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Tommy & Tuppence #2.05
Finessing the King: A Short Story
Agatha Christie’s Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are Partners in Crime—or rather partners in crime solving—and must demonstrate their deductive skills in a wide range of confounding cases after agreeing to take over Blunt’s International Detective Agency.
Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are restless for adventure, so when they are asked to take over Blunt's International Detective Agency, they leap at the chance.
Their first case is a success—the triumphant recovery of a pink pearl. Other cases soon follow—a stabbing on Sunningdale golf course; cryptic messages in the personal columns of newspapers; and even a box of poisoned chocolates. But can they live up to their slogan of "Any case solved in 24 hours"?
Tommy and Tuppence Beresford are restless for adventure, so when they are asked to take over Blunt's International Detective Agency, they leap at the chance.
Their first case is a success—the triumphant recovery of a pink pearl. Other cases soon follow—a stabbing on Sunningdale golf course; cryptic messages in the personal columns of newspapers; and even a box of poisoned chocolates. But can they live up to their slogan of "Any case solved in 24 hours"?
Audiobook
Published December 11, 2012
About the author
Agatha Christie
6,083 books78k followersAgatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
August 1, 2022
Originally called Finessing the King this was a short story published in The Sketch magazine in 1924. In the U.K. editions, this story is split into 2 parts in the Tommy and Tuppence compilation Partners In Crime with The Gentleman Dressed in Newspaper being the 2nd part of the story.
In this one Tommy and Tuppence decide to act like Isabel Ostrander's fictional detectives McCarty and Riordan. Tuppence convinces Tommy to take her to a costume party to dance, and there they run smack into a murder.
A woman is stabbed by a man wearing newspaper, and dies in Tuppence's arms after telling her, Bingo did it.
Seems pretty cut and dry once they find out who Bingo is, but neither Inspector Marriot nor our adorable detectives feel good about it and Tuppence proceeds to continue her investigation.
Whodunnit?
Even when the mysteries aren't very good, I still love the Tommy and Tuppence stuff.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime
In this one Tommy and Tuppence decide to act like Isabel Ostrander's fictional detectives McCarty and Riordan. Tuppence convinces Tommy to take her to a costume party to dance, and there they run smack into a murder.
A woman is stabbed by a man wearing newspaper, and dies in Tuppence's arms after telling her, Bingo did it.
Seems pretty cut and dry once they find out who Bingo is, but neither Inspector Marriot nor our adorable detectives feel good about it and Tuppence proceeds to continue her investigation.
Whodunnit?
Even when the mysteries aren't very good, I still love the Tommy and Tuppence stuff.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime
January 18, 2023
Although this story was called Finessing the King when originally published in The Sketch magazine in 1924, the story is sometimes split into 2 parts in certain editions of Partners in Crime and the second half of the story is called The Gentleman Dressed in Newspaper.
In this one Tommy and Tuppence decide to act like Isabel Ostrander's fictional detectives McCarty and Riordan. Tuppence convinces Tommy to take her to a costume party to dance, and there they run smack into a murder.
A woman is stabbed by a man wearing newspapers and dies in Tuppence's arms after telling her, Bingo did it.
Seems pretty cut and dry once they find out who Bingo is, but neither Inspector Marriot nor our adorable detectives feel good about it and Tuppence proceeds to continue her investigation.
Whodunnit?
Even when the mysteries aren't very good, I still love the Tommy and Tuppence stuff.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime.
In this one Tommy and Tuppence decide to act like Isabel Ostrander's fictional detectives McCarty and Riordan. Tuppence convinces Tommy to take her to a costume party to dance, and there they run smack into a murder.
A woman is stabbed by a man wearing newspapers and dies in Tuppence's arms after telling her, Bingo did it.
Seems pretty cut and dry once they find out who Bingo is, but neither Inspector Marriot nor our adorable detectives feel good about it and Tuppence proceeds to continue her investigation.
Whodunnit?
Even when the mysteries aren't very good, I still love the Tommy and Tuppence stuff.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime.
March 27, 2023
2.75⭐️
A Tommy and Tuppence (not my fav AC) where a woman is found murdered after uttering her last words: “Bingo did it”
A Tommy and Tuppence (not my fav AC) where a woman is found murdered after uttering her last words: “Bingo did it”
November 20, 2024
Fun quick story
January 23, 2021
Tommy and Tuppence attend a costume party where a woman ends up murdered. Tuppence heard her dying words “Bingo did it.” Bingo is the name of her lover and she is found with a piece of torn newspaper in her hand. Bingo was dressed in newspaper as his costume. So he must be guilty, right? Not so, as Tuppence figures out. The true murderer was the woman’s husband, hiding his true costume with a newspaper one similar to the lover’s. But not quite the same, as the print is from different days of the newspaper.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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December 18, 2025RESUMEN
En el relato “El caballero disfrazado de periódico”, Tommy y Tuppence se ven envueltos en un caso de asesinato ocurrido durante una fiesta de disfraces. Una mujer, lady Merivale, muere apuñalada y antes de fallecer logra decir una sola frase: “Fue Bingo”, lo que provoca la detención del capitán Bingo Hale, amigo cercano del matrimonio Merivale.
