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Peril at End House (Hercule Poirot, #8)

Agatha Christie

Start date: September 1, 2018

Finish date: September 30, 2018

Discussion: Archive: Poirot Buddy Reads

Why we're reading this: The latest in our monthly Poirot buddy reads.
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What Members Thought

Feb 09, 2016 Kavita rated it it was amazing

Shelves: uk, mystery, golden-age-mystery

This one was very enjoyable. Poirot is on holiday (poor chap - never took a holiday that didn't turn into work for him!) and he comes across a vivacious young girl who has several attempts made on her life. Poirot steps into the scene but someone gets murdered by mistake. Eventually, the truth comes to light but not before a number of red herrings. The investigation gets more confused because there is a forgery as well.

The plot was great and so were the characters. But what I really enjoyed was ...more

52 likes · Like · see review

Aug 29, 2018 Susan rated it liked it · review of another edition

Poirot and Hastings are on holiday in Cornwall. When Poirot stumbles, he is helped by his old friend and a young lady, ‘Nick’ Buckley. The three sit in the garden and, when Nick brushes away a wasp, it appears that the wasp was really a bullet, which has whizzed past her head. Nick admits that she has had several near misses from death and Poirot is convinced that somebody is trying to kill her.

What follows involves Poirot attempting to keep Nick safe, while there are several other attempts on ...more

11 likes · Like · see review

Jul 13, 2013 Lady Clementina ffinch-ffarowmore rated it liked it

The 8th Poirot mystery, this is again one I picked up randomly from my shelves for a re-read. This one is also like one of favourite Marple titles (though I won’t say which), but also a fairly good read in itself. In this one Poirot is on holiday with his Watson, Captain Hastings at St Loo on the Cornish coast, so of course the story is told in Hastings’ voice. Poirot insists that he does not wish to work anymore (or at least until he decides) even refusing a request from the Home Secretary. At The 8th Poirot mystery, this is again one I picked up randomly from my shelves for a re-read. This one is also like one of favourite Marple titles (though I won’t say which), but also a fairly good read in itself. In this one Poirot is on holiday with his Watson, Captain Hastings at St Loo on the Cornish coast, so of course the story is told in Hastings’ voice. Poirot insists that he does not wish to work anymore (or at least until he decides) even refusing a request from the Home Secretary. At the hotel they’re staying at, they run into a pretty young woman Nick Buckley, who is shot at while in Poirot’s presence. They later learn that Nick has already missed three ‘accidents’ which may well have taken her life including failed car brakes and narrowly missing a boulder. These cause Poirot to change his mind and take up the case. Nick initially is inclined to laugh these incidents off for who would want to kill her. She belongs to an established old family but lives in a rather run-down family home, End House, which certainly has an eerie feel about it, but doesn’t appear to have any enemies. But at Poirot’s insistence, she begins to change her mind and take some precautions. Then another unexpected attempt is made, and someone else dies instead. Poirot is devastated and redoubles his efforts to protect Nick and get to the bottom of this mystery, where even the possible motive seems difficult to identify.

This mystery has Poirot himself rather baffled for quite a while for even after he has taken charge and taken every possible precaution, the attempts on Nick’s life don’t stop. Nick’s circle of friends is far from straightforward, yet it doesn’t seem that any of them has a strong enough motive, or do they? But there are also various others from a rather strange housekeeper (not quite a Mrs Danvers, though), to overfriendly Australian neighbours, the Crofts, and Nick’s own cousin who stands to inherit End House after her. Poirot does reach the solution eventually of course, and it isn’t an answer one sees coming at all (unless you’re read it before) and one that Poirot also perhaps didn’t see for a bit. But even that isn’t easily reached, for there are other little side plots that might throw one off course, or present little puzzles of their own to solve. This is a good read, and an enjoyable mystery but overall, I like the Marple version of this mystery much better, since both characters and side plots in that one, I felt, came across better (and many were also more likeable). 3.5 stars! ...more

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Oct 04, 2015 Ellen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: mystery-sleuth, christie, poiror

Peril at End House by Agatha Christie.

Hercule Poiror and Captain Hastings (ret,) are on vacation and enjoying their leisure. That is until Mademoiselle Buckley appears on the scene and then situation takes a dramatic turn.

This story kept me fascinated from the beginning. A.G. left nothing to the imagination investigating every possible suspect as he turned over a new clue by the hour. The ending exploded with an exciting twist of events.

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Nov 19, 2020 Bev rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: british-mystery, mount-tbr-2020, mystery, vintage-mystery, bought-2010

Hercule Poirot and Captain Hastings are having a holiday on the Cornish coast. Poirot is, he insists, retired. He has, in fact, turned down an appeal from the Home Secretary which has just arrived by post. But then Miss Nick Buckley comes into the garden below where he and Hastings have been sitting on a terrace. They invite her to join them and in the course of conversation, she reveals something alarming:

I've had three escapes from sudden death in as many days so I must lead a charmed life.

