Death on the Nile and Other Hercule Poirot Mysteries

by Agatha Christie

Death on the Nile and Other Hercule Poirot Mysteries is one of Barnes & Noble’s Collectible Edition classics. Each volume features authoritative texts by the world’s greatest authors in exquisitely designed bonded-leather bindings with distinctive gilt edging and an attractive ribbon bookmark. Decorative, durable, and collectible, these books offer hours of pleasure to readers young and old and are an indispensable cornerstone for any home library.

Genres: Classics, Mystery, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Agatha Christie

Leather Bound

Published January 1, 2020

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

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of Kindle edition
Publication date: July 5, 2005
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
Language: English
ASIN: B000FCK9D6
320 pages

Curiously for a novel set in Egypt, there is really very little about Egypt in the story. Even more curious to me is that in a novel in which most of the action occurs on a steamer traveling up the Nile, there is very little about the ship or its crew. Neither the captain nor his officers make an appearance and in fact are never even mentioned. There is mention of and brief appearances by some stewards and an engineer. Ms. Christie also writes of a manager aboard the ship without explaining just what his shipboard function is. Apparently he is something like a chief steward in charge of the passenger services side of the steamer's crew. In the 1978 movie with Peter Ustinov as Poirot, actor I. S. Johar is manager of the Steamer Karnak. After a cobra is found in a passenger cabin, he utters the unforgettable line, " Oh! Never have I seen such a reptile in a first class cabin!" At which point I immediately thought, but a second class cabin? Maybe. Deck passage? Who knows what those people will bring aboard. Unfortunately neither that line nor the reptile appear in the novel.

Plenty of other complicated plot details and red herrings do appear. Almost convoluted details and actions. Just as with most other Christie novels I've read, this story is heavily puzzle driven. Oh, there are interesting characters and character development but the emphasis is on the puzzle of the mystery. If that is why you read mysteries you will most likely enjoy this one. Over the years it has proven to be one of Agatha Christie's more popular ones. I did enjoy it but I enjoyed the movie more.

[Lisa Beth Hutchins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three stories. All of the clues right in front of me. And I didn't figure out a single one. And I was so sure about The Five Little Pigs!

[MK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Owned TBR Reading Challenge 18/26
An Anthology/Collection

The best Christie anthology of the three! I loved each mystery. Great slow burns with incredibly interesting setups and psychology.

Death on the Nile
5 Stars
Wow. This has got to be my second favorite Christie I’ve read. The build up, the weave of all the different clues and red herrings, an eerie and psycho character (won’t says who but, wow, I can’t wait to see the actor play them). This is one that, even if you guess it (not that I did), you can’t help but enjoy.

The ABC Murders
4.5 Stars.
A fun, serial killer premise. Although it wasn't my favorite reveal, there was a specific character study that was awesome.

Five Little Pigs
4.5 stars
The use of the nursery rhyme didn't really match the tone of the rest of the mystery for me, but I loved the idea of taking on a cold case. The inclusion of five suspects and a seemingly open-and-shut case allowed for a very focused narrative. Probably one of my favorites.

[Jenny Sparrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only read the Five Little Pigs, because I haven’t read it before. It’s definitely one of her best, like all the other novels chosen for this series (in this particular book, The Death on the Nile and The ABC Murders, both simply amazing). Alas, I watched the Suchet series of the Little Pigs and remember it quite well. Otherwise I would have enjoyed it tremendously, like I did the episode. Still, a worthy 5 stars.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5- Such a Poirot classic. The only reason it isn't a 5-star read for me is that I wish the guilty party's end was a bit different. Still, it was fitting enough and I do love dramatic, vain, Belgian men.

[Adam Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death on the Nile: Hercule Poirot is on holiday in Egypt on a Nile River cruise. Among the other passengers is Linnet Ridgeway, a rich, beautiful heiress honeymooning with her husband, Simon Doyle. Doyle was engaged to Linnet's best friend, Jacqueline de Bellefort before he met Linnet and broke it off. Heartbroken and wanting revenge on her former friend for stealing her fiancé, Jacqueline started following them everywhere they went. When Linnet gets killed, Jacqueline is the apparent suspect...or she would be if she didn't have an ironclad alibi, being in the presence of two other people at the time that Linnet was killed. So, who did it?

