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Murder on the Orient Express

(Hercule Poirot #10)

Agatha Christie

4.18 · Rating details · 399,409 ratings · 24,720 reviews

Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in its tracks. The luxurious train is surprisingly full for the time of the year, but by the morning it is one passenger fewer. An American tycoon lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside.

Isolated and with a killer in their midst, detective Hercule Poirot must identify the ...more

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Paperback, Agatha Christie Signature Edition, 274 pages

Published June 4th 2007 by HarperCollins (first published 1934)

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Feb 10, 2011 Emily May rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery-thriller, 2011

When all the other little girls wanted to be princesses - do you know what I wanted to be? And no, it wasn't a vampire, either... it was...

HERCULE POIROT'S SIDEKICK!!!

The fact that I actually took the time to edit my face into that picture should tell you something about a) my Poirot love, and b) the kind of hopelessly boring day I have suffered through :D

...more

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Oct 21, 2016 Zoë rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This was my first Agatha Christie novel and it definitely did not disappoint! I was not expecting that ending, which is obviously a good thing in a murder mystery story, but I am proud of myself for picking up on some other clues. I am so impressed by how she was able to weave this intricate of a story in only 200 pages and I can't wait to pick up another one of her novels in the future! ...more

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Jun 14, 2016 James rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 3-multi-book-series, 5-favorite-books, 1-fiction, 2-fic-cozy-mystery

5 stars to Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express. I chose to read this Christie spectacular after finishing "And There Were None." She's such a treasure - never disappoints.

A train. A murder. Multiple suspects. Nearly an alibi for everyone. But wait, there's a motive for everyone. How did this seemingly impossible murder occur? Hercule Poirot knows.

Well, I'm glad he did because I was stumped! But with good reason as this plot twist will have your knickers locked down (and not just in a ...more

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Sep 20, 2016 Mohammed Arabey rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

*للقطارات سحر غامض تحدي الزمن*
دائما يلهب خيال المبدعين. والت ديزني رسم ميكي ماوس لأول مرة في القطار، جي كي رولينج فكرت في ملحمتها هاري بوتر اثناء ركوبها القطار
اجاثا كريستي استلهمت رائعتها جريمة قطار الشرق السريع في رحلة لها علي متن ذلك القطار المهيب العابر للدول والقارات

*وللرواية البوليسية سحر غامض تحدي الزمن*
واجاثا كريستي لها روائع في هذا المجال، وجريمة قطار الشرق السريع احدها
بعربة قطار ملئ بالشخصيات المختلفة المتباينة..وامرأة غامضة ترتدي كيمونو احمر تجوب العربة ليلا

لدرجة انه بعد 75 عاما من كتابتها سيحولها كينيث براناه -بروفيسر لوكهارت في هاري بوتر ومخرج اعادة سندريلا لديزني من عامين- لفيلم جديد ضخم في 2017

برغم من ان فيلما تم انتاجه من قبل لكنه هذه المرة سيقوم هو، برناه، بدور المحقق بوارو وجوني ديب في دور راتشيت...الذي ستدور حوله الاحداث
مع ميشيل فايفر، مدام جودي دانيش وغيرها من النجوم المتالقين