The Hercule Poirot and Captain Hastings are having a holiday on the Cornish coast. Poirot is, he insists, retired. He has, in fact, turned down an appeal from the Home Secretary which has just arrived by post. But then Miss Nick Buckley comes into the garden below where he and Hastings have been sitting on a terrace. They invite her to join them and in the course of conversation, she reveals something alarming:

I've had three escapes from sudden death in as many days so I must lead a charmed life.

They aren't quite sure what to make of her story of a heavy portrait crashing from the wall above her bed, of a boulder plunging into the sea where she was swimming, and the curious failure of car brakes. Then there is a buzzing as if from a wasp and when her friends call her to join them for drinks and she leaves her hat behind Poirot finds evidence of a fourth attempt. A bullet hole in the hat and a bullet in the garden.

Poirot quickly leaves retirement behind and determines to protect Nick from whomever may be plotting against her. He meets her friends and those in her household at End House (her family home) and makes a list of suspects and their possible motives. But although he is certain that he has given Nick all the protection she needs, death still visits the lonely house on the cliff. But it isn't Nick who dies--her cousin Maggie is shot while wearing Nick's red shawl--and Poirot is even more determined to catch the murderer who would dare to kill right under the detective's nose.

Not my all-time favorite Christie, but still very good. I enjoy the different ways that Christie has used the mistaken identity theme over the course of her books. I had the right culprit early on, but I couldn't figure out the motive. Then I got distracted by Christie's red herrings (as she intended) and decided I must have been wrong. So...once again, she fools me. This is why she gets ★★★ and a half. What keeps this from a higher rating is the characters. There just weren't any vivid characters in this particular outing--Poirot and Hastings didn't even seem to be at the top of their game (from my point of view). Generally speaking in Dame Agatha's work there is at least one memorable character (other than our detective) and sometimes there's a whole train full of interesting people. But even Nick, who is at the center of the action, doesn't leave a great impression. I read nearly all of Christie's mysteries 30-40 years ago and despite my memory being more and more sieve-like (I rarely remember whodunit except for the biggies--like that train mystery), I can usually name a character from the book. I definitely would not have come up with any of the characters' names for Peril...and I'd bet good money that it won't be long before they fall out of my head again.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Sep 16, 2020 Lemar rated it really liked it · review of another edition

That clever Frenchman, I mean Belgian!
Christie has a dry wit, I liked this depiction of Poirot, forced to brag a little when the loyal Hastings does not take the hint;
“One should not sing one’s own praises” says Poirot. “One should not keep a dog and have to bark oneself” agreed -.

4 likes · Like · see review

Mar 12, 2021 Grisette rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-kind-of-detective-thriller

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
3.7 stars

⏳ [Re-read project #7 of 2023, 1st proper review, rating maintained]

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🔹️ Number of death/s: 1
🔹️ Motive for the crime: Money
🔹️ Method of crime: Gunshot
🔹️ Main location: St. Loo, England
🔹️ Notable element: This book references one of the most recurrent theme used by AC - that of the criminal playing the victim and asking for Poirot's help... guess who outsmarts who at the end 😅?
🔹️ Book type: Novel, H. Poirot
🔹️ Reference to SH: Mention of detectives in disguises 😆!

=========

3.7 stars

⏳ [Re-read project #7 of 2023, 1st proper review, rating maintained]

==================

🔹️ Number of death/s: 1
🔹️ Motive for the crime: Money
🔹️ Method of crime: Gunshot
🔹️ Main location: St. Loo, England
🔹️ Notable element: This book references one of the most recurrent theme used by AC - that of the criminal playing the victim and asking for Poirot's help... guess who outsmarts who at the end 😅?
🔹️ Book type: Novel, H. Poirot
🔹️ Reference to SH: Mention of detectives in disguises 😆!

==================

When I first read this book, I thought that the plot was both gripping and with a nice, swift pace. On this second read, my opinion has not changed. So, I concentrated on the clues and with the benefit of hindsight, enjoyed to see where each time little Nick played up the great Poirot! Of course, with Poirot's obsession with order and method, he was bound to want answers to his nagging questions and as clever as Nick was, she was no match for Poirot! As a bonus, a book with Hastings is always a treat.

To my mind, the force of the plot was the quick wits of Nick to orchestrate her plans in a matter of days - a really magnificent actress! In my first read, I had imagined a sort of jealousy of being superseded by her plain cousin, but this second read showed Nick in a much colder light: envious of others yes, but above all, obsessed to get everything for her beloved house. She was indeed a very ruthless killer.

And on this second read, I was surprised to find key similar themes between this book and Lord Edgware Dies. There is of course the theme of the criminal unwisely dragging Poirot into his case, but more than that, there is the use of letters, cleverly misused to convey a false version of events that is convenient to the criminal's objectives. When I checked and found that Lord Edgware Dies was published a year after, I was even more surprised. Of course, AC was able to twist these elements into different directions.

There are some tiny subplots which however felt superfluous, most prominently that bit about Frederica's husband final outburst (missed gunshot and suicide), and Ellen the housekeeper's behaviour.

#readchristie2023, Gunshot ...more

2 likes · Like · see review