Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Without a shred of doubt, one of his fellow passengers is the murderer.
Isolated by the storm, detective Hercule Poirot must find the killer among a dozen of the dead man’s enemies, before the murderer decides to strike again.
This was another sneaky "read this library sale book at the reference desk so I don't have to buy it" read. I love Agatha Christie mysteries and find them very intriguing and twisty to read. I usually have a few suspects in mind when I read mysteries, but this one had me stumped. I couldn't really picture any of the passengers on the Orient Express as the murderer, and the ending was shocking yet satisfying. Is it weird that this made me want to ride one of those luxe retro trains? Retro fancy train travel sounds so luxurious and fun compared to "making money above passenger comfort" air travel. Charitable contests website Omaze used to have giveaways for tickets to the Orient Express train every so often.
SPOILERS paragraph since I want to talk about the ending/twist (highlight to read): I did NOT see that ending coming! ALL of them are the murderer?? The celebrity toddler's murder that the victim was responsible for was very obviously based on the Lindbergh baby kidnapping and murder, with the names slightly changed. I get why Christie would use that story, as it's so shocking and heartrending, but hadn't it just happened a short while before she wrote the book? Kind of insensitive to the family, no? So sad, and I wholeheartedly support the killers' actions. Each person was part of or connected to the toddler's family in some way, and they all planned the guy's murder together. It was so smart they way they did it too, and if it weren't for Hercule Poirot being on the train by accident, no one would have figured it out. I think Poirot's decision to say the "unknown" killer escaped was the correct one. That baby-killer deserved to be murdered.
Overall, I really recommend this book to anyone who likes murder mysteries. It's a classic for a reason. I haven't seen the movie so I'll have to check it out.
Score: 4 out of 5 stars
Read in: May 4
From: the library
Status: returned to the library
Representation: Hardly any, which is standard for Christie's books. Everyone is white, and there are working-class servants and train staff but they're clearly viewed in an upper-class sort of way. Everyone is European or American and viewed in very stereotypical ways (especially the Italian).
Cover notes: To be honest, I don't remember what 'my' copy's cover looked like. This one is close enough, as I do remember it having her big signature at the top.
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