Bound for the Riviera, detective Hercule Poirot has boarded Le Train Bleu, an elegant, leisurely means of travel, free of intrigue. Then he meets Ruth Kettering. The American heiress - bailing out of a doomed marriage - is en route to reconcile with her former lover. But by morning, her private affairs are made public when she is found murdered in her luxury compartment. The rumour of a strange man loitering in the victim's shadow is all Poirot has...

"Beautiful Caroline Crale was convicted of poisoning her husband, but just like the nursery rhyme, there were five other 'little pigs' who could have done it: Philip Blake (the stockbroker), who went to market; Meredith Blake (the amateur herbalist), who stayed at home; Elsa Greer (the three-time divorcee), who had her roast beef; Cecilia Williams (the devoted governess), who had none; and Angela Warren (the disfigured sister), who cried all the way...

"When Cora Lansquenet is savagely murdered with a hatchet, the extraordinary remark she made the previous day at her brother Richard's funeral suddenly takes on a chilling significance. At the reading of Richard's will, Cora was clearly heard to say, 'It's been hushed up very nicely, hasn't it ... But he was murdered, wasn't he?' In desperation, the family solicitor turns to Hercule Poirot to unravel the mystery" -- Page [4] cover.

"Beautiful young Elinor Carlisle stood serenely in the dock, accused of the murder of Mary Gerrard, her rival in love. The evidence was damning: only Elinor had the motive, the opportunity, and the means to administer the fatal poison. Yet, inside the hostile courtroom, only one man still presumed Elinor was innocent until proven guilty. Hercule Poirot was all that stood between Elinor and the gallows..." -- Page [4] cover.

"The Holidays are anything but merry when a family reunion is marred by murder--and the brilliant Belgian investigator is quickly on the case On Christmas Eve at Gorston Hall, the Lee family's festivities are shattered by a deafening crash of furniture and a high-pitched wailing scream. Upstairs--in a locked bedroom--the tyrannical patriarch Simeon Lee lies dead in a pool of blood, his throat slashed. When Hercule Poirot offers to assist, he finds...

"Among the towering red cliffs of Petra, like some monstrous swollen Buddha, sits the corpse of Mrs. Boynton. A tiny puncture mark on her wrist is the only sign of the fatal injection that killed her. With only twenty-four hours available to solve the mystery, Hercule Poirot recalled a chance remark he'd overheard back in Jerusalem: 'You see, don't you, that she's got to be killed?' Mrs. Boynton was, indeed, the most detestable woman he'd ever met...."...

Thirteen guests gather for drinks at actor Charles Cartwright's seaside escape. Benign Reverend Babbington, who rarely imbibes, takes one sip of his beverage and keels over dead. Soon after Sir Bartholomew Strange convenes the same party and meets his own end after swallowing port. One death could be natural, but two mean murder. Hercule Poirot, who was present at both affairs, stages a third soirée to catch the cocktail killer.

At last, a single volume that gathers together all of the short stories featuring Agatha Christie's most famous creation, Hercule Poirot. The dapper, mustache-twirling little Belgian with the egg-shaped head and curious mannerisms has solved some of the most puzzling crimes of the century-and, in his own humble opinion, is "probably the greatest detective in the world." In this complete collection of more than 50 stories, ranging from short tales...

The world's most famous detective returns in this ingenious, stylish, and altogether delicious mystery from the author of the instant bestseller The Monogram Murders. "What I intend to say to you will come as a shock..." With these words, Lady Athelinda Playford -- one of the world's most beloved children's authors -- springs a surprise on the lawyer entrusted with her will. As guests arrive for a party at her Irish mansion, Lady Playford has...

"Hercule Poirot returns home after an agreeable luncheon to find an angry woman waiting to berate him outside his front door. Her name is Sylvia Rule, and she demands to know why Poirot has accused her of the murder of Barnabas Pandy, a man she has neither heard of nor ever met... Poirot is equally shocked, because he too has never heard of any Barnabas Pandy, and he certainly did not send the letter in question. He cannot convince Sylvia Rule of...