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Three Act Tragedy (Hercule Poirot, #11)

Agatha Christie

Start date: January 1, 2019

Finish date: January 31, 2019

Discussion: Archive: Poirot Buddy Reads

Why we're reading this: The latest in our series of Poirot buddy reads.
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Archive: Poirot Buddy Reads

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What Members Thought

Apr 23, 2019 Kavita rated it liked it

Shelves: uk, mystery, golden-age-mystery

Mr Satterthwaite, Sir Charles Cartwright, Egg Gore, and Hercules Poirot team up to solve a baffling murder. At Sir Charles' dinner party a seemingly harmless vicar dies. Everyone (including Poirot) dismisses it as a medical issue at the time. But when their friend Dr Bartholomew Strange dies in a similar fashion at a similar party, the story really begins. Who could possibly have murdered Strange? An even more impossible question was who could possibly have murdered the vicar?

I must say I loved ...more

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Jan 09, 2022 Jazzy Lemon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, english-authors

I suspected him all along, but there was something quite familiar about this, and I suspect I've read it before! ...more

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Sep 26, 2016 Christine PNW rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: vintage-women

A good one!

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Mar 24, 2021 Bev rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: british-mystery, mystery, mount-tbr-2021, vintage-mystery, bought-2017

Who would want to poison a harmless, truly nice vicar? That's the problem before us in Christie's three-act murder mystery. In the first act, thirteen guests, including celebrated detective Hercule Poirot, are gathered for dinner party at the home of retired actor Sir Charles Cartwright. It is a fairly eclectic group from our famous detective to a rather plain playwright; from a beautiful dress designer to a genteel lady in reduced circumstances; from the lady's daughter and her left-leaning you Who would want to poison a harmless, truly nice vicar? That's the problem before us in Christie's three-act murder mystery. In the first act, thirteen guests, including celebrated detective Hercule Poirot, are gathered for dinner party at the home of retired actor Sir Charles Cartwright. It is a fairly eclectic group from our famous detective to a rather plain playwright; from a beautiful dress designer to a genteel lady in reduced circumstances; from the lady's daughter and her left-leaning young man (or is he hers?); from a famous nerve doctor to a racing gentleman; and from the vicar and his wife to Mr. Sattherwaite--observer of the human condition. When the Reverend Stephen Babbington succumbs to the temptation of a cocktail, a beverage he is unaccustomed to, Mr. Sattherwaite is amused to see him wrinkle up his nose at the first taste and then bravely go on to sip it. But no one is amused when the vicar chokes, goes into convulsions, and dies. There is a bit of unease at the sudden death--and Sir Charles and "Egg" (Hermione) Lytton-Gore (daughter of the impoverished lady) are sure that murder has been done. But an analysis of the vicar's glass has negative results. Even Poirot thinks they are making a drama of nothing.

But then the second act takes place and Dr. Bartholomew Strange (the nerve specialist) holds a dinner party with a similar guest list to that of Cartwright's. It also ends in death. This time it is the host, Dr. Strange himself, who dies after drinking an alcoholic beverage. Again, there is nothing in the glass--but this time a post mortem is performed and it is established that the doctor died from nicotine poisoning. Our amateur sleuths, Sir Charles and Egg--with Mr. Satthewaite in tow, begin detecting in earnest. They reason that the doctor must also have suspected foul play in the vicar's death and, when he found something out (but what?), he was put out of the way too. Sattherwaite makes sure Poirot is aware of the second death and soon the team is gathering clues and working out theories. But only Poirot will be ready to reveal the killer when the curtain raises on the third and final act.

I don't think I've ever read this particular Agatha Christie. I didn't own a copy until 2014 and I missed logging it if I read it from the library back when I first discovered her mysteries. But I had seen the adaptation with Peter Ustinov as Poirot and I did remember the basic plot (though not the motive). As far as I recall, there weren't many changes in the filmed version--other than location and the fact that Poirot shows up more frequently a lot sooner than in the novel. There's a good portion of the book where you wouldn't know that it was a Poirot novel at all. I spent my time reading waiting for Poirot to really get involved and for our detectives to realize who was really behind it. Also--looking for clues that would tell them (and the reader) who really did it if they were paying proper attention. And I think I caught them all--well done, me. It made for an interestingly different reading experience. That's not to say I haven't reread Christie before and gone in knowing who did it. I have. But this time I was reading for the first time and still knew who did it. Not one of my all-time favorites, but a solid performance from one of our queens of crime. ★★★ and 1/2 (actually)

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

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Jan 18, 2017 Damaskcat rated it it was amazing

Thirteen guests at dinner is said to be unlucky and this dinner certainly turns out to be unlucky for the Reverend Stephen Babington as he chokes on a cocktail and dies in front of the other guests. Hercule Poirot predicts there will be no poison found in the dregs in the glass. At first the death is attributed to natural causes but when another death happens in similar circumstances in a different location suspicions are aroused.

Poirot and Mr Satterthwaite - who is more normally encountered wit ...more

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Jan 01, 2019 Frances rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-series

I'm continuing my read through of the Poirot novels in order, and I think this is a new one for me. Once again, I am completely fooled, and I continue to marvel at Christie's plotting and atmosphere. ...more

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Oct 28, 2021 Sarah G rated it really liked it

Lovely twists and turns, plus a girl called Egg. What’s not to like?

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May 16, 2018 Becky rated it really liked it

a classic and delicious Poirot!

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Nov 29, 2017 Pranit rated it liked it

Shelves: hercule-poirot

Although a story with huge potential, this was not upto the standard of the queen of crime. The story seemed stretched too much and the detective’s involvement came too late in the story while the other sleuths were gathering clues mainly for the reader rather than to add to the flow of the story.

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Aug 09, 2013 Amy rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-as-an-audiobook

If any other author pulled random twists out with no foreshadowing in the last chapter of the book I would be mad but since it's Agatha I'll forgive it. ...more

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