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    The Mysterious Affair at Styles
    The Mysterious Affair at Styles
    The Mysterious Affair at Styles
    Audiobook6 hours

    The Mysterious Affair at Styles

    Written by Agatha Christie

    Narrated by B. J. Harrison

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Tragedy strikes at the estate at Styles. The old woman dies from what appears to be strychnine poisoning. The funny little Belgian, Hercule Poirot is called in to investigate, though he appears to disregard every bit of damaging evidence. Has the great detective lost his touch?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherB.J. Harrison
    Release dateJan 1, 2010
    ISBN9781937091125
    Author

    Agatha Christie

    Agatha Christie is known throughout the world as the Queen of Crime. Her books have sold over a billion copies in English with another billion in over 70 foreign languages. She is the most widely published author of all time and in any language, outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. She is the author of 80 crime novels and short story collections, 20 plays, and six novels written under the name of Mary Westmacott.

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    Reviews for The Mysterious Affair at Styles

    4/5

    2,734 ratings131 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Another of the great early Christie offerings.
    • 4/5
      Normally I love the ease of Christie's thrillers. This, however, was very long-winded. Somehow missing a fast-paced tension. Although I'm a fan of Poirot's little gray cells and I love his charming Belgian way to solve a murder mystery, he convinced me not in this book.
    • 3/5
      Audio book narrated by Penelope Delaporta3*** / 1.5* narrationThis is Agatha Christie’s debut mystery, in which she introduces the famous Hercule Poirot. It’s a traditional “locked room” mystery.Mrs. Inglethorpe is stricken in the early morning hours with horrific convulsions, clearly the result of strychnine poisoning. But who poisoned her and how was it done. She was alone in her room with all three doors leading into the room bolted from the inside. There is no shortage of suspects: her second husband (a much younger man everyone seems to dislike), her two step sons (who stand to inherit upon her death), her step-daughter-in-law, her young ward (a nurse in the local hospital, specializing in pharmaceutical compounds), even the mysterious doctor who just happens to be passing by, full dressed, at 4:30 a.m. on the morning she is stricken (and who pronounces her dead). And there are plenty of clues – including no less than 3 different supplies of strychnine, a fake beard, a fragment of a will found in the fireplace ashes, a crushed coffee cup, and mysterious crystals left on the tray holding the cocoa. The time frame is during WW I … so there are issues of rationing and espionage to contend with, which makes the story a bit dated. And, it’s also more slowly paced than contemporary mysteries, but you cannot fault Christie’s skill at plotting the set-up. Delaporta’s narration is not very good. Her voice is high (though the narrator of the story is a man), and her efforts at Poirot’s Belgian accent became annoying pretty quickly. But the story itself kept me listening.
    • 2/5
      The narrator's voice for this version of the audiobook is so over-the-top. The accents he uses for the different characters are also inconsistent. I'm much more used to the unassuming narration by Hugh Fraser.
    • 4/5
      Christie's first and it stars Hercule Poirot with narration by Hastings. Poirot hasn't gotten as irritating as he becomes in later novels. If I tell you to "follow the money," I won't be helping you too much - since just about everyone is after the murdered woman's money.
    • 5/5
      I was curious to read Agatha Christie’s first Poirot novel, which was published in 1920. And I was not disappointed. Midway through the book I was surprised to remember that this was one of her first novels… I think Mrs. Christie was born a writer: there is nothing in this book that betrays the novice. She worked as a dispenser in a hospital during WWI, hence, I believe, her knowledge of poisons and the presence of the young nurse’s character in the book. Here you will find the first description of Hercule Poirot, the “little man” with a gigantic intellect and an even larger (if possible!) ego. Inspector James Japp is also first presented to the reader, “a little sharp, dark, ferret-faced man”—physically different from Philip Jackson of the Agatha Christie’s Poirot series, Japp also does not present any of the irritating and almost unintelligible cockney accent the Jackson of the movies sported. Most definitely this is a must read for any Agatha Christie fan.
    • 4/5
      The Mysterious Mr. Quin (1930) (Harley Quin) by Agatha Christie. This character, Harley Quin, is reported to have been Dame Agatha’s favorite as she only had to write about him when she wished to. Quin, along with his puppet, the good Mr. Satterthwaite, set out to right wrongs, solve vexing problems of the heart, and occasionally solve a murder.Satterthwaite is in his sixties, an English gentleman who has no wish for sport or romance or business. He is from that class of people Christie liked to populate her books with, the idle rich who know everyone of importance and in hand, are known to all, and beloved by them in return. He has an interest in people and they seem to trust and open up to this benign older gent. But it is Mr. Quin who is the driving force here. He appears and disappears like a spector, arriving in a time of need, appearing to Mr. Satterthwaite when there is a problem, merely talking with the kind gentleman, asking questions that Mr. Satterthwaite is surprised to find he knows the answers to, and helping the latter solve the puzzle.This book contains an even dozen tales of the pair, each a tie plum of deliciousness ready to be devoted. Help yourself.
    • 4/5
      This is the first of Christie’s books featuring Hercule Poirot. The plot is about a family living in a country home, with guests invited - including the narrator, Hastings.