El inspector Marriot cree que el caso está resuelto, ya que todas las pruebas parecen señalar a Bingo Hale: el arma, las cartas amorosas y un fragmento de periódico hallado en la mano de la víctima que coincide con su disfraz. Sin embargo, Tuppence empieza a dudar, ya que considera que el caso es “demasiado claro”.
Analizando los detalles, especialmente los periódicos y las marcas en ellos, Tuppence descubre que el verdadero culpable es sir Arthur Merivale, el esposo de la víctima. Él había planeado el crimen para quedarse con la fortuna de su esposa y hacer que todo pareciera culpa de su amigo. Al verse descubierto, sir Arthur se suicida lanzándose por la ventana, confirmando así su culpabilidad.
ANALISIS:
Este texto pertenece al género narrativo policial, ya que gira en torno a un asesinato y a la investigación para descubrir al culpable. Agatha Christie juega con las pruebas falsas y las apariencias, haciendo creer tanto a la policía como al lector que el caso ya está resuelto cuando en realidad no lo está.
Uno de los temas principales es que la verdad no siempre coincide con las evidencias superficiales. El inspector Marriot, aunque experimentado, se deja llevar por la cantidad de pruebas circunstanciales, mientras que Tuppence demuestra que la observación y el razonamiento son más importantes que aceptar lo evidente.
El personaje de Tuppence vuelve a destacar por su inteligencia y capacidad deductiva, mientras que Tommy cumple un rol más secundario, apoyándola y ayudándola a unir las pistas. Sir Arthur representa la traición y la ambición, ya que traiciona tanto a su esposa como a su amigo por dinero.
MI OPINION:
En mi opinión, El caballero disfrazado de periódico es un relato muy interesante porque mantiene el suspenso hasta el final y demuestra que no siempre el culpable es quien parece serlo. Me gustó especialmente el personaje de Tuppence, ya que no se conforma con la versión oficial y se atreve a cuestionar incluso a la policía.
El final es impactante, porque el culpable no es arrestado sino que se suicida, lo que deja una sensación trágica y demuestra la gravedad de sus actos. También me pareció importante el mensaje de que la ambición puede llevar a las personas a cometer actos terribles.
Considero que es un buen ejemplo de relato policial clásico, donde la inteligencia y la atención a los detalles son claves para descubrir la verdad.
En el relato “El caballero disfrazado de periódico”, Tommy y Tuppence se ven envueltos en un caso de asesinato ocurrido durante una fiesta de disfraces. Una mujer, lady Merivale, muere apuñalada y antes de fallecer logra decir una sola frase: “Fue Bingo”, lo que provoca la detención del capitán Bingo Hale, amigo cercano del matrimonio Merivale.
El inspector Marriot cree que el caso está resuelto, ya que todas las pruebas parecen señalar a Bingo Hale: el arma, las cartas amorosas y un fragmento de periódico hallado en la mano de la víctima que coincide con su disfraz. Sin embargo, Tuppence empieza a dudar, ya que considera que el caso es “demasiado claro”.
Analizando los detalles, especialmente los periódicos y las marcas en ellos, Tuppence descubre que el verdadero culpable es sir Arthur Merivale, el esposo de la víctima. Él había planeado el crimen para quedarse con la fortuna de su esposa y hacer que todo pareciera culpa de su amigo. Al verse descubierto, sir Arthur se suicida lanzándose por la ventana, confirmando así su culpabilidad.
ANALISIS:
Este texto pertenece al género narrativo policial, ya que gira en torno a un asesinato y a la investigación para descubrir al culpable. Agatha Christie juega con las pruebas falsas y las apariencias, haciendo creer tanto a la policía como al lector que el caso ya está resuelto cuando en realidad no lo está.
Uno de los temas principales es que la verdad no siempre coincide con las evidencias superficiales. El inspector Marriot, aunque experimentado, se deja llevar por la cantidad de pruebas circunstanciales, mientras que Tuppence demuestra que la observación y el razonamiento son más importantes que aceptar lo evidente.
