings across the path, and just how well it shows Hercule Poirot's little grey cells in action.

It also shows how Agatha Christie uses current events in the setting of her novels: MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS was clearly based on the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby in the previous year, and Christie's own experience when the Orient Express train she was on was stuck for twenty-four hours.

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS was Agatha Christie's 14th novel, the 8th Hercule Poirot. Poirot's usual foil, Captain Arthur Hastings, is missing from this novel. Poirot is on his way back to London from an assignment in Syria, and so he bounces his ideas off two others: Monsieur Bouc, the director of Wagon-Lits, an old friend of Poirot's, who employs him to discover who has killed Mr Rachette; and a Greek Doctor Dr. Stavros Constantine.

There must have been considerable outcry, one would think, about the final solution to the crime. Poirot comes up with two solutions, but the one he finally goes with reveals great humanity. ( )