The Chocolate Box

Hercule Poirot #0.01

by Agatha Christie

Poirot investigates a murder in which the only clue is a box of chocolates. This case took place in Brussels early in his career when he was a detective with the police force there. Likely before the start of the Great War. As far as we are aware, this is the earliest Poirot case!

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

38 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1925

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

[Nayra.Hassan · Rating 3 out of 5]

يشرفني أن أتمنى لك يوما سعيدا لقد "
"قمت بتحرياتي..وفشلت!انتهت القضية
هكذا يزف الينا بوارو نبأ فشله الوحيد في عالم اجاثا كريستي: في قضية علبة الحلوى!ا

من بين 36 قضية تالق فيها ذلك المفتش البلجيكي العجوز المغرور اللذيذ العبقري الذي يتمنى ان يري البيض مكعباً من فرط اعجابه الاشكال الهندسية المنظمة

ان رأيتني أصبحت مغرورا فما عليك الا أن تقول: "علبة الحلوى" اتفقنا؟
هكذا يعترف بوارو العنيد الصبور لهستنجز باخفاقه الوحيد بل و يعطيه سلاح ليذله به..🍥و يصف له كيف كان غبيا مغفلا عندما لم يرى الدلائل الصارخة في تلك العلب الملونة المليئة بالشيكولاتة و🍬 الحلوى رابط القصة في التعليقات
و هى من قضاياه المبكرة في بلده بلجيكا قبل انتقاله الى بريطانيا

[Terrie Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Chocolate Box by Agatha Christie is Hercule Poirot Short Story #1!

What better way to begin winding down my reading year than with an Agatha Christie Mystery?

Sitting in front of a fire in their shared flat, Poirot recounts to Hastings the case he couldn't unravel. It was his biggest only failure.

Paul Déroulard was a wealthy French deputy living in Brussels who all thought succumbed to natural causes. At the request of a relative of Déroulard's late wife, Poirot goes undercover to discover there is more to the deceased man's death than originally uncovered and an even more complicated one to solve...

Did I hear a bit of humility in Poirot's voice or was it a hint of...something else?

The Chocolate Box is a 28M audiobook narrated by Charles Armstrong who does a fine job of becoming the voice of Hercule Poirot. This was an easy one to squeeze in amongst other short listens on the next to last day of a very long year and I highly recommend it!

Hercule Poirot is just so dang entertaining!

4⭐

The Chocolate Box was first published in the UK in "The Sketch" magazine on May 23, 1923.

It was later published in the US in "The Blue Book" magazine and as part of the anthology Poirot Investigates in 1925.

[Kimber Silver · Rating 5 out of 5]

On a blustery night in England, I joined Captain Hastings and Poirot as they discussed the Belgian detective's many successes. Hastings’ curiosity got the better of him, and he had to know if the great man had ever taken a case he royally messed up.

"No, but seriously have you ever failed?"

"One must take the downs with the ups, my friend."

"I meant, had you ever been completely down and out over a case through your own fault?"

“Ha, I comprehend! You ask if I have ever made the complete prize ass of myself, as you say over here? Once, my friend—”

So began a recounting of Poirot’s failure to root out the truth in the bittersweet case of M. Paul Deroulard.
Monsieur Deroulard was a French deputy of note who dropped dead suddenly just as his ship was about to come in. I won’t spoil the sweet joy of discovery by revealing too much. It is enough to say that I spent the entirety of this short story smiling like an idiot, as Poirot described murder and mayhem in a way that only he could. What a character!

The Chocolate Box is a tasty tidbit that can be read in the space of an hour, but the joy it brings will carry on long after the last word is devoured. Well done, Ms. Christie, well done!

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poirot outwitted?! Say it ain't so!
But it is so.
Sitting around together one evening, Poirot tells Hastings of the one case that he failed to solve.
And Poirot tells Hastings to say the words chocolate box if he ever feels that Hercule gets a bit too big for his britches. I'm sure Hastings was tempted to walk behind Poirot with a megaphone, repeating those words at the top of his lungs for most of the time they spent together.
He didn't.
Such is the power of friendship.



