The Rajah’s Emerald

by Agatha Christie

James has found himself at the fashionable resort Kimpton-on-Sea, all due to the persuasion of his girlfriend Grace, who during the last few months of their courtship has become more difficult to deal with. Among the upper echelons of society, including the Rajah of Maraputna, James feels disgruntled and out of place. Eager to both irritate and win over Grace, James bypasses the queue to the changing rooms and ducks into the private huts on the beach so that he can be the first into the sea. It is only later that he realizes he has accidentally come into possession of a very valuable and sought-after object.

Genres: Mystery, Short Stories, Agatha Christie, Audiobook, Fiction, Crime, Classics

32 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 30, 1926

About the author

Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.

This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.

Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)

Reviews

[Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an exciting story written by Agatha Christie with James as the protagonist.

The funny thing about the narration is that we will feel déjà vu multiple times while reading this book. The antics that James had to face with the relatives and friends of Grace in the expensive resort, Kimpton-on-Sea will remind us of what Jack had to face in the first class when Rose takes him there in the movie Titanic. Some of James's actions even will remind us of other famous creations by authors like Ian Fleming.

Due to multiple incidents, James accidentally possesses the Rajah's Emerald. Will James panic when he reads the news that the Rajahs Emerald was stolen? Did he deliberately steal the emerald? What will happen to James? Agatha Christie will give answers to all these questions in this book.
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[Paromjit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderfully fun, entertaining and engaging Agatha Christie short story that I listened to on audio, just under 40 minutes long, narrated by Hugh Fraser. It features the resentful and jealous James who finds himself a fish out of water at the expensive resort of Kimpton-on-Sea he cannot afford because of his girlfriend, Grace, only to find himself ditched while she cavorts with her far more wealthier friends and a potential foppish suitor. On seeing her and joining her crowd, he finds he cannot swim with them because the public changing room facilities available to him have long queues. He spots an opportunity when he sees he could use a private hut, even though he really should not. This leads to him finding himself with an surprising object in the trousers that turn out not to be his. Matters conclude with James finding salvation as he adroitly twists the circumstances he finds himself in where he comes out on top and ends up unexpectedly in high society circles.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

1st appearance of James Bond!
But not that James Bond.
No, years before Ian Flemming gave the world an iconic super spy, Agatha Christie gave us a disgruntled young man who lucked into an adventure by picking up the wrong shorts.



James Bond (yes, I will be using his full name for the entirety of the review) has followed the girl he loves, Grace, to a seaside village under the impression that they would be romping on the sand together. Unfortunately, he's broke and she's made friends with Claud Sopworth and his sisters, who are part of the fashionable set of young people. So, she's spending her vacation in a nice hotel, while he's spending his in some kind of a cheap hostel down the road.
Sucks to be you, Bond.
James Bond.



Alright. So, he meets Grace on the beach and is immediately pissed when he realizes her hotel has its own changing rooms and he's going to have to wait FOREVER for a public one to open up.
Meanwhile, that foppish Sopsworth is going to slobber all over his girl while he stands in line like a peasant.
So he takes a chance and slides into one of the private ones before anyone notices what he's doing and then pops out and joins the group on the beach.



I gotta say, Grace isn't making the best impression. She's acting too good for him and making snide comments about his clothes. Which is why James Bond declines to eat lunch with them and heads off by himself to sulk in his soup at a greasy diner. <--or the British equivalent of a greasy diner.
It's here that he discovers a massive emerald in his pants!
Not a euphemism, btw.



And guess what the headline in the newspaper is?
RAJAH'S EMERALD STOLEN!
He deduces that he must have grabbed the wrong pair of pants in that private bathing hut. The bigger question is what in the world was someone doing toting priceless jewelry around in their shabby pants pocket? But because he's honest, the BIGGEST question is how the hell is he going to give this thing back without getting arrested?!
Don't worry, Random Goodreader, James Bond will always come out on top.



the ending was a bit wacky but I still liked this one.
And I loved the nice little bird flip he gave Grace & Sopsworth at the end while he toodles off with his new buddy Lord Campion.



Fun little adventure/mystery for fans of Agatha Christie.

Originally published in 1926 in Red Magazine.
Read as part of the short story collection The Golden Ball and Other Stories.

[Dana-Adriana B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

O colectie de povestiri pline de mister.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is a bit of a He Who Laughs Last sort of tale. The Raja's Emerald is short and a bit of fluff, but a fun read! James Bond (the name made me smile -- Agatha Christie wrote this short story almost 30 years before Ian Fleming published his first spy novel) has travelled to a lovely tourist destination by the sea. The cost is a bit above his means so he's lodged in an out of the way boarding house while his girlfriend is staying with friends in much fancier digs. James is livid....jealous....and a bit angry. And Grace is being a bit thoughtless. Wanting to get between his girl and a foppish oaf that seems to have his eyes on her, James makes use of a private dressing hut at the beach instead of waiting in line for a tent to change. Little does he realize what will be in his pocket when he returns later to put his street clothes back on..... And, he gets the last laugh in the end!
Cute story! I could see this all playing out in my head as I listened to the audio version (read by Hugh Fraser, the actor who played Hastings in the Poirot television show). I could just see the look on James Bond's face when he reached in his pocket and pulled out a wonder.....and his smile when he got a bit of revenge at the end. There really isn't much to this story. It's short and simple, but FUN. Loved it!

The Raja's Emerald first appeared in Red Magazine (UK) in July 1926 and appeared in the short story collection The Listerdale Mystery in 1934. The story was not published in the US until 1971 in The Golden Ball and Other Stories. I could not find a copy of The Listerdale Mystery, so I've been listening to the stories in audio format using The Golden Ball and Other Stories and Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories. The audio books are narrated by Hugh Fraser -- perfect choice! He does a great job, and I love his voice!

I wish I could find just one of these stories in their original magazine format. I'd love to see the accompanying illustration, ads from the magazine and other stories the edition contained! I continue to weasel around on the internet trying to find a scan or digital copy from a library or something! If I find any, I will definitely share a link so others can have a look too! And, if you know a source where I can get a glimpse at ANY of these original stories, please share and make this Christie fan incredibly happy!

I found no information on any adaptations of this story for radio or television. Most likely because it's really a bit of fluff and more entertainment than serious plot.

I'm loving my journey through Christie's writing! Another enjoyable short story by Christie -- on to the next!!

[Madeline · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok. I think her talent lies in her regular novels.

[Brianna Bello · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. James is a fish out of water. He’s ditched for higher class friends and decides to try and fit in. This is how he ends up with the emerald. But how did it get in his pants pocket? Who put it there? Is it a trick? The ending definitely gave you all the info you need. Good short story!

[Cathy Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

James clearly knows that he's chosen the wrong girlfriend, and he's heartily sick and tired of being thrown over for upper-class snobs who have money. The one time he refuses to behave "according to his station," he finds himself in a fix. Loved the twists and turns in this one!

[Mo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Audiobook
About 38 minutes

[Nafisa Nawar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honesty may not make you rich but certainly will turn your fate.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 star for the fun story. An extra star for Hugh Fraser’s narration.

[Joop · Rating 3 out of 5]

Een (echte) James Bond. De korte verhaaltjes van Agatha blijven leuk.

[Yazlina Saduri · Rating 3 out of 5]

James Bond huh?

[Socrate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cu un efort serios, James Bond îşi îndreptă încă o dată atenţia asupra cărţuliei galbene din mâna sa. Pe copertă era imprimată o întrebare simplă şi plăcută: „Vreţi să vă crească salariul cu 300 de lire pe an?” Preţul broşurii era de un şiling. James tocmai terminase de citit două pagini cu paragrafe inspirate care-l instruiau cum să-şi privească şeful în faţă, să-şi cultive o personalitate dinamică şi să radieze o atmosferă de om eficient. Ajunsese acum la treburi mai subtile: „Există un moment pentru sinceritate, un altul pentru discreţie”, îl informa cărticica galbenă. „Un bărbat puternic nu divulgă fără să vrea tot ce ştie”. James închise cartea şi, ridicând capul, aruncă o privire spre întinderea oceanului. Începu să-l bântuie groaznica îndoială că nu era un tip puternic. Dacă el era aşa cum scria, cu siguranţă ar fi fost stăpân pe situaţie, nu o victimă a ci. Pentru a şasea oară în dimineaţa aceea, James îşi repeta slăbiciunile.
Asta era vacanţa sa. Vacanţă! Ha, ha! Un râs sarcastic. Cine-l convinsese să vină în staţiunea asta modernă, la mare, Kimpton-on-Sea? Grace. Cine-l îndemnase să cheltuiască mai mult decât îşi putea permite? Grace. Fusese de acord cu totul de bună voie. Ea îl adusese aici şi cu ce rezultat? În timp ce el stătea într-un cămin, cam la o milă şi jumătate de malul mării, Grace, care ar fi trebuit să se afle într-o casă asemănătoare (nu aceeaşi – proprietăţile cercului lui James erau cât se poate de rezervate), îl părăsise, în mod flagrant, şi locuia, nici mai mult nici mai puţin, la hotelul „Esplanade” de pe plajă.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Bond (no, not that James Bond) is visiting friends at a beachside resort but he doesn’t have the money to stay there. He is put out that they don’t make more of an effort to include him and that they make him change at the huts on the public beach. He decides to sneak into one of the private changing huts and runs out to swim with his friends. After swimming, they change and decide to go to lunch at the club but they think that James isn’t dressed smartly enough. He bristles and says that he’ll just meet up with them later. As he is walking away, he puts his hand into his pants pocket and pulls out what he thinks is a pebble but turns out to be an emerald. He realizes that he must have put on the wrong pants after swimming. So he goes back to the hut to switch pants and is confronted by a man claiming to be an inspector who is investigating the case of the missing emerald. But James is suspicious and tricks him into going into the police station where they tell James that the man is not an investigator at all but the Lord’s valet who is suspected of stealing the emerald. When his lordship shows up at the police station he insists on taking James to lunch where he runs into his friends who ask him to go to the pictures with them but he declines because he has an lunch appointment with his lordship.

[Watchdogg · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Rajah's Emerald by Agatha Christie
First published July 30, 1926

Summary -
James has found himself at the fashionable resort Kimpton-on-Sea, all due to the persuasion of his girlfriend Grace, who during the last few months of their courtship has become more difficult to deal with. Among the upper echelons of society, including the Rajah of Maraputna, James feels disgruntled and out of place. Eager to both irritate and win over Grace, James bypasses the queue to the changing rooms and ducks into the private huts on the beach so that he can be the first into the sea. It is only later that he realizes he has accidentally come into possession of a very valuable and sought-after object.

My thoughts -
A quirky yet highly entertaining short story with an anticipated twisty ending that puts the tale into the genre of good overtaking evil even if by accident. Not really a mystery per se, but a good AC story all the same. Better than some of the others I've read recently by the Queen of Mystery/Crime. Well worth my three-star rating (perhaps even 3.5 stars) meaning - Good - better than average.

[Minna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute short mystery. Agatha Christie, even when not at the top of her game (and I wouldn't consider that this is) is still miles more interesting to me than most other mystery writers. Good twist at the close.

Reading unapologetically to fulfill 2018 PopSugar Reading Challenge category "book with your favorite color in the title" after trying in vain to find anything that interests me (and which I haven't already read) with the color green in the title. I've read a number of VERY LONG books already this year so I'm #notsorry that I'm adding a short story for a prompt. At least it's all text, which is more than I can say of the solution of using children's picture books to fulfill prompts.

[A.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusing, the hero’s name is James Bond. He spends way too much time and energy trying to impress a young woman he has been courting for three years

‘Damn!’ said James, grinding his teeth, a thing which he had never before attempted, only read about in works of fiction.

Bwahaha .
Following the advice of a little self-improvement tome, he decides to change things up a bit.
In his new, brazen mindset, he uses a Lord’s private box to change for a swim in the sea. But when he re-dresses, he comes upon what is clearly a giant emerald in the pocket of his worn trousers.
It seems the clothes Grace constantly derides as too worn out, are very much like those of Lord Edward Campion.
Very silly
3 stars

[itsnikhat · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short story on how a young man’s antics to keep up with his girlfriend’s rich friends gets him involved in the case of a missing emerald.

A bit slow in the beginning, James, our protagonist, clearly describes his frustrations with his girlfriend, Grace, as she prefers the company of her classy friends than his. In an attempt to keep up with them, an unintentional exchange of trousers lands him with the missing emerald belonging Rajah’s. From here things pick up and it’s an entertaining read.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short story by Agatha Christie and it shows how good she is! To write a full story in 30+ pages isn't easy and many authors fail.
It tells the story of a man who ends up in a city at the sea. His acquaintance stays in a fancy hotel with other women and kinda leaves him behind. That's the setting and you won't guess what's coming and how the emerald fits into it.

Well done!

4,25/5

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love trawling Borrowbox for these Agatha Christie shorts - just long enough to keep me company whilst I potter around the kitchen - it's a sign of her genius that she can build characters, a scene, a crime & a solution in such a short read, but she does, time and again ..

I had to do a double take at our hero's name - James Bond, and it was fun to realise that our Agatha had used the name before Mr Fleming ..

Anyway, plenty of smoke and mirrors here to keep you wondering ..

[Jey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Rajah's emerald is a short and crisp mystery. James Bond is at a seaside resort for his girlfriend Grace. When he stumbles upon the lost diamond of the Rajah, his wit helps James to turn the situation favorable to him. This was a short and crisp mystery. I liked the audiobook narration. It makes for a perfect choice for a quick read. I hope to read more short stories by Agatha in the future.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this as part of the Midsummer Mysteries collection of Agatha Christie short stories (9th story). There’s no famous detective in this mystery, just an ordinary guy who’s down on his luck. He also just happens to be named James Bond (no connection to the famous 007 character). Very entertaining, with a satisfying ending.

[Sapphire Detective · Rating 3 out of 5]

An early outing for the most famous spy in the world (not really) and a bit of a wild show. Not the greatest in the collection though, admittedly.

My rating: 3.25/5 (rounded down)
Would I own/re-read?: I don't think so.
TW: Cringy Macho Behavior
Does the animal die?: No animals are harmed by the Emerald.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rather funny and humorous story about a man’s (James) day out at the beach. James’ day doesn’t go well after meeting a lady to go for a swim and gets in all kind of trouble after sneaking into an open beach hut to get changed.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is that a large emerald in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me ;)


A nice little short story about “James Bond” (see what Ian Fleming did there) with the Agatha Christie flair we all expect.

No more than a 3* to me.

[itchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

eponymous-ey sentence:
p11: If this was the Rajah's emerald, what was he going to do about it?

This appears to be the start of James Bond's career on Her Majesty's Secret Service.

Read as part of the collection The Listerdale Mystery and Eleven Other Stories.

[Mike Lisanke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks God; Agatha's returned to mystery writing; a detective/detection story... and of course, it's great... IMO it could have done without the budding love interest but then how do you get James Bond to steal pants from a wealthy beach tent??

[Yosef Shapiro · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am not sure why this is labeled as a Parker Pyne story as he in not in it at all . Maybe it was in a collection of Pyne stories. It was a good shirt story. But not one of her best.?

[Abeer Albossany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked how the reader should have been too afraid that the protagonist is in danger but at last he doesn't just get away with it he also manage to save the day.