El personaje de Tuppence vuelve a destacar por su inteligencia y capacidad deductiva, mientras que Tommy cumple un rol más secundario, apoyándola y ayudándola a unir las pistas. Sir Arthur representa la traición y la ambición, ya que traiciona tanto a su esposa como a su amigo por dinero.
MI OPINION:
En mi opinión, El caballero disfrazado de periódico es un relato muy interesante porque mantiene el suspenso hasta el final y demuestra que no siempre el culpable es quien parece serlo. Me gustó especialmente el personaje de Tuppence, ya que no se conforma con la versión oficial y se atreve a cuestionar incluso a la policía.
El final es impactante, porque el culpable no es arrestado sino que se suicida, lo que deja una sensación trágica y demuestra la gravedad de sus actos. También me pareció importante el mensaje de que la ambición puede llevar a las personas a cometer actos terribles.
Considero que es un buen ejemplo de relato policial clásico, donde la inteligencia y la atención a los detalles son claves para descubrir la verdad.
November 16, 2024
An era of speakeasies and costume balls sounds really fun. Until you mix in murder. Also the obsession with sending cryptic messages in the newspaper to clandestine accomplices/lovers/friends/hit men simply must resume. It will revive print media.
January 14, 2025
Tommy and Tuppence go dancing in costume and masks. Tuppence hears a woman stabbed to death in an adjacent booth. The police believe they have the suspect but an anal and keen observation about fonts in a newspaper traps the real killer. Quite an ending.
January 9, 2021
A half-@$$ed, incomplete story hoping to coast on Agatha Christie's name. It's so lazy I would not be surprised to learned it was ghost written and put out by Christie's estate.
January 3, 2023
Tommy & Tuppence stories have a unique charm punctuated by humour that's not found in other stories penned by the Dame. This one is a classic example.
Recommended.
Recommended.
June 30, 2024
something about tommy & tuppence just irks me (their banter isn’t very good). the mystery isn’t up to par in this.
August 20, 2024
Part 1 of 2 finessing the king (which comprise the LWT episode by Warwick and Annis.) Part 2 of 2 is gentleman dressed in newspaper. Quite clever. Stories 7,8 of partners in crime book.
August 18, 2024
I liked this one a lot. The costumes, the way they solved the mystery. The dots on the paper was a nice touch.
July 11, 2023
Leuk kort verhaal
January 23, 2021
Tommy and Tuppence attend a costume party where a woman ends up murdered. Tuppence heard her dying words “Bingo did it.” Bingo is the name of her lover and she is found with a piece of torn newspaper in her hand. Bingo was dressed in newspaper as his costume. So he must be guilty, right? Not so, as Tuppence figures out. The true murderer was the woman’s husband, hiding his true costume with a newspaper one similar to the lover’s. But not quite the same, as the print is from different days of the newspaper.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2018
Though this is shown as a short story, it had a feeling of a teaser trailer. I need to listen to it again or maybe as part of the Partners In Crime anthology. That being said, I really enjoyed listening to this unknown to me series by Agatha Christie. Tommy and Tuppence's witty banter was delightful and I enjoyed their detective traits and eccentricities. The narrator did a fine job and I look forward to listening to the next story.
June 6, 2018
I don't...I don't like Tommy and Tuppence as much as Miss Marple.....
July 30, 2022
This was my first time reading Tommy and Tuppence. I had always assumed they were around Miss Marple's age but was quite surprised to discover they are a "young couple."
This installment had several references to other literary works which I could relate to and enjoyed. Further research indicates that Christie was not merely referencing but parodying famous detectives in this story (according to Michael Grost's article on Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime for Mystery*File). I am unfamiliar with Isabel Ostrander's McCarty and Riordan but understood the references to Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, and the confusingly entertaining reference to Hercule Poirot (what does that indicate about Tommy and Tuppence? Do they live in the same world as Poirot and are referencing a famous detective they know of? Or are they referencing another famous fictional detective they've read about that was written by the same author as them? The potential for a fourth wall break back in 1929 is deeply intriguing).
I was hoping for more closure regarding the murderer.
Overall I enjoyed this short story. It wasn't nearly as wowing or impressive as Christie's other works but it seems her intention was not to deliver another mind-blowing mystery, but to parody Ostrander’s The Clue in the Air. I have never read nor could find a copy of The Clue in the Air so I cannot evaluate her success of this, but the story still worked on its own. Like I said it was not nearly as mind-blowing as I've come to expect from Christie's writing but it was still a decent, quick casual read.