The thing about Agatha Christie is she really enjoyed playing with the mystery - making the killer the most unlikely person.  And then, when you think you've figured her out, in Death on the Nile, she makes the killer the most likely suspect that you dismissed as too obvious.  The most accurate adaptation to the spirit of her work might be to start with the familiar set-up but alter the clues subtly so that they point to someone else entirely in the end.  For instance, the nurse was alone all night with the unconscious woman - the nurse could quickly have snuck out and done the murder.

The ABC Murders: Often considered to be one of her best works. Agate Christie's 1936 novel: Hercule Poirot has received a letter after retirement, daring him to solve a case before a victim for every letter of the alphabet is killed (and it's not a spoiler title). Poirot notes that they are not in a Sherlock Holmes story, and the killer was not so considerate as to smoke a cigarette that could be identified from the ashes at the crime scene and then step in the ashes with shoes bearing a unique tread pattern.

The general reaction to the 2018 BBC adaption is that it makes a lot of changes to the material for the sake of being darker and edgier, which is unnecessary, like getting rid of Inspector Japp and Captain Hastings and making it so bleak. And that's not even getting into the replacement of Poirot's iconic moustaches with a generic-looking goatee beard. I'm not one for nitpicking facial hair, but I think people were being too harsh with the series. 

Five Little Pigs: Sixteen years ago, Caroline Crale was convicted of the murder of her husband, the painter Amyas Crale. Their daughter approaches Hercule Poirot to investigate the case. Poirot visits the five people present at the time of the murder, and each of them gives a slightly different story.

I love Christie's use of the Rashomon effect in this mystery. Poirot pieces together what happened by hearing the accounts of the five main witnesses to the crime. These accounts differ due to the tellers both needing to have a complete perspective on what happened and due to them frequently. I especially adore the unreliable narrator trope, which was used to affect this story significantly. Poirot pieces together what happened by hearing the accounts of the five main witnesses to the crime. These accounts differ because the tellers must have a complete perspective on what happened and frequently conceal information for their purposes.

[Moyar · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover is stunning. I appreciate that the second and third stories both have a table of contents. Death on the Nile is the better story of the three with Five Little Pigs coming at second, and The ABC Murders being the weakest story for me.

Death on the Nile starts off slowly, but gets great by chapter 13. I also found there to be way too many characters, and in hindsight, the reveal makes sense because of that. However, once things get going, it was a fun read, and the twist was amazing. It was a roller coaster to figure it out, back out, only to figure out I was right. I would read it again.

The ABC Murders was underwhelming and I wish it wasn't. It's an interesting premise and an even more interesting reveal, but I found this one boring. I don't want to say it's because it's in the POV of someone else, but I even found the BBC adaptation boring. I haven't read that many of Christie's novels, but so far this was my least favorite.

Five Little Pigs also started off slowly, but it was still worlds more interesting than The ABC Murders . It's organized into three books. Book One was slow, but Books Two and Three were where things picked up. I found most of the characters unlikable and they rambled a lot. I found the ending abrupt, but I'm glad I figured out the reveal!

[Jacob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume, which includes Death on the Nile, The ABC Murders, and Five Little Pigs, is yet another great collection of Hercule Poirot novels. This is top notch, classic mystery writing by perhaps the most famous writer of the genre. One thing that impresses me about her writing is the way AC keeps these stories fresh via plot, characters, points of view, narration, etc. Anyone (or group of people) could be guilty, including the narrator (not a spoiler - in these novels, anyways…). In point of case, the last of these (Five Little Pigs) has Poirot investigating a murder that happened sixteen years prior, in which the convicted perpetrator is dead. I thought I had this one figured out, but in the end I was sadly mistaken.

[Andrea Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished reading. It had been ages since I read Death on the Nile and I didn't remember how it ended, so it was lovely to revisit that story.

I 1st read The ABC Murders in middle school, bit have seen many adaptions of the work since then, so this story and it's outcome stuck in my mind. It was interesting to compare my memories of some of those more recent adaptions to the original story

I had not read Five Little Pigs before. It was one of the few Poirot novels I hadn't read before. I quite enjoyed the opportunity to read this one for the 1st time. I did not guess the correct killer until the end.

[David M. M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Barnes & Noble Leatherbound contains Death on the Nile, The ABC Murders, and Five Little Pigs. Death on the Nile is a fun read -- this being my second time through it -- but despite a series of red herrings isn't very interestingly structured. The atmosphere, of course, is wonderful, but it is hard to ignore the undercurrent of orientalism and racism inherent to the setting and the writing. My own controversial take is that the movie is better. The latter two books, however, were brand new to me, and I deeply appreciated the unique plotting at play. These surely are evidence of a master mysteryteller at the height of her powers.

[Deana Hamilton-Grummons · Rating 4 out of 5]

Death on the Nile 5 stars: This is hands down my favorite Christie story. The pace and story always kept me interested.

ABC Murders 4 stars: The pace was a little slow but overall a good story. Was surprised by who the murderer was in the end.

Five Little Pigs 4 stars: This one was a decent story. I wasn't overly thrilled with any of the characters. Was sure I knew who did it. And in the end, the story explains why I believed that. However, it was a good story if somewhat all over the place at times.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I give this book 3 stars only because it’s a compilation of 3 separate Hercule Poirot stories. Death on the Nile on its own was highly enjoyable and well thought out (4 stars). The ABC Murders was also enjoyable, but I felt it tapered off a bit at the end (3-1/2 stars). Five Little Pigs was quite intriguing and told in a unique way, but I feel that the climax was much too brief. The last couple pages alone almost ruined the preceding buildup (3 stars).

[Taunya Rosenquist · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun especially at the end. There were a few times I thought it dragged in the first 1/2. I read it for a pick for Taproots and bought the 1978 movie to go along with it to show them after. I was surprised that one of my favorite main characters from the book (Cornelia and Tims's Mom) was not in the movie along with a few others but it worked and was very similar to the book despite the fact it had less characters.

[Matthew Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cheated with this one. I listened to this on audiobook by the narration is so good it’s so worth it. Gotta say I knew who did it pretty early on so it wasn’t a big shock but a great book. Nonetheless, this is my third book by Agatha Christie. I also watched the movie on Max. Great movie great cast.

[Ashlee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agatha Christie is such a queen! This is my second book of hers and I just love them they always get me out of a reading slump.

I can't wait to add more of her books to my collection. They are full of drama and intrigue. I have always been kept on my toes when reading these mysteries.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Death on the Nile: I loved the beginning and the end, but at certain points in the middle, it felt like it dragged, and I started confusing some of the minor characters. Overall, a great read and the ending made up for anything mediocre for me!

[Karen Van Gundy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great mystery by the Queen. As always Poirot figures the mystery out long before I do and has a grand time explaining it all. I finished just in time to see the movie on opening.

[Kirsten]

-Death on the Nile -
-The ABC Murders - 5 out of 5 Stars
-Five Little Pigs -

[Selina · Rating 4 out of 5]

⌀4.5
• Death on the Nile 4.75
• The ABC murders 4.25
• Five little pigs 4.5

[Nancy Hammons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the first two stories, Death on the Nile and The ABC Murders, but the last one Five Little Pigs, I didn't like, it kind of dragged.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this as my first Agatha Christie novel. Her wit and social commentary were snappy and funny. I also thought I had the mystery figured out but ended up delightfully surprised by the twist in how the murder occurred, despite correctly guessing the perpetrators. The only thing that pulled me out of the story were some of the blatant sexism which shows the time in which it was written, but otherwise a very fun mystery reminiscent of my beloved Sherlock Holmes.

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection includes Death on the Nile, The ABC Murders, and The Three Little Pigs.

Loved them. I'm an Agatha Christie fan.

If you want to dabble into the fun world of Agatha Christie, this collection is a great place to start. All stories are very good and I love her twists and turns.