What do you think?
Rate this book
Hercule Poirot #15, 32, 35
Poirot: The Complete Ariadne Oliver, Vol. 1
A brand new POIROT omnibus, featuring the first five appearances of the detective's side-kick, the sleuthing crime novelist Ariadne Cards on the Table, Mrs McGinty's Dead, Dead Man's Folly, and the short stories The Case of the Discontented Soldier and The Case of the Rich Woman. Hercule Poirot and Ariadne Oliver were an unilkely combination -- a world-famous detective who dealt with fact and a prolific crime writer who dealt with fantasy. But their paths crossed six times, and Mrs Oliver was to become one of Poirot's staunchest allies. Cards on the Table Ariadne Oliver makes her first appearance in Poirot's life when they attend a bridge party in which the host is silently murdered in full view of a roomful of guests. Mrs McGinty's Dead After 16 years, Mrs Oliver re-enters Poirot's life when an old widow is murdered in the parlour of her cottage. Dead Man's Folly A murder hunt is staged for charity, but alarmingly turns into the real thing when Poirot and Mrs Oliver have to face up to their first case of a child murder. The Case of the Discontented Soldier and The Case of the Rich Woman are two bonus stories in which Mrs Oliver makes an appearance alongside the private eye Christopher Parker Pyne.
544 pages, Paperback
First published May 3, 2005
6 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
About the author
Agatha Christie
5,814 books76.2k 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)
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 31, 2021
Volume one of The Complete Ariadne Oliver contains three novels and two short stories. The novels are Cards on the table, Mrs McGinty’s Dead, and Dead Man’s Folly. These are classic Christie.
The character who is featured with Oliver in the short stories, The Case of the Discontented Soldier, and The Case of the Rich Woman, is a private eye by the name of Christopher Parker Pyne.
In each of the novels, Oliver and her friend, Hercule Poirot solve the mystery of three intriguing murders.
In the short stories, Oliver is a minor character and Parker Pyne carries the lead, and makes fantasies come true, much to the clients dismay.
I was familiar with each of the novels, and thoroughly enjoyed them, but I wasn’t too impressed with the short stories.
Even so, I gave the book 5 stars, and would suggest it to any Christie fan.
The character who is featured with Oliver in the short stories, The Case of the Discontented Soldier, and The Case of the Rich Woman, is a private eye by the name of Christopher Parker Pyne.
In each of the novels, Oliver and her friend, Hercule Poirot solve the mystery of three intriguing murders.
In the short stories, Oliver is a minor character and Parker Pyne carries the lead, and makes fantasies come true, much to the clients dismay.
I was familiar with each of the novels, and thoroughly enjoyed them, but I wasn’t too impressed with the short stories.
Even so, I gave the book 5 stars, and would suggest it to any Christie fan.
April 8, 2018
DECLINO
Questi libri segnano l'inizio del declino della Christie... O, più probabilmente, del mio, dopo averne letti fino alla nausea.
Per "La sagra del delitto" ho commesso il mio tipico errore di leggerlo frettolosamente perché convinta di aver risolto il mistero ma, ancora una volta, sono stata piacevolmente ingannata. Più precisamente, avevo letto da qualche parte che l'idea principale fosse stata ripresa dal racconto "La follia di Greenshaw", in cui l'investigatrice era però Miss Marple, ed avevo quindi dato per scontato che l'esito sarebbe stato lo stesso. Il mio primo caso di spoiler non nocivo, incredibile!
***
Di "Carte in tavola" mi hanno sinceramente annoiato i continui riferimenti alle carte, che non riuscivo a seguire del tutto, nonché il romanzo nel suo complesso. Al contrario, devo ammettere che, quando è stato rivelato chi fosse il colpevole, sono rimasta molto soddisfatta.
***
"Fermate il boia", infine, rappresenta la mia prima grande delusione provata nei confronti di Poirot: noia e tanto rumore per nulla, in un giro che pare infinito ma il cui approdo è insoddisfacente. Un colpo al cuore, davvero.
***
Questa raccolta comprende anche due storie il cui protagonista è Parker Pyne, che mi sono piaciute abbastanza, ma non tanto da decidere di intraprendere la lettura della raccolta dei suoi casi (cosa che avverrà comunque, prima o poi).
UPDATE: Ecco, appunto, è accaduto. E devo dire che i racconti qui contenuti non rendono affatto giustizia a "Parker Pyne indaga" (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...).
Questi libri segnano l'inizio del declino della Christie... O, più probabilmente, del mio, dopo averne letti fino alla nausea.
Per "La sagra del delitto" ho commesso il mio tipico errore di leggerlo frettolosamente perché convinta di aver risolto il mistero ma, ancora una volta, sono stata piacevolmente ingannata. Più precisamente, avevo letto da qualche parte che l'idea principale fosse stata ripresa dal racconto "La follia di Greenshaw", in cui l'investigatrice era però Miss Marple, ed avevo quindi dato per scontato che l'esito sarebbe stato lo stesso. Il mio primo caso di spoiler non nocivo, incredibile!
***
Di "Carte in tavola" mi hanno sinceramente annoiato i continui riferimenti alle carte, che non riuscivo a seguire del tutto, nonché il romanzo nel suo complesso. Al contrario, devo ammettere che, quando è stato rivelato chi fosse il colpevole, sono rimasta molto soddisfatta.
***
"Fermate il boia", infine, rappresenta la mia prima grande delusione provata nei confronti di Poirot: noia e tanto rumore per nulla, in un giro che pare infinito ma il cui approdo è insoddisfacente. Un colpo al cuore, davvero.
***
Questa raccolta comprende anche due storie il cui protagonista è Parker Pyne, che mi sono piaciute abbastanza, ma non tanto da decidere di intraprendere la lettura della raccolta dei suoi casi (cosa che avverrà comunque, prima o poi).
UPDATE: Ecco, appunto, è accaduto. E devo dire che i racconti qui contenuti non rendono affatto giustizia a "Parker Pyne indaga" (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...).
April 19, 2012
Ok, first of all, I better mention that this rating and review are not for the three full length Poirot novels in the compilation (which I have read before and rated separately) but for the two short stories included in it: The Case of the Discontented Soldier and The Case of the Rich Woman. Both of these stories involve the private detective Parker Pyne, a man who advertises 'cures' for people who are bored with their lives, and, very loosely, Ariadne Oliver, who is a recurring character in the Poirot novels. Mostly these cures seem to involve throwing clients into strange situations and having them fall in love, thus curing their boredom. They're okay as far as short stories go, but nothing particularly exciting or inventive and bookended by three murder mysteries in this compilation, they don't really hold their own. Two relatively adequate reads, but I wouldn't rush to read them over other Christie stories if I were you.
February 13, 2018
Having just read a faux-Christie, I felt the need to dive into some genuine-Christie. Three novels and two short stories to be precise! I bought this compilation ten years ago and read it at the time, and I thought I’d remembered the ending of two of the novels, but I proved to be half wrong in one case and completely wrong in the other. I love the moment of surprise when it all comes together. And she really is fabulous at vivid characters - like Dickens’ characters in that they jump off the page, but less grotesque and more life-like than his. I do love Mrs Oliver! And Poirot continues to fabulous on every read. Although I suspect that Christie liked Poirot as much as Mrs Oliver liked her Swedish detective.
September 24, 2023
Contains the novels Cards on the table, Mrs McGinty’s dead, Dead man’s folly and the short stories The case of the discontented soldier and The case of the rich woman.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews