Hercule Poirot's Christmas: A Holiday Mystery

My main reservation was that this was rather a gloomy novel. It opens in a smoky, dismal train station and moves to a cold, gloomy estate home. There is also more blood than is usual in A.C. novels, which she did on purpose following a criticism from her brother-in-law. All in all, a clever plot (as usual), but not much to do with Poirot's Christmas or even Christmas in general. For a contemporary Agatha Christie-style mystery with all the Christmas trimmings, check out Christmas is Murder: A Rex Graves Mystery (Rex Graves Mysteries) by another British author. In spite of multiple murders, it makes for light and festive reading.

I've read 'em all--over 80. This is one of the best and most fun. Very tricky in a totally fair way....

What better way to spice up your holidays than with a little murder in the family?! Christie gives us her version of Scrooge in crusty ole curmudgeon Simeon Lee who has amassed a fortune in the diamond mines of South Africa. As Christmas approaches, he invites all his family, many of them long-estranged, to spend the holidays at his palatial estate Gorston Hall. Christie proceeds to do what she does best---she gathers a group of diverse characters related by blood or marriage, reveals their worst traits, and allows one person to be murdered while pointing the finger at each of the survivors. Simeon Lee has concocted a sadistic game to play on his family. The game begins when he allows his family to hear him give instructions to his lawyer to change his will. The game continues when he gives each of them a thorough dressing down for their weaknesses, stupidity, and greed. The game reaches a climax in Simeon's study where one person is found with a slashed throat."Murder for Christmas" was also published as "A Holiday for Murder" and "Hercule Poirot's Christmas." It is notable not only as an excellent example of the locked-room mystery, but also as the most bloody of the Christie mysteries. Noted for her cozy murders via poisoned chocolates and a foreign substance in the afternoon tea, in this one Christie gives us all the blood and gore she is capable of. Her brother-in-law had requested that she come up with a "good violent murder with lots of blood" and this is her answer to him hoping it will satsify his lust. Though not anywhere close to today's violence on tv, this is the bloodiest of the genteel novels Dame Agatha wrote.Unfortunately for the clever murderer, Hercule Poirot happens to be spending Christmas with the Chief Constable of the county and is therefore conveniently on hand to assist in sifting through the many red herrings and false identities that make this novel complex and exciting.If you're yearning for a good old-fashioned English country-house Christmas with lots of interesting characters on hand, you'll find this one most satisfying.

I can't believe this book is out of print! It's definitely one of the best mysteries Christie ever wrote. A feuding family gathers for a reunion during the Christmas holidays, summoned by their obnoxious old father, and when Dad turns up dead as the proverbial doornail, it has to be a family member that committed the crime. Well, it was a family member, all right... I'm not giving away the surprise, but suffice to say you can't always trust your nearest relations, and sometimes you don't even know who they are. Christie was a national treasure and this book is one of the prime jewels in the treasure chest. Somebody please reissue this book and fast. There's a whole generation out there waiting to discover a gem.