HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

ABC Murders by Agatha Christie
Loading...

ABC Murders (original 1936; edition 1976)

by Agatha Christie

Series: Hercule Poirot (11)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
6,9381351,325 (3.83)303
Fiction. Mystery. Historical Fiction. HTML:

There's a serial killer on the loose, bent on working his way though the alphabet. There seems little chance of the murderer being caught â?? until her makes the crucial and vain mistake of challenging Hercule Poirot to frustrate his plans ...

Member:Thoughtshapes
Title:ABC Murders
Authors:Agatha Christie
Info:Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers (2006), Hardcover, 256 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:***
Tags:crime fiction

Work Information

The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie (1936)

Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 303 mentions

English (122)  Spanish (2)  German (2)  Danish (2)  Swedish (2)  Catalan (1)  Italian (1)  Dutch (1)  Chinese (1)  French (1)  All languages (135)
Showing 1-5 of 122 (next | show all)
Plenty of dramatic action, tangled clues, and a fresh new adversity for Poirot and his little gray cells! I like the splashiness of this case, the fact that it’s one taking place in the public eye and not behind closed doors. Those ones are also immensely fun, but seeing Poirot work this one out was a particularly nice treat to read. ( )
  deborahee | Feb 23, 2024 |
It's a nice, quick read! I always enjoy reading about Poirot. The mystery itself always felt a bit convoluted but I'm satisfied with the resolution. I'll probably pick up more Agatha Christie novels next year! ( )
  omseijas | Feb 3, 2024 |
Really great mystery! I recognized one of the clues as being a clue, which made me feel smart, but I didn't guess the ending, which kept me in a state of suspense throughout. In short, a perfect combo! ( )
  blueskygreentrees | Jan 14, 2024 |
Enjoyed it very much. I saw a movie based on this novel that was dark, gloomy, and depressing. It was nothing like the novel. The novel is much better. ( )
  jimclay75051 | Jan 13, 2024 |
I can't recall the Suchet version of this story but had recently seen the BBC adaptation last Christmas - very dark and not at all the classic Poirot as portrayed by David Suchet. Anyway, having read the book I could see the vast liberties taken by the latest adaptation and much prefer the original text.

In this Poirot is semi-retired but is still handling high profile cases. Hastings, married now and living in South America, has returned to England for a long holiday and is staying with his old friend when the first in a series of anonymous letters arrive: letters which taunt Poirot with the news that the writer will commit a murder in a particular town on a particular date. The letters are signed A B C. Although he takes the first to the police and is disturbed by it, they believe it is one of the enormous number of hoaxes and crank letters which they receive on a daily basis, until someone is in fact found murdered on the day in question, with an A B C Railway guide positioned near the body. And this is just the first.

As well as the humour shown in Poirot's relationship with Hastings - who narrates the story - I liked the fact that the police are not numbskulls in this and they do not sideline Poirot let alone treat him with the disrespect shown in the latest TV adaptation. And, as I guessed, the sordid aspects of the TV version were entirely made up. Instead we have Poirot still at the height of his powers slowly gathering together the snippets of facts that he needs which eventually point their way to the real culprit. Unlike 'Cat Among the Pigeons' which I read a while ago, here he is foregrounded and we see an insight into his methods, which even include an amusing scene of the misdirection he creates in a greengrocer's shop in order to ellicit the truth. I thoroughly enjoyed this tale and am therefore awarding it 5 stars. ( )
  kitsune_reader | Nov 23, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 122 (next | show all)
no reviews | add a review

» Add other authors (71 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Christie, Agathaprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Boissevain, GonTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Davidson, AndrewIllustratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Fraser, HughNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Mallorquí Figuerola, JoséTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Suomalainen, AuneTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Waldrep, RichardCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wardle, DavidCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

Is contained in

Has the adaptation

Is abridged in

Has as a student's study guide

You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Dedication
To James Watts
One of my most sympathetic readers
First words
In this narrative of mine I have departed from my usual practice of relating only those incidents and scenes at which I myself was present. (Foreword by Captain Arthur Hastings, O.B.E.)
It was in June of 1935 that I came home from my ranch in South America for a stay of about six months.
Quotations
Crime is terribly revealing. Try and vary your methods as you will, your tastes, your habits, your attitude of mind, and your soul is revealed by your actions. (Hercule Poirot)
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Information from the German Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (3)

Fiction. Mystery. Historical Fiction. HTML:

There's a serial killer on the loose, bent on working his way though the alphabet. There seems little chance of the murderer being caught â?? until her makes the crucial and vain mistake of challenging Hercule Poirot to frustrate his plans ...

No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.83)
0.5
1 8
1.5 1
2 49
2.5 19
3 366
3.5 100
4 611
4.5 40
5 297

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,187,724 books! | Top bar: Always visible