      A murder happens, and nearly all the household come under suspicion for various good reasons. It’s really a very clever plot; even as the clues gradually unravelled I could not recall who the murderer was, despite having read the book about thirteen years previously, and I was taken in by several red herrings, even while realising that the narrator must inevitably be on the wrong track, one way or another.

      When the perpetrator was finally revealed, it all made sense, and the clues fell into place perfectly; Agatha Christie was brilliant at plotting, filling in all the details and leading her readers astray without ever making them feel cheated.

      While the characterisation isn’t great - it’s my one gripe about this author - I did appreciate good writing and tight plotting, a pleasant contrast to some of the more contemporary books I have been reading recently.
    • 4/5
      A fun read...Poirot is delightful.
    • 5/5
      Timeless. First in Christie's series of Hercule Poirot and loved it.
    • 3/5
      Enjoyed the reading. I had forgot the ending ! !
    • 3/5
      In which a lieutenant, an inspector and a Belgian emigré solve murder during the War.

      Let the flaying begin. Well, actually, don’t. Coming 39th on the Agatha Christie rankings isn’t that bad. "Styles" is a seminal novel in 20th century detective fiction: Christie’s first published work, and Hercule Poirot’s first appearance in literature, as well as the introduction of then-Lieutenant Arthur Hastings, and Inspector Japp. Poirot’s methodology is relayed to us by Hastings in a manner very similar to Watson’s introduction of Sherlock Holmes in "A Study in Scarlet". This novel, I rush to point out, is a damn sight better than Holmes’ introductory one, with Poirot emerging almost fully formed, and the country house of Styles a suitably atmospheric host for murder.

      The David Suchet adaptation – coming very early on before the series had established a darker visual style – is satisfactory, largely due to Suchet’s ability to create a younger, more ‘foreign’ Poirot. But it doesn’t have the raw power of the later adaptations in the series.

      I do have to be honest, though, and confess this is not one of my favourite Poirots. Christie hadn’t yet ironed out her style yet (she had another sixty years of writing to go, so I’ll cut her some slack), and – aside from Poirot – none of the characters really jump off the page. Still, this is an impressively easy read, and all fans should check out where Poirot began his British career (in the same place he would end it sixty years later). If you’re new to the series, keep in mind that Christie will – with experience – challenge her own style in the years to come.

      Poirot ranking: 24th out of 38
    • 4/5
      This is the first so it's not completely awesome, but it was also sooo good!
      Told from Hastings POV so it's a little winy and pompous. I giggled quite a bit at how "old" he kept saying Hercule Poirot was.
    • 4/5
      I’m a lover of crime novels and TV series and had read Christie in the distant past. First time reading her very first Novel and I was both underwhelmed and a little annoyed. Poirot was much as expected but Hastings seemed dull-witted and full of himself. It might have been the era or style of writing, but he was a nuisance. Found it pretty enjoyable until the last part with the reveal when I developed an impatience and slight confusion with the exposition. Will definitely give another Christie book a try and likely Poirot as well. I’d expected more from the professional reviews I’d read.
    • 4/5
      Mrs. Inglethorp has been poisoned, but by whom? The obvious answer seems to be her husband, but she has a house full of potential antagonists and only Hercule Poirot will be able to deduce the perpetrator. I have read many of Poirot's mysteries but this was the first Christie wrote and I had never had occasion to read it. It is a nice introduction to Poirot in typical Christie style with a couple of plot twists as the reader turns pages with eagerness to discover the answer.
    • 2/5
      I just heard a woman who thought this was the best Christie she had read. Gads, I could hardly sit still long enough to read it. I would have been a good short story. I guess I'm getting too old.....
    • 4/5
      Poirot springs fully formed from the head of Christie. Or almost fully formed. The obsession with the mustaches is yet to come.
    • 4/5
      Poirot was an extraordinary-looking little man. He was hardly more than five feet four inches, but carried himself with great dignity. His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side. His moustache was very stiff and military. The neatness of his attire was almost incredible; I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound. Yet this quaint dandified little man who, I was sorry to see, now limped badly, had been in his time one of the most celebrated members of the Belgian police. As a detective, his flair had been extraordinary, and he had achieved triumphs by unravelling some of the most baffling cases of the day.Christie, Agatha. Hercule Poirot 3-Book Collection 1: The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder on the Links, Poirot Investigates (Kindle Locations 308-313). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition.I love Hercule Poirot. Such a great detective. Such a character. There's always a great mystery with lots of twists and turns and red herrings, all of which keep me riveted. The characters are interesting and have complex motives for their actions. That said, not a huge fan of Hastings. He's too busy being on his high horse to be likable. I've read many Agatha Christie books before but not all and not in order so I'm in the process of commencing a reread. Highly recommend to crime lovers.In The Mysterious Affair at Styles we are introduced to our narrator, Captain Arthur Hastings who is on leave from the army and runs into an old friend, John Cavendish. He gets invited to stay with them and not long after his arrival the friend's mother (stepmother actually but referred to mainly as mother) is murdered and it becomes a whodunnit. Poirot is in town so when the doctors imply that Emily Inglethorpe has been poisoned, Hastings suggests Poirot be fetched. Much like Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, all of our information regarding the crime and Hercule Poirot himself is filtered through our narrator, Captain Arthur Hastings. Although Hastings tries to be objective and unbiased, he tends to be influenced by his own ego and supposed prowess as a detective. He's also pretty quick to be offended by perceived slights and is often frustrated by his own lack of understanding. Although Hastings admires Poirot, he seems to fall down a lot in their friendship - often disregarding Poirot's thoughts and theories and feeling joy when it appears he's failed. I came across a man in Belgium once, a very famous detective, and he quite inflamed me. He was a marvellous little fellow. He used to say that all good detective work was a mere matter of method. My system is based on his— though of course I have progressed rather further. He was a funny little man, a great dandy, but wonderfully clever.’Christie, Agatha. Hercule Poirot 3-Book Collection 1: The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder on the Links, Poirot Investigates (Kindle Locations 154-157). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition. Poirot is an understanding friend although can be passionate in both happiness, excitement and anger. He prefers method and order to chaos and gets worked up when he doesn't settle his thoughts first. That said, he is not a particularly action based detective. Although he wouldn't disregard physical evidence (footprints, blood, etc) he also doesn't go out of his way to look for it - preferring to puzzle through the crime in his head and tease out the psychological elements. ‘The true work, it is done from within. The little grey cells— remember always the little grey cells, mon ami.’Christie, Agatha. Hercule Poirot 3-Book Collection 1: The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder on the Links, Poirot Investigates (Kindle Locations 2957-2959). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition. I enjoyed the case, even if Hastings annoys me. Frankly the hint of romance between him and Mary Cavendish disturbed me. Because Mary is married. To his friend. That's he's staying with. Like seriously? I was amused by Poirot manipulating him because he's a bad liar. And this doesn't really have anything to do with...well anything really - it just made me laugh. ‘Oh, you,’ I replied hastily.Christie, Agatha. Hercule Poirot 3-Book Collection 1: The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder on the Links, Poirot Investigates (Kindle Location 586). HarperCollins Publishers. Kindle Edition. Hastings replied hastily. Hehe.
    • 3/5
      Despite Agatha Christie's literary reputation, I've read very few of her works. My mom had a number of books by Agatha Christie and so I have decided to read them before she decides if she's keeping them or not. I had to consult a website to see what order the books came and this one was listed as first in the Hercule Poirot writings--so it is where I started.I did like that clues were presented to the reader (unlike many current mysteries where the perpetrator seemingly comes out of the woodwork with no real clues provided that might make the reader suspect him or her). Much like Hastings, I did not follow Poirot's thinking/deductions. I did suspect from the onset that one character had been drugged or had taken something to help her sleep. So perhaps that is something.
    • 3/5
      I love Hercule Poirot, and I think David Suchet's long-running portrayal of the Belgian detective is perfect.

      The books are harder to read than the TV and movie renditions. Definitely written for an earlier era, with a little too much "tell" instead of "show" in my opinion. I definitely prefer thrillers to pure mysteries.

    • 3/5
      Emily Inglethorp dies in the middle of the night, poisoned by strychnine, and there is no shortage of suspects: her new second husband, her sons from her first marriage, a strangely insomniac doctor, her daughter-in-law, a nurse...This was my first Hercule Poirot mystery, and I had a fun time with it. I enjoyed the twists, and it was a fun, quick read.
    • 3/5
      Read on my e-reader, which is fine and dandy, except there are illustrations that dont necessarily make it into the ebook itself - either the proofreaders dont translate the images over, or they dont render in the reader.

      This is the first time we meet Poirot who has retired from the Belgian police force, and is living in the UK during WWI. His age isnt given, but he seems to be older than the 30 year old "Mr" Hastings, who has been returned home from the front on sick leave.

      Hastings spends his sick leave with old friends, only to find the stepmother remarried to a man no one likes, and subsequently dying several days after Hasting's arrival from apparent poisoning. Poirot is living nearby and is soon investigating. Lots of twists and turns, the usual "calling everyone together" at the end, and Poirot thinking he's giving us all the clues to work it out for ourselves
    • 4/5
      Felt a little cold. I don't feel like I get to know the suspects very well beyond broad strokes.
    • 5/5
      The first Poirot novel.Narrated by Hastings. Very well done full of twist and turns. Just when I thought I knew who did it something new comes out. Hasting gets things wrong of course.
    • 3/5
      Enjoyable puzzle.
    • 4/5

      This was my first Agatha Christie novel and what a wonderful read it was. Ms Christie's firm command of her characters was clear even in this early work. Their hopes, fears and secrets were all plotted carefully and executed magnificently. While the ancillary actors may have not displayed much growth in this novel, it was clear that type of writing was firmly in her skill-set by the subtle method used on her narrator. Enough can't be said about the life she breathes into her characters--no small achievement with them being so damned British.


      If her characters popped, then her twisted plots soared. Every twist aimed toward another possible suspect, sometimes two. She had no fear at insinuating guilt in the most innocent of characters, either. I'll admit freely that she tricked me thoroughly, and by the end I was as surprised as the narrator to learn the truth. What a marvelous thing to find in a work from 1920 that a modern reader can still find himself lost in her world and unable to deduce the secrets before they are finally revealed. It was no matter of author trickery, either. I will say this, the facts were all present. If I were capable of the feats of logic and patience of Hercule Poirot, I too would have solved the crime.


      I will certainly be continuing on with these books!

