The Shadow on the Glass - a Mr. Quin Short Story

Harley Quin #2

by Agatha Christie

At Mr. and Mrs. Unkerton's party at Greenways House, Mr. Satterthwaite learns that the house has a haunted window; no matter how many times it is replaced, the image of a gentleman in a plumed hat always seems to come back. He looks very much like a Cavalier soldier, a supporter of the King, from the English Civil War of the 1640s.

Then gunshots are heard, and Satterthwaite finds that two of the guests have been shot dead - soon followed by a sighting of the gentleman in the once-again newly replaced windowpane. Can Mr. Quin shed light on the mystery?

Librarian's note #1: the short story was first published in Grand Magazine in 1924 and then in the print anthology The Mysterious Mr. Quin which was first published in 1930.

Librarian's note #2: the print anthology contains 12 Mr. Quin short stories. Besides those, there are two more found in other collections: The Love Detectives, and The Harlequin Tea Set. Mr. Satterthwaite also appears in Three Act Tragedy and Dead Man's Mirror. All by Agatha Christie, of course!

Librarian's note #3: the entries for all fourteen Mr. Quin short stories can be found on GR by searching for: a Harley Quin short story. Or for Harley Quin. Details such as characters and settings are included for each.

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

100 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 1924

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

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

First rule of a murder scene is to never pick up the smoking gun.
Apparently, Mrs. Staverton didn't know that. Or else she is the murderer.



A supernatural image shows up on the glass in a supposedly haunted house year after year and the new owners of the house are sick of it. They've replaced the glass to get rid of the stain that looks like a long-dead cavalier who was murdered by his wife's lover. So why did it still appear to Mr. Satterthwaite & Mr. Porter right before they came upon Mrs. Staverton standing over two dead bodies?
But was it really a specter that they saw? Or is there a more rational explanation?
This one blends a ghost story with a poorly planned house party, and ends up giving the reader a twisty mystery.
I liked it!

Originally published in 1924 in The Grand Magazine.
Read as part of the short story collection The Mysterious Mr. Quin.

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. One of the better known Mr. Quin short stories. It's haunting and stays with you. If there's a message here, it's for hosts of gatherings, small events, and New Year's Eve parties - give some thought to the invitees and how they relate to each other, not just how well you get along with each of them. Under this rule, the party put on by the Unkertons at Greenways House was a disaster of major proportions. The story first appeared in Grand Magazine in 1924; I caught it in 2003's 12-story collection, The Mysterious Mr. Quin, from Harper Collins. It wasn't a large event, nine or so. Plus one more who arrived after murder was served - Mr. Quin. How does he know when and where to appear? Some guests should have come with red flags attached to their belts or the waist bands of their dresses. They included the recently married Scotts, Richard, a big-game hunter in his 40s with his trophy wife Moira, just 20. Also Iris Staverton who Lady Cynthia claims had an affair with Richard in Africa. Throw in a few military types and a haunted window from the 17th century and you've got the ingredients of the Unkerton catastrophe. (Au2021/Se2025)

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining mystery listening 🎶🔰

This kindle e-book novella is from Amazon for $0.99

There is a party at the estate when two people are shot. Who did it? Harley Quinn solves the the killing.

I would recommend this series and author to 👍 fans of Agatha Christie 2024 😊😯

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

A clever mystery where Mr Satterthwaite is in the midst of a situation where he perceives an approaching tragedy. He is powerless to prevent the worst of outcomes but his powers of observation may hold some hope.

At a moment when all seems lost who should drop by but Mr Quin himself.

Agatha Christie uses her incredible plotting in these scaled down mysteries. Moving into crime as a genre with Poirot leading the way these short stories mix a touch of horror and supernatural to give depth and colour to the crime mystery.

It is all about previous relationships and jealousy as a house party degenerates into a murder scene where the guest holding the smoking gun seems banged to rights.

Mr Quin claims not to be the mind to solve the case but the catalyst to assist all the witnesses to remember what they saw, heard or impressed them most when discovering the murder scene.

I have come late to these unique and clever stories and I’m currently in awe of Christie’s class and art as an author.

[Emmy B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very short, very Christie, but a fun little mystery. I just realised that rhymed.

[Emma Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A murder mystery plus a ghost story and a haunted window? Yes, please. I was sad when the murder victims were revealed in this one - I had really liked them!

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a favorite, but still enjoyable

[nessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

not as succinct a conclusion as the other short stories of hers i’ve read. i don’t care about rich peoples love affairs

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good short story which my heart says I wish had been a novel, but I think my head knows it couldn't be any longer than it is. Some things were meant to be short stories and this might have suffered from elongation.

I do think there were maybe too many characters for its brevity -- it took a couple flips backwards and forwards to get who is with who and who ought not to be with who straight. All in all I would have been happy to have this appear in a magazine, but is it in my pantheon of great short stories of all time? No, not really.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

* 3.75 out of 5 Stars

So I got the book and still just listened to the audiobook while doing some work - and I am so thrilled that I was able to correctly guess a bit of what really happened! This was a good one with a spooky touch!

[OutSideTheBoxox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Give it a read it a read, its short and interesting.

[Astha Agrawal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice short story with a good ending.

[a ☕︎ · Rating 2 out of 5]

iris is a class-a idiot.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mr. Satterthwaite is at house party when a murder is committed. Two young people are shot, a young wife and a young major. It is assumed that the jealous ex-girlfriend of the husband is the culprit but in the end, with Mr. Quinn’s help, Mr. Satterthwaite discovers that the husband is responsible. Mr. Satterthwaite had been uneasy the whole weekend because the married couple was staying in the room with the haunted window that had been boarded up. The husband used this window to observe his wife and her lover from the window where he shot them and threw the gun out the window. I had this one figured out.

[Mónica Cordero Thomson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una historia corta de Agatha Christie. Lo que me ha gustado y a la vez me ha parecido diferente, es el toque "paranormal" de esta historia. Como siempre en Agatha, la trama está muy bien enlazada, y el asesin@ es quien menos lo esperas. Una vuelta de tuerca, un paso más allá del que en prinicpio sospechas. Por otro lado, me ha gustado mucho la ambientación en un antiguo castillo, reutilizado como hotel.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tension in an English aristocratic estate as guests with secrets mingle. The inevitable happens- shots fired. Two people dead. A person holding a gun. The main character finally appears at the 57% mark. Of course what appears to have happened didn't happen. It's all tied to the title involving ghosts. The ending didn't really tie it up for me.

[Jocelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Harley Quin saves the day!

I enjoy these short stories of Agatha Christie, which pack in them all my favorite parts: psychological insights, romantic twists, good guys winning, fun characterization, familiar characters...just like her novels but without the red herring scenes or lengthy 'maybe this could have happened' chapters.

[Carole Jarvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good short story by the talented Agatha Christie. An English manor house setting with a haunted room culminates in a murder with roots delving into past romantic entanglements. Mr. Quin's arrival as a detective is questioning guests helps expose guilt. Remarkable characterization for a short story. Great twist that I never saw coming.

[Serena · Rating 5 out of 5]

the Mysterious Mr. Quin

My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.

[Abeer Albossany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good development of the event, as expected of Agatha.

[Zada Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun characters. Nice introduction to the famous Mr. Quin.

[Lucile · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I’ve read featuring Harley Quin. It’s a great read. 🙂

[Josephine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very macabre.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars More interesting to me than The House at Shiraz short story, but not my favorite.

[Elisabetta · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was very short but I really enjoyed it 🥺

[Forked Radish · Rating 2 out of 5]

Agatha Christie didn't understand ballistics.

[Me · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too short. I couldn't keep the characters straight.

[itchy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read as part of the collection The Mysterious Mr. Quin.

[Jocelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quin books are supernatural
This short story is part of "the mysterious Mr Quin" collection

[Marta]

Just ok