لتكون بجانب انها من أهم الروايات البوليسية التي باعت الآلاف النسخ، تم تحويلها للسينما والراديو والتلفزيون بل ولعبة فيديو
** القــصـــة **
~~~~~~~~

مع 13 شخصية بعربة قطار نوم من قطارات الشرق السريع المتجهة من اسطنبول الي لندن، ينجح بوارو بصعوبة ان ينضم لهم في حجز مكان بها، الفضل لصديقه وأحد رؤساء شركة قطارات النوم السيد بوك ، وهناك أيضا الدكتور الذي سينضم لهم للتحقيقات
القطار يتوقف بسبب الجليد...وجريمة قتل تحدث لشخصية حاولت الاستنجاد من قبل ببوارو ولكنه لم يرق له من اول وهلة

وتبدأ التحقيقات الكلاسيكية ... لتلك القضية المعقدة
والتي لا تنفك تزداد تعقيدا بمختلف روايات الركاب المختلفين في النوع والجنس والعمر والطبقات الاجتماعية بشكل رهيب

السيدة شبارد الظريفة تؤكد أن أحدهم كان بحجرتها
واقاويل مختلفة عن شخص متنكر في ملابس مراقب عربة قطار قصير اسمر ذو صوت نسائي
وبوارو نفسه وغيره يلمحون امرأة غامضة غريبة طويلة ترتدي رداء نوم احمر ذو نقوش يابانية تتجول بالعربة ليلا
ياللغموض، ياللغرابة
ياللتعقيدات التي تواجه بوارو
وتواجهنا معه

وبشكل روتيني ناخذ اقاويل الركاب ، نفتش حقائبهم، يجلس بوارو ليفكر
تعمل خلايا عقله الرمادية
يضغط علي الجميع بناء علي ملاحظاته
يكتشف حقائق
يفجر مفاجأت
وربما تلك هي اللغز الوحيد الذي ينتهي بحلين مختلفين تماما
فإيهم ستختار

لا تقلق لم أحرق لك شيئا
ولنر لمحة من الشخصيات

------------
** الشخــصــيـات **
---------

الشخصيات الأثني عشر غاية في التباين والغرابة

بوارو عبقري كالعادة بخلايا عقله الرمادية

السيد بوك صديقه الوسيم صاحب شركة عربات قطار النوم يحاول ان يفكر معه طول الوقت بشكل رزين لا يخلو من النمطية

السيدة شببارد تقريبا كانت افضل شخصية وجميل ان تخيلتها بشخصية ميشيل فايفر التي ستقوم بدورها..الحوار كان ظريف جدا وكوميدي خفف كثيرا من قتامة ورعب جو الاحتجاز في القطار مع الجثة

الانسة ماري شخصية بسيطة ولكنها قوية بنفس الوقت، تصويرها اعجبني جدا وللاسف دار حولها الكثير من الشك

الاميرة العجوز دراجومروف بعنجهيتها المحببة للنفس، وقولها ان القدر هو الذي رتب وجود المحقق البارع بوارو في ذلك التوقيت

والسيد راتشيت الذي سيحيرنا طوال الأحداث

--------------
** جو الأحداث **
----------

كما قلت، للقطارات سحر
بالاخص اذا كنت ستقضي فيه وقتا ، اياما بلياليها، مع شخصيات مختلفة

وللقطارات هيبة ورهبة
مازلت أتذكر تلبية ابي اخيرا لطلبي لركوب القطار الذي كنت احب عندما ياخذني لمحطة مصر لرؤيته..وبمجرد ان تحرك ونحن علي متنه بدأ الهلع واصرخ وابكي واقول لا اريد ان أسافر -رغم ان المحطة التالية الي بعد 10 دقائق ولكن كيف لي ان اعرف وقتها-
ولكن الرهبة الاكير مع الشعور بالاحتجاز من الجليد العاصف
وقد جائت فكرة الرواية عندما حدث الأمر في قطار الشرق كانت تستقله اجاثا كريستي وقد احتجزته الامطار والسيول 24 ساعة كاملة مع ركاب مختلفين استلهمت منهم تلك الشخصيات في قطار روايتها
وزادت عليهم جثة ومراقب عربة قصير غامض وامرأة طويلة بالكيمونو الاحمر اكثر غموضا

☆☆☆☆☆

وكما قلت للروايات البوليسية سحر
وتقريبا هذه الرواية في بناءها السردي كانت كلاسيكية وبسيطة، بلا أحداث واماكن كثيرة...بل 95% من الاحداث تدور في مكان واحد، القطار المحتجز، في غرفة الطعام أغلب الأحداث... بل وتدور في يوم وليلة تقريبا

ومع ذلك حبكتها معقدة ورهيبة لا تصدر الا عن ملكة الجريمة والغموض

يظهر جدا اجواء المعاصرة لوقت كتابة الرواية، 1934، الاختلافات السياسية في الثلاثينات، كذكر عصبة الامم، عداوة مستترة فجة بين الامريكان والانجليز المحافظين غالبا بسبب خلافات مابعد الحرب العظمي
وكذلك عمل الكثير من الاجانب ببغداد وحلب، سوريا والعراق، والكولونيل الانجليزي المقيم اغلب الوقت بالهند

بل وأن تيمة اختطاف الاطفال الموجودة هنا مبنية علي حدث اختطاف طفل في 1932 وانتحار المربية برغم تبرئتها

☆☆☆☆☆

وأعود لما قلته من قبل، لاجاثا كريستي نفسها سحر

فرغم الشعور انها رواية قديمة، او كلاسيكية البناء، حيث حتي يغلب علي اغلب الحوارات التي يقولها الشخصيات شئ من التطويل احيانا
رغم كل هذا فإنني ظللت مشدودا طوال الاحداث، لا تطويل غير مبرر ولاحشو...كل شئ في مكانه

والصفحات الاخيرة نجحت في رسم ابتسامة كبيرة علي وجهي، ظلت تتسع حتي كدت أن اضحك بصوت عالي في القطار -ترام الرمل- حتي اغلقت الرواية ونزلت المحطة ظلت تلك الابتسامة للنهاية العبقرية حقا والغير متوقعة

فلتلك النهايات...سحر

محمد العربي
في قطار الشرق السريع لثلاث ليالي من 5 اكتوبر 2016
الي 7 اكتوبر 2016 ...more

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Jan 14, 2015 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, oldies-but-goodies

If you're on a train (or boat, or island), planning to commit a nice, unsolvable murder, and you find out Hercule Poirot is one of the guests . . . Just change your plans. That is all.

description

I'd like to know if anyone has ever solved this particular murder mystery. It's mind-boggling, and deservedly one of Agatha Christie's better-known books. ...more

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Nov 16, 2017 emma rated it really liked it

Shelves: classics, dark, library, literary-fiction, mystery-thriller-horror-etc, non-ya, 4-stars, recommend, reviewed

I’m pretty astounded by how much fun this was.

I mean, this may be just me, but “early-to-mid-twentieth century mystery about train crime” doesn’t exactly scream nonstop thrill ride. But here we are!

I’m also not sure why it took me so long to write this review (two months, to be exact, so actually not that long for me but still) but again, here we are.

I don’t actually really want to say much on this book, which is astounding in its own right because my number one hobby is making up various excus ...more

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Sep 07, 2018 megs_bookrack rated it it was amazing

Murder on the Orient Express is one of Agatha Christie's most well known and beloved works.

Adapted numerous times over the years for radio, film and television, in addition to inspiring countless writers and filmmakers, most people have at least a cursory understanding of what this story entails.

A classic whodunit tale, with Christie's signature-styling, this is one of the stories that sealed my fate as a Reader.

I adore Hercule Poirot and grew up binging Christie's works. I read this book as a ...more

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Dec 14, 2017 Virginia Ronan ♥ Herondale ♥ rated it really liked it

”The train, it is as dangerous as a sea voyage!”

So, this was my first Agatha Christie book and considering how much fun I had while I read it, it definitely won’t be my last. ;-)

Yes, you read correctly and your mind didn’t play tricks on you:

I had F.U.N!!!

I actually enjoyed reading this so much I constantly found myself giggling with delight! *lol* I swear there’s nothing better than a mystery or a puzzle you need to solve and I guess in this particular case it might have even been both! ;- ...more

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Jun 16, 2019 Dita is taking a break from GR. rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Mind blown, Agatha!

I enjoyed this but kept trying to figure out why this one is better known and more remembered than Aggie’s others and then? And then? ARE YOU KIDDING ME??

Holy $%!!!

I highly recommend the audio for this one; Kenneth Branagh's voice is buttahhh, Baby.

I think I ovulated just listening to him. ...more

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Jun 10, 2018 Tina Haigler rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, classics

Well, ladies and gentlemen. That was fantastic! I mean, what can I say? Agatha Christie was a genius. So is David Suchet who narrated the audiobook (and played Poirot in the TV show).

This story is set on a filled to capacity train, heading from Stamboul (Istanbul) to London. It's the middle of winter and the snow has built up on the tracks and forced the train to a standstill on it's way through Yugoslavia (an area that is now in Croatia). This is when the murder is discovered, which luckily for Well, ladies and gentlemen. That was fantastic! I mean, what can I say? Agatha Christie was a genius. So is David Suchet who narrated the audiobook (and played Poirot in the TV show).

This story is set on a filled to capacity train, heading from Stamboul (Istanbul) to London. It's the middle of winter and the snow has built up on the tracks and forced the train to a standstill on it's way through Yugoslavia (an area that is now in Croatia). This is when the murder is discovered, which luckily for me (I can be impatient) happens within the first 50 pages.

There are so many characters in this. It was a little difficult to keep them all straight but Suchet's voices helped. Let's start with the characters who aren't suspects. We have, naturally, Hercule Poirot, detective extraordinaire, Monsieur Bouc, the Wagon-Lits director and Poirot's old friend, Dr. Constantine, a doctor on the train, Pierre Michel, the conductor of the Stamboul-Calais coach, and Ratchett, the victim. Bouc is the one more quick to jump to conclusions where as Poirot is very methodical and waits till he has all the information and all the clues fit before committing to the assignment of guilt.

Now for the possible murderers. Of course, all of the passengers on the train are suspects. We have Hector MacQueen, Ratchett's secretary, Edward Masterman, Ratchett's valet, Mrs. Hubbard, Greta Ohlsson, Princess Dragamiroff and her maid, Hildegarde Schmidt, the Count and Countess Andrenyi, Colonel Arbuthnot, Mr. Hardman, Antonio Foscarelli, and Mary Debenham. There are lots of interviews, collecting of evidence, and taking notes. I liked how Poirot, Bouc, and Dr. Constantine kept going over the evidence with each other. The repetition of the clues helped me keep track of all of them. With so many suspects the evidence kept going in circles and making my head spin. I had a few theories but for the first time ever one of them was right! I didn't know why I was right until Poirot started to piece things together but once he did the answer was quite clear. I felt like the conclusion was the proper way to end the story as well.

Agatha Christie never fails to impress me with her ingenuity. I plan on reading many more of her novels in the near future. As Poirot would say, I pray you, join me. ...more

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Jan 01, 2016 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: own, mystery-thriller-etc

Wahoo! I'm finally going to read a Poirot book! I have the complete blu-ray box set and love this series so much! And now I get start on one of the books! =) ♥

The wonderful Hercule Poirot can not ever go on any holidays without someone being murdered. But, never-the-less he will figure it out.

And a murder has taken place upon the Orient Express.

The man murdered in named Ratchett, but we find out later on in the story this is an alias. Poirot has simply uncovered that the murderer is on the tra ...more

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Oct 01, 2017 Amalia Gkavea rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: british-literature, crime, favorites, historical-fiction, mystery, tv-series, united-kingdom

‘’Some crimes God does not forgive!’’

Last week, I watched (for the gazillionth time…) ITV’s 2010 production of ‘’Murder on the Orient Express’’ with the inimitable David Suchet in the role of our beloved Hercule Poirot and it prompted certain thoughts in my mind. Why is this considered one of Christie’s finest creations? Many say that, arguably, it is her best work and this view I do share.

I don’t think any of us need a synopsis. To say the story is well-known would be an understatement. Eve ...more

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Oct 17, 2016 Nayra.Hassan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller

من الصعب حقا ؛ ان تقرأ رواية بوليسية ممتازة لمرتين

...more

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Jan 24, 2018 Hannah Greendale rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, mystery, adult, fiction

