"I like a good detective story, but they begin in the wrong place! They begin with the murder. But the murder is the end. The story begins long before that." So remarks esteemed criminologist Mr. Treves. Truer words have never been spoken, for a psychopathic killer has insinuated himself, with cunning manipulation, into a quiet village on the river Tern. But who is his intended victim? What are his unfathomable motives? And how and when will he reach...

Well-known mystery writer Ariadne Oliver organizes a Murder Hunt as the main event at the Fete held on the grounds of Nasse House. Every detail is arranged -- and the stage is set for murder. Suspecting that something isn't quite right Ariadne Oliver telephones her old friend, Hercule Poirot, for help. Her instincts are soon proved correct when the "pretend" murder victim is discovered playing the scene for real, a rope wrapped tightly around her...

The Sittaford Mystery is Dame Agatha at her most intriguing, as a séance in a snowbound house predicts a particularly grisly murder. In a remote house in the middle of Dartmoor, six shadowy figures huddle around a table for a seance. Tension rises as the spirits spell out a chilling message: "Captain Trevelyan... dead... murder." Is this black magic or simply a macabre joke? The only way to be certain is to locate Captain Trevelyan. Unfortunately,...

Mark Easterbrook investigates the brutal death of Father Gorman, a Catholic priest who had just heard the deathbed confession of longtime town gossip Mrs. Davis. On his body, Father Gorman had a list of names, supposedly related to Mrs. Davis' confession. As Mark delves deep into the mystery, he uncovers a series of startling secrets.

The tiny Caribbean island of St. Honoré is a tropical paradise. But for Miss Marple, enjoying a well-earned rest from her busy life in the village of St. Mary Mead, it is a place where nothing ever seems to happen. That is, until old Major Palgrave tells her the strange story of a suspected double murderer. Just as Major Palgrave is about to show the murderer's picture to her, he looks over her shoulder, appears startled and, and changes the subject....

Novel is set in a restored London hotel which continues to court a pre-World War II clientele to mix with guests who exhibit changing contemporary values. The plot centers on the efforts of Miss Jane Marple to uncover a gang of criminals who are using Bertram's as their home base and endangering the lives of innocent guests.

An old woman in a nursing home speaks of a child buried behind the fireplace& When Tommy and Tuppence visited an elderly aunt in her gothic nursing home, they thought nothing of her mistrust of the doctors; after all, Ada was a very difficult old lady. But when Mrs Lockett mentioned a poisoned mushroom stew and Mrs Lancaster talked about "something behind the fireplace", Tommy and Tuppence found themselves caught up in an unexpected adventure involving...

It's seven in the morning. The Bantrys wake to find the body of a young woman in their library. She is wearing an evening dress and heavy makeup, which is now smeared across her cheeks. But who is she? How did she get there? And what is the connection with another dead girl, whose charred remains are later discovered in an abandoned quarry? The respectable Bantrys invite Miss Marple into their home to investigate. Amid rumors of scandal, she baits...

Hercule Poirot is vacationing on the Cornish coast when he meets Nick Buckly. Nick is the young and reckless mistress of End House, an imposing structure perched on the rocky cliffs of St. Loo. Poirot has taken a particular interest in the young woman who has recently narrowly escaped a series of life-threatening accidents. Something tells the Belgian sleuth that these so-called accidents are more than just mere coincidences or a spate of bad luck....