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Known as the “Queen of Crime” and the decorated Lady of the British Empire, the author Agatha Christie has such excellence due to her diverse literary works in the detective novel genre. She brought to life two of the most famous detectives in the fictional world: Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple.
With over 80 published books, the author has already left her mark on history, both in her mysterious stories, as in the famous book of records, the Guinness Book, becoming the best-selling fiction writer of all time. Christie influenced countless others authors and filmmakers, even 45 years after her death.
But to get to know the Queen of Crime better, let’s discover the 5 best books by Agatha Christie, with thought-provoking stories that hold you down until the last page!
- Murder on the Orient Express (1934)
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As one of Agatha’s best-known books, Murder on the Orient Express surpasses any reader’s expectations of the criminal case proposed by the author. The story takes place, for the most part, on a train bound for England, boarding the great detective Hercule Poirot. However, in the middle of the trip, a blizzard forces the train to stop, and, in the meantime, one of the passengers is brutally murdered. With one of the best detectives aboard, the search for the killer begins as soon as possible, but the list of suspects grows fast as Poirot realizes that the victim had many enemies…
Because of the geniality of the author’s way of conducting the story, the readers are taken to several places trying to solve the case on their own, but their expectations are broken when the final solution comes out, with a shocking and unprecedented outcome. The novel has already won two screen adaptations, one in 1974 and a more recent one in 2017, with Johnny Depp, Willem Dafoe, and Daisy Ridley in the cast.
- Crooked House (1949)
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Admittedly one of the author’s favorite books, Crooked House features a classic detective novel that begins with the murder of the family’s patriarch, Aristide Leonides. Inside the millionaire’s mansion, his entire family becomes a suspect of having committed the crime, including Leonides’ oldest granddaughter, Sophia, who is engaged to the son of one of the inspectors who is handling the case. The patriarch’s mansion is a little tilted, making it crooked, as the name of the book suggests, but with each discovery about the Leonides, it is clear that the family environment itself is “crooked”.
Letting curiosity run its course until the last page of the book, Crooked House does indeed bring with it a shocking story taken from the classic setting of detective novels. It even had an adaptation with the same name in theaters in 2017.
- Death on the Nile (1937)
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The young heiress Linnet Ridgeway goes on her honeymoon with her new husband on a beautiful cruise that navigates the Nile River. However, on the boat, the couple meets several people interested in Ridgeway’s fortune or that have problems with her, including her best friend, who was the former bride of Linnet’s current husband. After much confusion, the young heiress is found dead, with a shot in the head. Therefore, it is up to detective Hercule Poirot, who was also on the cruise, to unravel this curious tragic love story.
Death on the Nile surprises any reader, making you try to get inside the detective’s head, but ultimately fascinated by each plot twist. The book already has an adaptation made in 1978, but in 2022 it will get a new film with Gal Gadot as Linnet Ridgeway.
- And Then There Were None (1939)
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And Then There Were None is one of the best-known and most beloved books by the Queen of Crime fans. A group of people, who at first have no connection, are invited by the mysterious Mr. Owen to go to Soldier’s Island, a separate island with no possibility of communication with the mainland. This time there is no detective but ten confused people who don’t understand why exactly they are there. The group is even more at a loss when they are faced with a children’s poem about ten little soldiers who gradually die until… there are none left.
With over 100 million copies sold, And Then There Were None has become the most famous crime novel, with one of the most surprising endings. The book has several film adaptations, one of the most recent being in 2015, produced by BBC.
- The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)
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After a possible poisoning, resulting in the death of Ashley Ferrars, two more mysterious deaths happened in a row: his wife Miss Ferrars, who supposedly committed suicide, and the millionaire Roger Ackroyd, who was stabbed with a Tunisian dagger. After this sequence of tragedies, detective Hercule Poirot is called to unravel these crimes with the help of the city’s doctor, Dr. Sheppard, who is also the narrator of the story. But the twists and turns that come along the narrative can interfere or help the great detective’s work to discover who is behind it all.
With family intrigues, emotional blackmail, threats, and heritage at stake, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is constructed in a way that even if the reader pays full attention to details, they will not find out who did it, bringing a shocking solution to everyone.
Now grab your notebook and your police board to prepare yourself to read those best books by the Queen of Crime!