A train stopped at midnight in the snow.
A dead body found in a compartment.
Twelve stab wounds leave no doubt it was murder.
And Hercule Poirot, tasked with solving the crime, is certain the culprit is a passenger on the Orient Express.

The first clue that Murder on the Orient express will be a laborious read arrives shortly after the murder victim is discovered. Among the clues is a scrap of paper which reads (view spoiler) From this clue A train stopped at midnight in the snow.
A dead body found in a compartment.
Twelve stab wounds leave no doubt it was murder.
And Hercule Poirot, tasked with solving the crime, is certain the culprit is a passenger on the Orient Express.

The first clue that Murder on the Orient express will be a laborious read arrives shortly after the murder victim is discovered. Among the clues is a scrap of paper which reads (view spoiler) From this clue, Poirot leaps to an illogical conclusion that serves as the foundation for the remainder of the book.

The message on the scrap of paper leads Poirot to assert that (view spoiler) Poirot makes the connection between the scrap of paper and the murder victim with unbearable convenience.

Equally baffling is Poirot’s assertion that the murderer could not have exited through the open train window because there are no footprints in the snow. Is it so unfathomable that the murderer might have gone out the window and sidled along the train or even climbed atop it? Such oversights leave readers to wonder if Christie intends to misdirect her audience or if her leading man isn’t as bright as he first appears.

Poirot dismisses probable explanations, clings to his illogical assumption about the murder victim, and proceeds to investigate the crime by interviewing every passenger on the train in a designated room. He regales each passenger with his outlandish conclusion, stating it as stone-cold fact, and observes their reactions. Reading through the same set of questions over and over again is a wearisome act, one that grows more tiresome when one remembers that characters could very well be lying, making the entire exercise feel like wasted time.

When this repetitive process finally concludes, Poirot then interviews every passenger again while digging through their luggage in their individual compartments. Couldn’t he have interviewed them in their compartments to begin with? Was it necessary to drag out this process?

After Poirot completes his lengthy interview process, he regales his audience with the solution to the mystery. Those hoping to solve the case themselves will be sorely disappointed, as Poirot’s ability to pinpoint the murderer is dependent on information that’s unavailable to the reader, and the answer to who stabbed the victim borders on absurd. However, despite the improbability of the reveal, Christie’s book leaves a lasting impression because of the uncomfortable questions it raises about justice.

Murder on the Orient Express is a tedious read that reaches an unlikely, albeit unexpected, conclusion – one that lingers because of its themes. ...more

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Nov 24, 2017 Matthew rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017, classic, audio, hoopla, mystery

I fear it is impossible to say too much about this book without spoilers. Because of this I will be brief so you can never go back and say, "I would have loved this book, but that Matthew guy from Goodreads ruined it for me!" So, here is my quick but hopefully useful review.

This is a classic mystery. You like mysteries? You have to have to read this!

Characters are great! So much fun meeting and learning about them all.

Current mysteries have nothing on Christie. This is very intricate and very f ...more

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Nov 15, 2008 Anne rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: agatha-christie, mystery, read-in-2016

If you've never read one of her books, this one sums up the Agatha Christie experience quite nicely.
As in: You will never solve her mysteries.
Don't bother trying, because it will only infuriate you when you find out that the answer to the whodunnit is something far-fetched & entirely unbelievable.
Roll with it, I say! Just trust that the little Belgian detective will eventually make everything all right, and settle in for a cute (albeit old-timey) mystery.

description

I'm not gonna bore you with a plot synops ...more

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Oct 31, 2017 Mary ~Ravager of Tomes~ rated it really liked it

Shelves: 4-star, year-2017

I read this book mostly in preparation for the 2017 film adaption, but I've always been curious about Agatha Christie. She's been recommended to me multiple different times over the course of my life, but I never felt the time was quite right to pick up one of her novels until now.

The premise is very straightforward; master detective Hercule Poirot happens to be aboard the Orient Express rail car when one of the passengers is killed in the night. He is then set to the task of solving the crime ...more

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Jan 03, 2016 Brina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, rereads, agatha-christie, 500-great-books-women, hercule-poirot

It is three days before Chanukah break and my house will be full. Thankfully, even if it’s for four and a half days, all my kids are off at the same time. That 875 page Pulitzer winner, as much as I’d love to read it, admittedly is not going to happen. Between cleaning and guests and the football team that graces my avatar here, I do not have much “brain power” left for anything that requires higher level thinking. A favorite author Anna Quindlen notes that reading leads to rereading leads to wr It is three days before Chanukah break and my house will be full. Thankfully, even if it’s for four and a half days, all my kids are off at the same time. That 875 page Pulitzer winner, as much as I’d love to read it, admittedly is not going to happen. Between cleaning and guests and the football team that graces my avatar here, I do not have much “brain power” left for anything that requires higher level thinking. A favorite author Anna Quindlen notes that reading leads to rereading leads to writing, and the librarian at check out told me that there is nothing wrong with rereading a book if it’s a choice between that or not reading at all. Mysteries have long been my preferred palette cleanser of choice in between denser reads. A quick whodunit allows me to think without thinking too much, especially if the author follows a formula. In this hectic time I decided to turn my ultimate comfort reading author, the Queen of Crime, Dame Agatha Christie.

According to my edition of Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie has been published more than all but two books in history, Shakespeare and the Bible. She first introduced her famous Belgian sleuth Hercule Poirot in the 1920s in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd and added Miss Jane Marple to the world in the 1930s. I have been reading Poirot cases or watching the David Suchet television shows for years. Christie’s books are from nearly one hundred years ago and are harmless enough to allow middle school children to read. I first exposed my oldest daughter to Poirot two years ago and she admits that Christie is the easiest classic to follow. My first taste of Poirot was in seventh grade language arts class when I read Murder on the Orient Express for the first time. Written in 1934, it is the standard barer for all of Poirot’s cases and has been adapted to the big screen twice. Knowing the outcome reading for a third time allowed me to look at the intricacies of the case rather than focusing on whodunit, making this reading all the more enjoyable.

Hercule Poirot is traveling through the Bosporus when a telegram from London recalls him. The Belgian detective encounters an acquaintance Monsieur Bouc in an Istanbul hotel lobby who assists him in securing passage on the fabled Orient Express. Although it is the winter, all sixteen compartments on the train are booked, yet Bouc insures Poirot a spot on the trip. As with other cases, detecting seems to find Poirot wherever he is, whether it is vacationing on a beach or visiting a friend in a rural village. Somehow a murder just has to happen when Poirot is present, as though the murderer is trying to outsmart the Belgian sleuth, stating “come find me, tell me how you know what just occurred.” Of course, within the first twenty four hours of the full Orient Express trip through Europe, a man is murdered. Even more conveniently, the train runs into a snow drift and is stalled so the murderer has no way of escaping. Monsieur Bouc enlists Poirot’s help in solving the case, and he uses his little gray cells to outsmart both his assistants and the perpetrators of this crime.

Because I know who murdered Mr Ratchett, I focused instead on the little details from Poirot’s body language to how he detected of each of passengers was telling the truth or not. At the scene of the crime, a note stated “remember Daisy Armstrong.” Poirot fills us in that this had been a horrendous case of kidnapping and murdering a baby, starting a ripple effect in which the rest of the family died. Anyone associated with the family was heartbroken, and the victim on the train is none other than the Armstrong murderer under an assumed name. Poirot figured this out immediately and began to piece together who could be associated with the crime based on the characters of all stripes who happened to be on the train with him. I have always been most intrigued with the actress Linda Arden and the H on a handkerchief that Poirot figures out the identity of the owner steps before anyone else. Even those who work with him are amazed at how he determines who did what, often stopping him during explanations to say, “this cannot be true.” Alas, as Poirot would say, it is true mon cher, and that is why he has been the world’s most famous detective for decades.

Dame Agatha Christie paved the way for generations of crime writers, who admit to admiring her work. In many cases Christie purposely leaves out a clue until the end so that her readers would have to read the entire case guessing whodunit. This usually takes place more with Miss Marple, but Poirot has had his experience withholding evidence as well. Usually the cases leave me baffled and when I read for the first time years ago, the ending here left me scratching my head. Now, I can envision the end to the 1970s version of the movie and say aha, Poirot is absolutely correct. Even when the Queen of Crime deliberately leaves out a clue, her mysteries rank among my all time favorites. Both Poirot and Miss Marple allow me to use my little gray cells without overthinking in between denser reads. Murder on the Orient Express ranks as one of my all time favorites and is always a pleasure to revisit, especially during the more hectic times in my life.

5 stars ...more

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Nov 05, 2013 Ahmad Sharabiani rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery, classics, british, literature, european, mystery, 20th-century

Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot #10), Agatha Christie, c1934

After taking the Taurus Express from Aleppo in Syria to Istanbul, private detective Hercule Poirot arrives at the Tokatlian Hotel, where he receives a telegram prompting him to return to London. He instructs the concierge to book him a first-class compartment on the Simplon-route Orient Express service leaving that night.

Although the train is fully booked, Poirot obtains a second-class berth through the intervention of fri ...more

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Aug 24, 2019 jessica rated it liked it

i cant even begin to tell you how much it bothers me that i had the audacity to start a series with book 10… but ive heard each book can be read as a standalone and this is the most popular poirot story, so i really need to get over it. lol.

maybe its because i committed the sin of seeing the film before reading the book, but i found this to be very average. not overwhelming, not underwhelming. just whelming. so lets break it down.

pros:

- the straightforward way the characters are presented, how

...more

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Aug 29, 2017 Celeste rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics-i-ve-read, mystery

I have a confession to make. I’ve never read an Agatha Christie novel. Why is this a big deal, you might be asking yourself if you have also never jumped on the Christie train. (Train? Get it? Because this entire book takes place on a train! *laughs forever at own joke*) Well, I’m a life-long bookworm, with a degree in English literature to prove it. And Agatha Christie is the unarguable queen of an entire genre. Did you know that Agatha Christie is the best selling novelist of all time, second I have a confession to make. I’ve never read an Agatha Christie novel. Why is this a big deal, you might be asking yourself if you have also never jumped on the Christie train. (Train? Get it? Because this entire book takes place on a train! *laughs forever at own joke*) Well, I’m a life-long bookworm, with a degree in English literature to prove it. And Agatha Christie is the unarguable queen of an entire genre. Did you know that Agatha Christie is the best selling novelist of all time, second only to the Bible and the works of Shakespeare in terms of sales? Because I sure didn’t. I knew that she was a big deal in the mystery genre, but bestselling novelist of all time? I was unaware. But I know now, and have now taken my first step to rectifying my oversight.

So the question is: what did I think of my first Christie novel? I loved it! This was the tenth installment of the Hercule Poirot series, but thankfully it was a perfect place to start. From what I’ve gathered, each Poirot novel stands perfectly well on its own, and that was definitely the case with Murder on the Orient Express. This little novel was published in 1934, and it has aged incredibly well. Even though the book was published 83 years ago, the language was incredibly simple and easy to sink into, and the plot was super engaging. I loved that all of the suspects were confined to the train with Poirot and the victim, and that Poirot had no outside assistance to aid his crime solving. Also, that ending was a complete surprise to me. I usually manage to guess plot twists and endings, especially in murder mysteries. I didn’t guess this ending, and it was refreshing.

The characters were wonderfully varied. Some of them tended to almost be caricatures, but always for a reason. The star of the book, Poirot, actually took a back seat to the other characters, but this was very purposeful. Poirot is a more laid-back and introverted person than many famous detectives, which works incredibly well for his line of work. When people don’t notice you, it’s easy to observe things they’d prefer remained hidden.

Sherlock Holmes has always been my favorite detective. I’ve read every single novel and short story Conan Doyle crafted about the famous man with the mind palace, and I am completely addicted to the BBC show starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Seriously, I’ve watched each episode at least half a dozen times. Not that there are many episodes to watch… *sobs in a corner* That being said, I already love Hercule Poirot. I don’t know that he’ll ever quite equal Sherlock, but I fully intend to give him every opportunity. I will be reading more Christie novels, and soon.

For more of my reviews, as well as my own fiction and thoughts on life, check out my blog, Celestial Musings. ...more

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Nov 08, 2017 Annemarie rated it really liked it

Shelves: favorites, read-in-german

Actual rating: 4.5 🌟

This was my first, but definitely not my last, Agatha Christie book, and I truly loved it!
It was a wonderful mystery that kept me guessing the whole way through.
I really liked the structure of the novel. Each character getting their own chapter was a genius idea, it really helped me to get to know them. All of them seemed realistic and well developed, which was surprising, considering the amount of people and the rather short length of the book.
The writing style was very atmo ...more

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Aug 11, 2017 Alejandro rated it it was amazing

Shelves: novel, detective, politics

All aboard to the mystery!

WILL THE REAL POIROT PLEASE STAND UP?

My visual memory of the famous fictional detective Hercule Poirot is the actor Sir Peter Ustinov, yes, I know, he doesn’t look like he’s described on books (and even according Agatha Christie’s daughter, he doesn’t behave on screen like the book detective) but when I was a kid, I’ve never read any Agatha Christie’s novels, meanwhile I have watched several of the theatrical films and TV movies made by Peter Ustinov and along w ...more

