The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Hercule Poirot)

Agatha Christie was a popular mystery writer in the 1920s, with stories featuring her eccentric Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, appearing regularly in popular magazines of the era. But it was her third Poirot novel, 1926’s “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” that cemented her reputation as the greatest mystery author of all time. The book regularly makes all-time best-of mystery shortlists, and with good reason. Anyone who has read it remembers the brilliant ending. But it’s also the rare whodunit that holds up equally well on subsequent readings. I knew the mystery’s solution when I reread the book recently, but I thoroughly enjoyed examining Christie’s precise use of language to fool readers… but not Hercule Poirot.Although many people know the ending, I’ll try to avoid spoilers with a general plot synopsis. “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” is set in the small village of King’s Abbot in rural England. It’s the sort of place that gives pompous names like Fernley Park to its large homes and takes pride in having two general stores. The most recent resident of King’s Abbot is Hercule Poirot, who has gone into retirement there. He is content to maintain a low profile and tend to his vegetable garden, but fate intervenes. His neighbor at Fernley Park, wealthy industrialist Roger Ackroyd, is murdered in his library one evening. There are plenty of suspects, including friends, relatives, servants, and a mysterious stranger who was spotted outside the house that evening. While everyone has a motive and harbors a secret, they also seem to have perfect alibis. Naturally, Poirot helps with the investigation.“The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” is a relatively short book and moves briskly. Despite having about a dozen significant characters (and possible killers), the storyline is easy to follow. Unlike in earlier Poirot stories that featured the rather dense but loyal Captain Hastings as Poirot’s sidekick, the local Dr. Sheppard is the narrator here. He’s more of an Archie Goodwin than a Dr. Watson. Instead of staying glued to Poirot’s hip, Sheppard goes on fact-finding missions for the detective. Since he’s unfamiliar with Poirot’s ways and peculiarities, Sheppard reacts with surprise, amusement, and befuddlement at Poirot’s talk of “little grey cells” and subsequent accurate deductions. It’s a welcome change of pace from Hastings, who was beginning to wear out his welcome with Christie (and readers) and appeared much less often in later Poirot stories.Christie captured the feel of rural England perfectly in several books, including this one. “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” has several keen observations. For example, Dr. Sheppard describes the residents of King’s Abbot: “We are rich in unmarried ladies and retired military officers. Our hobbies and recreation can be summed up in the one word, ‘gossip.’” The gossip queen is Sheppard’s older sister, Caroline, who supplies Poirot with lots of tidbits about the various characters. She is the most entertaining character in the book. (Many people believe she was the inspiration for Christie’s later detective, Miss Marple.) The novel’s best scene describes a mahjong game with Dr. Sheppard, Caroline, and a local couple. It doesn’t move the story forward much but gives readers humorous insight into the local lifestyle and custom.Comic asides are amusing, but most people read Agatha Christie for the central mystery. They won’t be disappointed. As always, the author reveals all the necessary clues to solve the case. However, the brilliance of this book is her ability to obscure many of them through misdirection and subtle, precise word phrasings. Readers in 1926 were astonished to learn the who- and howdunit, and anyone reading the novel for the first time will have that same experience. Veteran mystery fans will also have fun going back to the story after a few years to admire Christie’s adroitness. Lovers of classical mysteries can’t do better than “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.”

Agatha Christie was a popular mystery writer in the 1920s, with stories featuring her eccentric Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, appearing regularly in popular magazines of the era. But it was her third Poirot novel, 1926’s “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” that cemented her reputation as the greatest mystery author ever. The book often makes all-time best-of mystery shortlists, and with good reason. Anyone who has read it remembers the brilliant ending. But it’s also the rare whodunit that holds up just as well on later readings. I knew the mystery’s solution when I reread the book recently, but I thoroughly enjoyed examining Christie’s precise use of language to fool readers… but not Hercule Poirot.Although many people know the ending, I’ll try to avoid spoilers with a general plot synopsis. “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” is set in the small village of King’s Abbot in rural England. It’s the sort of place that gives pompous names like Fernley Park to its large homes and takes pride in having two general stores. The most recent resident of King’s Abbot is Hercule Poirot, who has gone into retirement there. He is content to keep a low profile and tend to his vegetable garden, but fate intervenes. His neighbor at Fernley Park, wealthy industrialist Roger Ackroyd, is murdered in his library one evening. There are plenty of suspects, including friends, relatives, servants, and a mysterious stranger who was spotted outside the house that evening. While everyone has a motive and harbors a secret, they also seem to have perfect alibis. Naturally, Poirot helps with the investigation.“The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” is a relatively short book and moves briskly. Despite having about a dozen significant characters (and possible killers), the storyline is easy to follow. Unlike in earlier Poirot stories that featured the rather dense but loyal Captain Hastings as Poirot’s sidekick, the local Dr. Sheppard is the narrator here. He’s more of an Archie Goodwin than a Dr. Watson. Instead of staying glued to Poirot’s hip, Sheppard goes on fact-finding missions for the detective. Since he’s unfamiliar with Poirot’s ways and peculiarities, Sheppard reacts with surprise, amusement, and befuddlement at Poirot’s talk of “little grey cells” and subsequent accurate deductions. It’s a welcome change of pace from Hastings, who was wearing out his welcome with Christie (and readers) and appeared much less often in later Poirot stories.Christie captured the feel of rural England perfectly in several books, including this one. “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” has several keen observations. For example, Dr. Sheppard describes the residents of King’s Abbot: “We are rich in unmarried ladies and retired military officers. Our hobbies and recreation can be summed up in the one word, ‘gossip.’” The gossip queen is Sheppard’s older sister, Caroline, who supplies Poirot with lots of tidbits about the various characters. She is the most entertaining character in the book. (Many people believe she was the inspiration for Christie’s later detective, Miss Marple.) The novel’s best scene describes a mahjong game with Dr. Sheppard, Caroline, and a local couple. It doesn’t move the story forward much, but gives readers humorous insight into the local lifestyle and custom.Comic asides are amusing, but most people read Agatha Christie for the central mystery. They won’t be disappointed. As always, the author reveals all the necessary clues to solve the case. However, the brilliance of this book is her ability to obscure many of them through misdirection and subtle, precise word phrasings. Readers in 1926 were astonished to learn the who- and howdunit, and anyone reading the novel for the first time will have that same experience. Veteran mystery fans will also have fun going back to the story after a few years to admire Christie’s adroitness. Lovers of classical mysteries can’t do better than “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.”

In a moment of madness, I set myself the task of reading all Hercule Poirot novels in chronological order and here I am at the end of The Murder Of Roger Ackroyd.This is Christie’s fourth Poirot novel and the one I most looked forward to reading because it’s widely regarded as one of the greatest crime novels of all time. What makes this even more impressive is that she wrote it while enduring her own personal Annus Horribilis where her mother died, her husband left her, and she finally went missing for 11 days apparently suffering from short term memory loss.The expectation of a good read was further heightened with the promise of an inciteful Introduction by Christie’s authorised biographer, Laura Thompson, no less.Sadly this is where Agatha’s extraordinary commitment and focus to produce such an ingenious plot in the face of great personal adversity began to unravel because It made me think about what would make the ending so famously unexpected.Luckily, reading such a clever plot with an inkling as to who the murderer may be didnt ruin the story. In fact, it enabled me to interpret what was said by the various suspects in ways that reinforced my growing belief I’d “cracked a Christie” before Poirot had got his little grey cells around it.Unfortunately, Thompson added a postscript and for reasons only she can know, randomly revealed the murderer in The Man In The Brown Suit. So, if you plan on reading that one soon. Don’t read the postscript in Ackroyd.

A superb read. 'The Murder of Roger Ackroyd' does not disappoint. Set in a small village, amidst gossips and where everyone knows everyones business, Roger Ackroyd is murdered in his own study. M. Poirot has come to settle in this same village, looking for rest and relaxation (and the growing of marrows!) and, as he realises that he is becoming very quickly tired of the quiet life, a murder drops into his lap. With the typical country house and a small cast of suspects he sets about his ingenious solving of the crime. The book very much revolves around the narrative where absolutely nothing is irrelevant and absolutely everything is relevant. Plotted with meticulous detail. Agatha Christie has chosen the village doctor to be the narrator here and it's very much in the Hastings vein (the doctors sister, Caroline, provides much amusement as a chief gossip monger). The denouement is surprising (although the clues are there!) with a vicious twist in the tale. M. Poirot, however, misses nothing. We see him bring the suspects together for a finale although the final pronouncement is a highly personal one. An excellent read that really does stand the test of time (written in 1926) and the first Agatha Christie novel to be dramatised for stage (as 'Alibi'). Not to be missed and best devoured in one sitting. You will not be disappointed.

I started to read this novel because I'd heard it was one of the most highly-regarded of Christie's books. It's been voted the best crime fiction novel EVER by the British Crime Writers' Association. It doesn't disappoint. I already knew 'whodunnit' before I opened the cover which enhanced the book for me, rather than spoilt it. As a writer myself, I was able to appreciate exactly HOW she set up the crime, the mystery and the shocking denoument at the end. It's a masterclass from the world's greatest crime writer. Every sentence of her tight, controlled and unemotional prose is carefully placed. Anyway, I won't give anything else away. Thoroughly recommended.

I am quite a fan of dame Agatha's and have read many of her books, particularly those of Hercule Poirot. This started reasonably run of the mill murder in a study, with the narrator changing from Hastings to a doctor Sheppard. Christie then goes on to describe through Sheppard each character in the book, their potential motives and what they were doing at the time of the murder and it is here where things get really interesting. What sets this book above many of the excellent other Christie books is the twist at the end and the change in format to her other books. Highly recommended

I had a great time reading Enid Blyton books in my bedroom when I was growing up and now approaching the opposite side of my life I decided to take on my first Agatha Christie murder mystery novel and I was well up for it after getting the impression beforehand that this is considered to be one of her finest books. The first few chapters lived up to expectations but then I noticed maybe the plot was not totally to my preferred liking. One example being the fact that despite a murderer very possibly being still at large in a large household of people there did not appear to be any concern whatsoever throughout the story that the killer could strike again. I had a suspicion who the murderer would be at about the halfway point and the plot went on ponderously to its likely conclusion. I still like the quirky appealing book names and will read another Agatha Christie mystery again when I feel ready and I will be better prepared for a more satisfying experience next time round.