The story takes place in Belgium when Hercule was still a member of the Belgian police force. He was asked by a young woman to investigate the death of a member of her household (a high-ranking politician) that she believed was murdered. The clues were there, but Poirot failed to put them together and had to be told what happened by an elderly woman.

I think this would be important to anyone who is interested in Poirot lore because this case is referenced in passing.

This was first published as a short story in The Sketch magazine in 1923.
Read as part of the short story collection The Early Cases of Hercule Poirot.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable short story with Poirot telling Hastings about one of his case failures when Hastings mentions his belief that Poirot had never known failure in his professional career. A rare story in which Poirot doesn’t guess the culprit.

[carol. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only Poirot where he failed... at least according to M. Poirot. From early in his career in France as a policeman, and there were apparently active prejudices against the non-Catholics, or at least the non-pieuse. So it's all a bit odd, particularly that he missed the most obvious crime. But of course, still a satisfying ending. Note: written very early in her career; listed at 1923.

Two and a half chocolates, rounding up, because Poirot.

[Jayme C (Brunetteslikebookstoo) · Rating 4 out of 5]

First published in “The Sketch” in 1923, this is possibly the first Poirot story, a novella which has Hercule sharing the story of one of his early cases-one he did not solve.

Short and sweet like the box of chocolates which served as his only clue.

Open one up, 🎁🍫 and indulge as you listen and see if you can catch the clue he missed…🕵🏼‍♂️

A 28 minute Audible 🎧 listen

[EveStar91 · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘Ah, I comprehend! You ask if I have ever made the complete prize ass of myself, as you say over here? Once, my friend—’ A slow, reflective smile hovered over his face. ‘Yes, once I made a fool of myself.’

In the first of the Hercule Poirot short story collection, Poirot recounts a case in which he didn't immediately put together facts to deduce who the murderer was... shocking, right? However, the situation doesn't end up being too bad, and the story is still quite a fun read with enough of the mystery solved.

The short stories are not the best examples of Christie's prowess for character sketching, or even Poirot's psychological thinking, but they make up for it in the plot construction department. Recommended for a quick Christie read!

🌟🌟🌟1/2🌟
[3/4 star for the premise; One star for the plot; Half a star for the characters; Half a star for the world-building; 3/4 star for the writing - 3 1/2 stars in total.]

[Sheyla ✎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was just a taste of how amazing Agatha Cristie's imagination was.

Yes, we have read so many ways someone can be killed with thousands of thrillers out there but she was the one who jumped into writing mysteries with exotic characters and interesting plots. She gave the world Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple and the rest is history. After all, she is the Queen of Mystery.

The Chocolate Box is a short story featuring Hercule Poirot. In it, he is telling a friend which case was the one he didn't solve.

What, someone outsmarted him?

You might think it was impossible but in this audio, Poirot gets a dose of humility.

The audio is super short which was perfect for the small drive I had that day. Listening to it, made me want to read her books all over again. I read them as a teenager since my dad collected them. Some of her books are crystal clear in my mind but some I have forgotten.

Not for nothing, she is the best-selling female fiction writer of all time. Some might say she beat Shakespeare.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

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[Paromjit · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Agatha Christie short story I listened to on audio, just over an hour long, narrated by Fenella Woolgar, in which Hercule Poirot is asked to relate a case in which he had failed.

[Cyndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute wee story. The only time Poirot did not completely solve the crime. Or, at least that’s what he said. I was quite surprised at who the murderer was. 🤔

[Chris Lee (away) · Rating 4 out of 5]

❖ Review Quickie

❖ Background: I have fond memories watching the Poirot TV show as a young lad and marveling at the locations he visited. One episode in particular, called The Chocolate Box, takes place in Antwerp, Belgium and I knew the second I saw it that I had to visit there someday. Well, mission accomplished. I had never read the short story, so I soaked it all in on my train ride over from Brussels. It was such a lovely place filled with inspiring architecture and splendid people.

❖ Review: The short story itself was fun and incredibly thrilling. It outlines one of Poirot’s critical failures as a detective and showcases just how imaginative Agatha Christie was.

Its short and sweet, so give it a go.