This installment had several references to other literary works which I could relate to and enjoyed. Further research indicates that Christie was not merely referencing but parodying famous detectives in this story (according to Michael Grost's article on Agatha Christie's Partners in Crime for Mystery*File). I am unfamiliar with Isabel Ostrander's McCarty and Riordan but understood the references to Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, and the confusingly entertaining reference to Hercule Poirot (what does that indicate about Tommy and Tuppence? Do they live in the same world as Poirot and are referencing a famous detective they know of? Or are they referencing another famous fictional detective they've read about that was written by the same author as them? The potential for a fourth wall break back in 1929 is deeply intriguing).
I was hoping for more closure regarding the murderer.
Overall I enjoyed this short story. It wasn't nearly as wowing or impressive as Christie's other works but it seems her intention was not to deliver another mind-blowing mystery, but to parody Ostrander’s The Clue in the Air. I have never read nor could find a copy of The Clue in the Air so I cannot evaluate her success of this, but the story still worked on its own. Like I said it was not nearly as mind-blowing as I've come to expect from Christie's writing but it was still a decent, quick casual read.
July 4, 2026
The Better of the Pair
This is actually the sequel to Finessing the King which ends unfinished. Published as separate Short Stories, Dressed in Newspaper needs help from the first. Agatha Christie sort of cranked out the T&T stories automatically. Except for the first T&T, the excellent "Secret Adversary" and adequate "N or M" these stories lacked the intensity and cleverness of Christie's earlier pre 1940 works.
This is actually the sequel to Finessing the King which ends unfinished. Published as separate Short Stories, Dressed in Newspaper needs help from the first. Agatha Christie sort of cranked out the T&T stories automatically. Except for the first T&T, the excellent "Secret Adversary" and adequate "N or M" these stories lacked the intensity and cleverness of Christie's earlier pre 1940 works.
December 20, 2024
Rather an old trick but we don’t get tired of these, do we.
June 11, 2025
Criminosos sempre têm a mania de se acharem perfeitos, ou de acreditar que cometeram o crime perfeito. Claro que isso nunca acontece nos contos da rainha do crime, quando o crime é sempre solucionado, e o criminoso preso. Eu gostaria de que isso também acontecesse na vida real. Mais um excelente conto.
October 16, 2017
Tommy & Tuppence 02 Partners in Crime
My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.
My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.
October 27, 2020
Some days you just need to listen to Hugh Fraser narrating another Agatha Christie mystery. I seriously have no idea why I suddenly /needed/ to go borrow something from Overdrive that was narrated by Hugh Fraser, but I did, and here we are.
January 9, 2021
Interesting story!
This one story certainly has elements to keep you entertained and on the edge from start to finish.
As this is a novel series for me, I feel like I have discovered yet another facet of Tommy which is rather unusual no matter how usual that trait was during that time.
This one story certainly has elements to keep you entertained and on the edge from start to finish.
As this is a novel series for me, I feel like I have discovered yet another facet of Tommy which is rather unusual no matter how usual that trait was during that time.
September 11, 2022
The best part is the relationship between Tommy and Tuppence. I don't think I've read any of Agatha Christie's Tommy and Tuppence mysteries before, but I loved them so much in this short story that I'm looking forward to reading more.
*Some mild language
*Some mild language
December 15, 2022
On of the Tommy and Tuppence series. Tuppence is bored at home, Tommy is mulling tgings over at work. A colleague persuades them to take a leave of absence and stand in at a Detective Agency.
It is always fun to see a different side to Agatha Christie beyond Miss Marple and Poirot
It is always fun to see a different side to Agatha Christie beyond Miss Marple and Poirot
May 31, 2024
A delightful little piece, a miniature mystery which still manages to flesh out characters better than many a drawn out novel. I was already familiar with these characters, but I think it could stands on its own even if you have never read any Tommy and Tuppence books.
May 18, 2025
Interesting story!
This one story certainly has elements to keep you entertained and on the edge from start to finish.
As this is a novel series for me, I feel like I have discovered yet another facet of Tommy which is rather unusual no matter how usual that trait was during that time.
This one story certainly has elements to keep you entertained and on the edge from start to finish.
As this is a novel series for me, I feel like I have discovered yet another facet of Tommy which is rather unusual no matter how usual that trait was during that time.
June 13, 2026
Ova se kratka prica proteze kroz dva kratka poglavlja sto je zanimljiv izuzetak od uobicajene sablone. Kod nje mi se svida njen teatralni kraj, ovako nesto na kraju covjek nikako nije mogao ocekivati.
June 22, 2019
Tommy and Tuppence attend a masquerade ball undercover, but it's hard to find a murderer when everyone is dressed in costume!
I really adore Tommy and Tuppence. They're so much fun!
I really adore Tommy and Tuppence. They're so much fun!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews