The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

by Agatha Christie

The peaceful English village of King's Abbot was stunned. First the attractive widow Ferrars died from an overdose of veronal. Then--not twenty-four hours later--Roger Ackroyd, the man she planned to marry, was murdered in his own study.

Hercule Poirot, the redoubtable Belgian detective, questioned Ackroyd's nearest and dearest, one by one. "You will find," he said slowly, "that all such cases resemble each other in one thing: everyone has something to hide..."
(back cover)

Reviewed by annieb123 on

5 of 5 stars

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Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is the fourth Hercule Poirot mystery by Dame Agatha Christie. Originally published in 1926, this gift edition was released 25th Oct 2022 by Penguin Random House on their Pushkin Vertigo imprint. It's 156 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats. 

This is one of the classics of crime literature and most readers who enjoy the genre can remember the delight of reading that shock twist ending. Now re-released in a new format with high quality production values and typesetting, I really enjoyed reading it again with "fresh eyes". I still enjoyed Poirot doing what he does so well, and as always, I noticed a few new details with every re-read. 

It's a well written subtle and beautifully engineered plot. The denouement and resolution are classics. At the time it was written, it was a shocking departure. If it seems less so now, it's because so many authors who have come after Christie have borrowed her twists and tricks. 

Five stars. Even for readers who have read it before, it makes a splendid re-read. 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes. 

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