❖ Category: Mystery
❖ Rating: 4/5

[Tamar...playing hooky for a few hours today · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dita’s review sent me looking for this short story by Agatha Christie. My first search is always for an audio to listen to while walking or sleeping – so for those of you who prefer an audio, I easily found a free BBC Radio4 audio production at this address: https://bookaudio.online/744-the-choc... However, this may be one of those instances where you prefer to read rather than listen. The Belgian French accent of the narrator’s Poirot is a little difficult to follow in parts.

Poirot and friend are having a tete-a-tete one evening when friend comments on Poirot’s infallibility. Poirot demurs and tells his story (in a nutshell):

• Virginie, Damsel (Madamoiselle) in distress, contacts Poirot and asks him to investigate the death of M. Déroulard.
• M. Déroulard had married a woman of fortune two years earlier and she then took a tumble down the stairs and left him a fortune.
• After dinner the evening earlier M. Déroulard and his male houseguests retired to the parlor to do whatever it is that men do when they “retire to the parlour” after dinner (drink port, smoke cigars, each chocolate?)
• Shortly thereafter M. Déroulard was found dead.
• There are no visible signs of violence nor obvious motives for murder.
• Poirot can smell a rat and starts sniffing around.
• There are pills from the chemist that can be fatal when taken in an overdose…
• There are eye drops that can be equally lethal, and,
• There is an untouched blue box of chocolates with a mismatched pink boxtop…..

Can Poirot connect the dots? Apparently not…the clue was the motive (and even I could figure that one out)….

Cute story!

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Hercule Poirot short story was first published in the UK in The Sketch magazine on May 23, 1923. US publication followed in The Blue Book magazine in February 1925.

One day while they are relaxing in front of a comfy fire, Captain Hastings asks Poirot if he ever made a mistake that had a bad effect on a case. Poirot then tells him a story about a suspicious death and deadly box of candy.

Very entertaining story! This is a bit of a flashback to Poirot's time as a Belgian detective before World War I caused him to come to England.

The television show Agatha Christie's Poirot adapted this story into an episode (Season 5, episode 6). The story is well done as usual, with changes made to main characters and events to lengthen the story into an 45 minute episode. It remains relatively true to the original story,with some embellishments.

I am having the best time reading through all of these Poirot stories! Each story is relatively short...only a few pages. The plots are varied and Poirot is his usual fussy but lovable self. I am reading each story while listening to an audio book recording as well. There is just something about hearing Poirot's dialogue in the correct accent that makes it so much more enjoyable! Plus, I don't know french....so nice to have the names and phrases contained in these stories read correctly, rather than my butchering of them when I read silently in my own head. :)

On to the next story: The Adventures of the Egyptian Tomb!

[Razvan Banciu · Rating 3 out of 5]

As usual, nothing out of common.
The plot is promising, but it turns into a very sad family affair. Or maybe I'm too harsh with this lady. Again and again...

[Rahma.Mrk · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wait it a long time because it the only crime that the hericule can't solve it.
And it is so special for me bcse it is a gift from a kind a dear friend.🌷😍😍

21 janv 2019

[Antoinette · Rating 4 out of 5]

We find Poirot talking to Hastings about an imperfect case- a case that he feels he was less than perfect! An enjoyable half hour listen!

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. Can you believe it? Poirot, by his own admission, didn't fully solve a case. Hastings and he are sitting around a hearth fire during a storm, and Hastings poses a question, "Seriously, have you ever failed?" This short story is from "Blue Book Magazine" in 1925 and collected in the American version of "Poirot Investigates" later the same year. In answering, Poirot reminisces of a time when he made "A fool of myself." It took place in Belgium when he was on the police force there. Before the Great War. Mr. Paul Deroulard, an elected official and rising star in Paris, owned a house in Brussels as an inheritance after his wife's passing. Just recently, he died in the house of a suspected heart attack. Three days later Poirot was visited by a heavily veiled young lady, Virginie Mesnard, who pleaded with him to look into the death. She arranges for Poirot to visit the home posing as a journalist. The only thing Poirot notices is a full box of chocolates with the wrong lid. Could it have been poison? You'll enjoy Poirot's meaning of "Didn't fully solve," and his definition of failure. Plus, you are sure to smile at Hastings idea for use of the words "chocolate box" in the future. (August 2020)

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book to start off the month when you love to read especially if you love mysteries. This is another great short story featuring the great Hercule Poirot written by Agatha Christie.