    • 4/5
      During the Great War Inspector Hercule Poirot, a Belgian refugee, has settled in Essex, near the home of his friend Mrs Emily Inglethorp. But soon she has been killed and he investigates, with the help of his friend Captain Hastings. Though soon Detective Inspector Japp of Scotland Yard arrives on the scene.
      Red herrings abound in this first Poirot story, an enjoyable mystery.
      First published in 1920
    • 5/5
      This account of the Styles Case is penned by Captain Hastings, a war hero invalided home from the Front. He is invited down to Styles Court by his friend John Cavendish to spend some of his convalescent leave. In the village Hastings runs across his old friend Hercules Poirot, an elderly Belgian, once one of the most celebrated members of the Belgian police, but now a refugee assisted by John Cavendish's mother Mrs Inglethorpe. While Hastings is staying at Styles, Mrs Inglethorpe dies in suspicious circumstances, in a seemingly locked room. Through Hastings Poirot becomes involved in the case, and the "little grey cells" are put to work in England for the very first time.Without creating any spoilers I want to list a few points about this book. They are not really in any particular order. 1. Although it was published almost 90 years ago, it is very readable even now. 2. It was actually Agatha Christie's debut novel. When we review such a novel these days, we tend to say something like, "really good for a debut novel." With THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES, her publishers must have thought they'd hit the jackpot! She burst onto the scene, 30 years old, and, by the time STYLES was published, married for 5 or so years, and mother to a baby daughter. 3. This is Poirot's debut novel too, and Inspector Japp who figures in many of the later Poirot novels also makes his first appearance. While Hastings is a relatively young man, only 30 years old, Poirot is quite old, perhaps in his 50s??. Japp for example reveals that he had worked with Poirot on a case in Brussels and Antwerp in 1904, and he was already a celebrated sleuth. 4. This novel is set towards the end of World War One, and Christie makes a number of observations about the privations of life in England during the war, rationing, and shortages, and a style of living that is fast disappearing. The house at Styles for example once had a much larger domestic, household and garden staff, but is now "making do". The Cavendish brothers have inherited money, John lives the life of a country squire, and Lawrence, the younger brother is delicate and follows literary pursuits. Other members of the family are working in "acceptable" occupations, for war time that is, a nurse, the land army, and a companion. 5. The War features not only in Hastings' convalescence, but alos in the fact that one of the characters is a German spy. 6. In STYLES Christie is exploring the scenario of a classic locked room mystery. The room in which Mrs Inglethorpe dies has 3 doors all apparently bolted on the inside. You can almost see her cutting her teeth on a classic crime fiction puzzle. 7. In many ways Hastings is Poirot's foil, just as Watson was for Holmes. 8. In the long run we see the resolution of the threads in a couple of ways that became a pattern in later books: all the characters are called together and Poirot reveals all, and the finer points are explained carefully to Hastings so that he (and we) finally understand how it all fitted together. Throughout the book Poirot jumps to conclusions but keeps them to himself, making us wonder what we've missed. Nor are we always told of the things he finds out. He disappears off to London for a day or two for example, but neither we, nor Hastings, don't always know why he went there, what he did, and what he found out. I don't think Christie always "played fair" with the reader.It's been so long since I originally read THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES that I really had forgotten most of the detail, so it didn't really feel like I was re-reading it.
    • 4/5
      Written on a dare. The very first appearance of Poirot. And, after all these years, still pretty darn good.
    • 3/5
      Ahh, Agatha Christie's debut novel and Hercule Poirot's first appearance! Lieutenant Hastings tells the story of what happened at a country estate near Styles, were a wealthy heiress is poisoned and local authorities are baffled. Hercule Poirot is on the case.Since I've been reading the Poirot books out of order I can see how Christie will grow as an author and how she's fleshed Poirot out as a character in future novels. The mystery is rather convoluted which everyone's favorite eccentric Belgian solves it after making many deductive leaps that are shared in a big reveal at the end. I listened to the audio book narrated by Richard Armitage. It took me a few minutes to adjust to a new voice for Poirot having listened to Kenneth Branagh's narration fairly recently. Once I made the switch, Armitage was a joy to listen to. This is currently available on Audible Plus and free for Audible members.