The Mysterious Affair at Styles - Hardcover

Christie, Agatha

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 194084925X ISBN 13: 9781940849256

Publisher: Ancient Wisdom Publications, 2014

Synopsis

The Mysterious Affair at Styles was Christie's first published novel, introducing Hercule Poirot, Inspector (later, Chief Inspector) Japp, and Arthur Hastings. Poirot, a Belgian refugee of the Great War, is settling in England near the home of Emily Inglethorp, who helped him to his new life. His friend Hastings arrives as a guest at her home. When the woman is killed, Poirot uses his detective skills to solve the mystery. This is also the setting of Curtain, Poirot's last case. The book includes maps of the house, the murder scene, and a drawing of a fragment of a will.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Here is the famous first case that launched the legendary career of Hercule Poirot and his ingenious creator Agatha Christie, now the most popular mystery writer of all time, as well as the world's best-selling author (over two billion copies of her books are in print). With The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Agatha Christie's cerebral and eccentric Belgian detective steps out of retirement and into the limelight of a classic mystery.

Styles Court is a magnificent English manor house owned by a rich, strong-willed matron who, to the dismay of her stepson, has recently married a fortune hunter. The scene is set for death by violence. The murder of the mistress of Styles Court is so baffling, so cleverly-plotted, that it challenges even the skill of Hercule Poirot, notwithstanding the legions of tiny gray cells that take residence in his ever-so-fertile mind.

From the Inside Flap:

Who poisoned the wealthy Emily Inglethorpe, and how did the murderer penetrate and escape from her locked bedroom? Sus-pects abound in the quaint village of Styles St. Mary--from the heiress's fawning new husband to her two stepsons, her volatile housekeeper, and a pretty nurse who works in a hospital dispensary. Making his unforgettable debut, the brilliant Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is on the case.
"The key to the success of this style of detective novel," writes Elizabeth George in her Introduction, "lies in how the author deals with both the clues and the red herrings, and it has to be said that no one bettered Agatha Christie at this game."

About this edition

• Publisher: Ancient Wisdom Publications
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 194084925X
• ISBN 13: 9781940849256
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 150