Hercule Poirot is sitting around the fire one evening with his good friend, Hastings. Surprisingly, Poirot admits that there is one case that he failed to solve. It was a case that took place years back when he was a detective on the Belgium Police Force. A young lady comes to see him to ask him to look into the death of a man who had been slated to be the next Minister of Belgium but had died of heart failure. She is positive he was murdered and does not want to take her suspicions to the police. Hercule applies he little grey cells and slowly tracks down the clues. It shows how good a detective he really is since he does not even visit the crime scene until it is three days old and plenty of time has passed for any evidence to have disappeared. Except, he arrives at the wrong answer. When the killer admits their guilt, Poirot is annoyed with the fact that he did not come to the right conclusion even with the evidence staring him right in the face.

This was a great little quick read. I have stated over and over how wonderful a writer Agatha Christie is and how her characters are so perfect. Her storyline lay out the perfect murder but it is never easy to come to the truth as you think. Makes for a great read.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came to reading in my later teenage years, through boredom, while recovering from glandular fever. I read extensively thereafter like a child introduced to sweets for the first time.
Agatha Christie quickly became a go to author for me and I loved all her crime mysteries.
Being so long ago now it was good to find that kindles and ebooks mean that her short stories are accessible to read alone and not as originally by me in collected volumes. Perhaps closer to the genesis of the stories themselves which were serialised in newspapers.

Poirot is the star of many of her books and he bestrides these few pages like the great detective he fictionally became. Hastings is his Dr Watson and The Chocolate Box seems to be a recounting of his failure which heaven forbid humbles our Belgium detective.

Just a few pages but full of the measure of any investigation. A suspicion of foul play, no evidence to really find 3 days later, and a possible crime scene already corrupted and any clues tidied up.

Yet Poirot finds snippets, enough to get his little grey cells going but lacking any substantial proof.

Fascinating, mesmerising a mini who done it that may not only baffle Poirot but also his fans reading or re-reading this classic format.

The skills of the author are clear to see and this is a wonderful means to introduce new admirers of her books. Evidence enough for why I would not pass up an opportunity to read one again and why I have valued her writing for nearly 50 years.

[Darinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short story featuring Hercule Poirot. Quick and entertaining.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hercule Poirot not solving the mystery?! Impossible!

Yet in this short story, Poirot recounts to Hastings the one case he did not manage to solve, dating back to his early days working for the Belgian police. Certainly, he could never make such a mistake now! The clue is very obvious, yet very subtle for the reader.

I enjoyed how they adapted this one in the tv series; it was framed a little differently, but still had a very satisfying ending!

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a fan of Agatha Christie, I picked this e-book up from my local library. It was part of a set of twelve novellas Midwinter Murder: Fireside Tales from the Queen of Mystery. I found each individual story entertaining with a great mystery. I would recommond to readers of Agatha Christie. 2023

[aria ✧]

How I've missed Poirot and Hastings😭😭😭

I remember this story being referenced in one of her full novels😂

[Igor Zveglic · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful read.
Even though it is presented entirely as a recollection of past events (old case) it is exceptionally well paced and entertaining.

I am writing this review to point out drastic changes in the TV adaptation of the story. Of course, additional characters and subplots had to be introduced in order to fill in the required running time. But, they changed the “solution”, the very ending quite drastically. I am not sure if that was really needed.

Highly recommended.
4/4

[Brooklyn Tayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite short stories featuring our little Belgian and dapper Captain, in which the former recounts to the latter one of the cases where his "little grey cells" faulted. Remarkable.

[Saman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remember, he was a fanatic, and there is no fanatic like a religious fanatic.

[LaGaryce · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Tatevik · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read this for sure a long time ago, but I don't remember

[Katrina (Catching up on Reviews) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Agatha Christie got me! I did not guess the ending in this short story.