From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

Curtain (Hercule Poirot, #44)

Agatha Christie

Start date: January 1, 2021

Finish date: January 31, 2021

Discussion: Archive: Poirot Buddy Reads

Why we're reading this: The very last in our long series of Poirot buddy reads.
[close] The very last in our long series of Poirot buddy reads.

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Archive: Poirot Buddy Reads

* Reading Order for the Unofficial Poirot Buddy Reads
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last updated Dec 27, 2020 08:20AM

Poirot Buddy Read 40: SPOILER THREAD Curtain
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last updated Feb 05, 2021 06:12PM

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What Members Thought

Dec 30, 2017 Teri-K rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery-golden-age

I first read this many years ago, before I became a Poirot fan. (Thank you David Suchet.) At that time I found Poirot affected and boring and Hastings a bumbling idiot, though I loved Miss Marple and enjoyed Tommy and Tuppence, as well as her other books. I remember not liking this book much.

This time around I have a greater appreciation for Poirot and Hastings. Though this book could really be called Hasting's last case, as Poirot plays only a very small part. I enjoyed getting to know more ab I first read this many years ago, before I became a Poirot fan. (Thank you David Suchet.) At that time I found Poirot affected and boring and Hastings a bumbling idiot, though I loved Miss Marple and enjoyed Tommy and Tuppence, as well as her other books. I remember not liking this book much.

This time around I have a greater appreciation for Poirot and Hastings. Though this book could really be called Hasting's last case, as Poirot plays only a very small part. I enjoyed getting to know more about Hastings and his family and watching him cope with the world that is changing quickly around him. If Poirot has only a few scenes, his presence is still throughout the book as he's the one who sets everything in motion.

Here we come to one of the points that I really enjoyed. This book doesn't open with a particular crime, instead Poirot is concerned with several past crimes, all of which have been solved by confessions or convictions. But he is not happy. Instead he believes that these unrelated cases were all perpetrated by "X", who has entirely escaped notice. And Poirot believes "X" will strike again. So he calls Hastings back to Chimneys, where their first case together occured, and uses him as his eyes and ears.

Unfortunately Hastings isn't a deep thinker and he jumps to many wrong conclusions. Most of the book consists of him bumbling around suspecting the wrong people and generally making a mess of things. However, Christie is fair to her reader and everything we need to know to solve the crimes is in the story; you just have to remember not to believe everything Hastings thinks.

I felt that Poirot went too far in not explaining the heart of the case to Hastings. It was totally unreasonable of him to expect his friend could figure it out on his own, and Poirot knew that but as the reader had to be kept in the dark so did Hastings. Still, I wished Christie had come up with stronger motivation for that part. (Hastings own life would have been at risk, perhaps?) I had to rate the book down for this, as it's was very annoying for me that Poirot refused to explain things to his friend. That part just didn't really work.

Also the book felt modern to me - discussions of divorce and such, while I prefer the books that are firmly set in pre-modern times. So be prepared for that. Since Christie wrote this during WWII and set it aside for publication after her death it's a tribute to her writing skills.

I listened to Hugh Fraser narrate this, (he played Hastings opposite Suchet), and enjoyed it very much. I like his narrations or Suchet's for these books, they are excellent actors and convey the stories well. ...more

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Jan 07, 2021 Susan in NC rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: christie, want-to-reread

4.5 stars, very well done, but inevitably sad because of the death of Poirot. The brilliant detective, aged and infirm, calls his old friend Hastings back to Styles, the scene of their first case, to hunt a murderer one last time.

Poirot warns Hastings that “X” is the perfect murderer, a sadist who wheedles their way into a troubled person’s life, seeming a sympathetic listener, but actually planting seeds of misery, pushing the person to finally kill. X never dirties his or her own hands, which 4.5 stars, very well done, but inevitably sad because of the death of Poirot. The brilliant detective, aged and infirm, calls his old friend Hastings back to Styles, the scene of their first case, to hunt a murderer one last time.

Poirot warns Hastings that “X” is the perfect murderer, a sadist who wheedles their way into a troubled person’s life, seeming a sympathetic listener, but actually planting seeds of misery, pushing the person to finally kill. X never dirties his or her own hands, which is what makes them so dangerous- X has succeeded many times, and others have gone to the gallows for the murders. X means to strike again, at Styles - now a boarding house run by an old India hand and his shrewish wife.

The house is currently full of guests, with multiple mini-dramas playing out - involving, among others, Hastings’ adult daughter, Judith- and X is among them. Poirot won’t reveal X’s identity to Hastings, as he is afraid his “beautiful nature” and open face will have him gawking at the person! As Poirot is wheelchair-bound, he needs Hastings to be his eyes and ears among the guests, reporting all that is happening among them. X will look for a vulnerable person to prey on...

An interesting premise, and Christie gives us an oppressive, expectant atmosphere of decay, conflict, and melancholy. Styles is no longer a grand estate, the world has changed, Poirot is dying, Hastings is sad about his old friend, the recent loss of his beloved wife, and concerned about his daughter. He loves her, doesn’t understand her, but still wants to protect her from bad choices. Poirot gets frustrated at his inability to act and investigate, and lashes out in anger at Hastings a few times - also a sad change from previous mysteries. The ending is sad, and I remember being shocked when I first read it years ago, but it was another clever Christie twist, which would probably go smack most first-time readers!

I’m glad I reread this one after so many years, but I doubt I’ll read it again in a hurry. But it was a fitting end to reading and rereading all the Poirot novels with the Reading the Detectives group over the last couple years! ...more

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