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May 11, 2018 Justin rated it really liked it

You know what I love about this book, Goodreads? You wanna know what makes this book just a downright pleasure to read? It’s just a good old-fashioned murder mystery with no frills, no multiple timelines, not big plot twists, no no no no. It’s not that at all.

It’s just a short little mystery with an overwhelming cast of characters to keep track of, and, gee whiz, are these guys eccentric. And they all could be a suspect.

So here’s how the book breaks down:

There is a murder on the Orient Express ...more

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Aug 28, 2018 Paula Terrado rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Okay, how do i start this? Is it possible to be shocked and not shocked at the same time? I mean, that should be a normal reaction for reading this book. Honestly, i don’t know how i’ll make a good review for this but i’ll give it a try.

First of all, i’d like to say that this is one of the best books i’ve ever read in my 23 years of living. I don’t think i’m exaggerating though.

Second, the way the story was written, the details, the clues — it’s like you, as the reader, are the one solving the c ...more

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Nov 16, 2020 Greta rated it really liked it

Shelves: best-reviews, fiction

Agatha Christie’s most famous murder mystery.

The famous detective Hercule Poirot finds himself trapped on the luxurious Orient Express, that was stopped by a snowdrift in the middle of the night. The next morning a passenger called Ratchett is found dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. The murderer still has to be on the train, but who is it?

Hercule Poirot

Hercule Poirot is the mastermind detective of this novel

Hercule Poirot has become one of the most ...more

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Oct 16, 2016 Rinda Elwakil rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: pdf_ebub_tablet

قاعدة ما قبل قراءة الروايات البوليسية رقم ١ :
لا تقرأ الريفيوهات
لا تقرأ الريفيوهات
لا تقرأ الريفيوهات و إلا ستندم -_-

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Jul 16, 2018 Kemper rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018, genre-classics, crime-mystery, detectives, whodunit

All aboard the murder train!

A long time ago when I was in high school and dinosaurs still roamed the earth I read a whole bunch of Agatha Christie novels. The weird thing is that I was never that big of a fan of hers. I was getting into mystery novels, she’s one of the best known writer in the genre, and the local library had a whole bunch of her stuff. At some point I realized that I prefer my murders to be a bit less civilized, and I moved onto other styles of the genre without giving much tho All aboard the murder train!

A long time ago when I was in high school and dinosaurs still roamed the earth I read a whole bunch of Agatha Christie novels. The weird thing is that I was never that big of a fan of hers. I was getting into mystery novels, she’s one of the best known writer in the genre, and the local library had a whole bunch of her stuff. At some point I realized that I prefer my murders to be a bit less civilized, and I moved onto other styles of the genre without giving much thought to ole Agatha after that. However, I recently watched the latest film adaptation done by Kenneth Branagh and even though it’s just OK that gave me the urge to check this out again. And it reminded me that classics are very often classics for a reason.

Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is on-board the Orient Express along with an assortment of travelers and their servants. An American named Ratchett is stabbed to death in his compartment just as the train is stopped by snow. Circumstances make it seem that whoever killed Ratchett is probably still among the people in the first class car that night. As Poirot sorts through the evidence and questions suspects he finds contradictions that make solving the murder a very complex task.

One of my reasons I stopped reading Christie was the impression that she didn’t play fair in her whodunits. (And since I’m going off very old memories I could certainly be wrong about that.) By that I mean that it seemed like the solution depended on some kind of in-story background information that a reader couldn’t possible know. There’s a touch of that here with a big piece of the plot involving a link to a famous fictional crime. (Although it’s obviously inspired by a famous real one.)

Yet, that’s set up as background info that’s pretty much given to us as soon as it’s revealed so it doesn’t feel like Christie was just cheating by springing the unknown on a reader as a way to hide the killer. In fact, since the murder took place in a confined space where people were coming and going that everything you need to know is given to us as Poirot builds a timeline and uses a diagram to place the location of people in the train car at various times. One of the great things about this book is the way that Christie uses the logistics of this to actually give you all the clues while also obscuring the solution in the details.

I’d also had the idea that her writing was very dry and boring. There’s actually a lot of touches of humor that I missed as a young idiot. Even though there’s a lot of dated things in terms of race, sex, and class it also felt like she was often making some sly commentary on attitudes of her time. For example, the guy working for the railroad is positive that an Italian passenger must have killed Ratchett since it was done with a knife, and while Poirot often seems to agree with him that circumstances make him a good suspect you also note that he begins outright mocking the guy for sticking with this theory as things evolve.

