Book Review: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

When a wealthy widow and member of the King’s Abbot community takes her own life by overdose and the next day her fiancé, Roger Ackroyd, is stabbed to death, the local villagers are left in shock as rumours begin to circulate regarding the mysterious deaths. Did Roger Ackroyd know too much? Was money the motive? Was it something more sinister?

Detective Hercule Poirot emerges from his recent retirement to solve the case of his friend, Roger. Finding the answers won’t be without its challenges as just a few clues are left behind, most alibis are solid and twists lie behind every corner.

Death, blackmail and an unexpected ending come together in this enthralling novel that belongs on the bookshelf of every murder mystery enthusiast.

I love Agatha Christie mysteries; they are classics for a reason. I bought this slim copy (supposedly published by Bibliotheca Classica, a streamlined version without even page breaks for new chapters) from Something Novel Booksellers during one of their sales. I don't remember if there's a book summary on the back of my book (the summary above I grabbed from Amazon) but I probably didn't read it; I just knew it was a Hercule Poirot book due to the cover, and that's all I needed to know. I like Poirot; he's a cracking detective and a nice man with a rather stereotypical French accent (he is Belgian). 

We go through a good chunk of the book without even meeting Poirot, instead focusing on the relevant cast of characters and other gossipy members of the village. There's the eponymous murder victim, stabbed in a room he had locked from the inside; his dependent sister-in-law (money-hungry and annoying) and niece (beautiful, pushed to marry her step-cousin), the big game hunter friend who had gifted Roger the murder weapon, the too-cheerful secretary, the suspicious and secret-keeping servant staff, and the no-show stepson (handsome, went through money like water, and vanished right after his stepfather was murdered). There's also our narrator the village doctor, who knew and treated everyone; his queen of gossip spinster sister, her cronies, and their mysterious foreign neighbor... 

This was an excellent and twisty mystery, and I did not see the ending coming! Spoilers, highlight to read: the narrator was the murderer??? HOLY SHIT AC'S MIND 🤯🤯🤯 And for him to hide the stepson to "protect" him from being arrested when really it was to throw suspicion on him!!! I don't super get why the doctor felt he had to kill Roger though? All he had to do was use chloroform or something to knock him out and steal the letter. Anyway, highly recommended to anyone who likes murder mysteries!

Score: ★★★★ out of 5 stars
Spice score: 0
Read in: March 14
From: Something Novel Booksellers

Genres/classification: mystery, murder mystery, whodunnit, crime, English literature

Trigger warnings: murder, blood, suicide, drug overdose suicide, drug addiction, blackmail, classism

You can read my reviews of the other Agatha Christie books I've read by clicking on my Agatha Christie tag below.