I also very much liked the ending which again goes against my idea that these were very proper books that believe in strict law and order when the resolution here is a lot more interesting and complex.

I may have to try some more of these books to see exactly what else I was wrong about. ...more

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Jul 01, 2019 Joey Woolfardis rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019, bookshelf, ce20, champion, feminine, law-defying, own, sterling

“But I know human nature, my friend, and I tell you that, suddenly confronted with the possibility of being tried for murder, the most innocent person will lose his head and do the most absurd things.”

This was my first ever read of an Agatha Christie novel and my very first formal introduction to Hercule Poirot, the indomitable Belgian detective. It is perhaps the most famous of the Poirot novels and, being English and being a voracious bookwyrm, I was acutely aware of this book. My mind has not “But I know human nature, my friend, and I tell you that, suddenly confronted with the possibility of being tried for murder, the most innocent person will lose his head and do the most absurd things.”

This was my first ever read of an Agatha Christie novel and my very first formal introduction to Hercule Poirot, the indomitable Belgian detective. It is perhaps the most famous of the Poirot novels and, being English and being a voracious bookwyrm, I was acutely aware of this book. My mind has nothing but David Suchet when anyone mentions Poirot and there is no one that comes to mind quicker when one mentions Agatha Christie. The two are intertwined so perfectly the one could not exist without the other.

However, despite the fame and fortune of the title, I had no idea of any spoilers. I knew the plot, vaguely: a train-the Orient Express no less-trapped in snow; a murder and several suspects; no police, only the egg-shaped cerebral deductions from a peculiar man. I find it quite something that I've never come across the ending to this novel, but then, I have not seen the film and despite my love of David Suchet I have never sat myself down and watched it. Other things seemed more important.

“Hercule Poirot addressed himself to the task of keeping his moustaches out of the soup.”

The plot itself is by this century tired and old, yet Christie's writing keeps it fresh and wonderful. There is no great ingenuity here, no advanced plot devices and no wiley tropes to bulk out the text. It is a pure and simple mystery crime novel that is executed to the highest degree. There are no pointless tangents, nor indeed do we get in to the mind of the killers. We are simply thrust in to the very capable hands of Hercule Poirot, and my did he delight me.

“He went out of the compartment and returned a few moments later with a small spirit stove and a pair of curling tongs. "I use them for the moustaches," he said, referring to the latter.”

It was this quote that endeared me toward Poirot more than anything else. The beginning of the novel did not hold my attention: a murdered American on a stranded train? It is not completely compelling. I put the book down for two weeks whilst my boyfriend visited to gain relief from the 40 degree heat of France. I didn't pick it up again for another couple of weeks for no particular reason.

Happily, and as you can tell, I did. The beginning was nothing particular, but the ending was stellar. Fondly, I guessed the killer correctly, but only after two previous guesses had been dismissed: this was just over half way when the links were just beginning to join. Christie has a wonderful way of wrapping you around her little teases, gently pushing you in to Poirot's mind as he too goes through the possiblities that you are also pondering.

The ending gave me a satisfaction I did not know I needed. The ending of a book is not always what I strive to enjoy: I do not mind spoilers and, though I never actively seek them out, there is no twitter outrage from me about them. The journey is the key to any novel or story, if it were not then we would all be content with the beginning and ending only. ...more

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Dec 04, 2017 Araz Goran rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: أدب, اجاثا-كريستي, روايات, أدب-الجريمة

لم يسبق لي أن قرأت رواية لأجاثا بمثل هذا الغموض والتعقيد والضياع بين شخصيات الرواية التي تدور احداثها هذه المرة في قطار متوقف في وسط الثلوج , الكل مشتبه به والكل برئ في هذه القضية.. في النهاية عليك أن تضع كل الاحتمالات الممكنة ليس في معرفة القاتل فحسب بل أيضاً في تلقي الصدمة التي سيوقعها بك الأخ بوارو ومن ورائها العمة أجاثا , رواية مذهلة وصادمة وماكرة, أستمتعت بها كثيراً..

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About Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie

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Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.

Agatha Christie is the best-selling author of all time. She wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in Romance. Her books have sold over a billion copies in the English language and a billion in t ...more

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Hercule Poirot (1 - 10 of 47 books)

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The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Hercule Poirot, #1)

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