Thirteen at Dinner
A Hercule Poirot Mystery
By Agatha Christie
Read by Hugh Fraser The Audio Partners Publishing Corp., (2003)
An Unabridged Recording on Four Cassettes
ISBN: 1-57270-311-3
Genre: Mystery
Reviewed by Rochelle Caviness - July 27, 2003
Hercule Poirot's little grey cells get a real workout in Agatha Christie's Thirteen at Dinner. In most of Christie's Poirot mysteries, the Belgium detective is an outsider who comes in to solve the case. However, in this gripping mystery, Poirot is at the center of the case before it even begins...
The story centers upon Jane Wilkinson who desperately wants to divorce her husband, who is being most uncooperative in the matter. Using all her feminine wiles and skills as an actress, she tries to induce Poirot to step in and convince her husband that he is waging a battle he cannot win. After all, if necessary she can always gain her freedom by killing him! Poirot naturally assumes that Wilkinson is making an idle threat, but he must reevaluate his assumption when her husband, Lord Edgware, turns up dead.
Valiantly, Poirot takes it upon himself to get to the root of the matter and ferret out the real murderer - no matter who he, or she, happens to be. He is aided, during this investigation, by his esteemed associated, Captain Hastings. Together, the two men prove invaluable to their long time friend, Chief Inspector Japp. Technically, at least, Japp is charged with leading the investigation of the crime.
Wilkinson is a prime suspect. Not only had she threatened to kill her husband, but she also had a motive in the form of another gentleman who was waiting in the wings for her. The case seems so clear cut, but did she do it? The more Poirot digs into the case, the higher the number of possible suspects grows, as does the body count!
Thirteen at Dinner is not only an outstanding Christie mystery, but it is also a case that showcases the full extent of Poirot's talents. The writing is crisp and well-paced, and it will take all your deductive reasoning to figure out, before Poirot does, who the real killer is. Be forewarned, figuring out who 'done it' before Poirot will not be easy. This book is so full of red herrings and misdirections, that even Poirot has trouble solving it!
This audio edition of Thirteen at Dinner is part of the Audio Editions Mystery Masters series of unabridged recordings of celebrated mysteries. Thirteen at Dinner is available in both cassette and CD formats. This audiobook is impeccably read by Hugh Fraser who plays Captain Hastings in the PBS-TV Mystery! series' productions of Agatha Christie's Poirot mysteries.
Please note that Thirteen at Dinner was originally published in the United Kingdom in 1933 under the title, Lord Edgware Dies.
Click Here for a complete list of all the books written by Agatha Christie.
Related Reviews:
Evil Under the Sun, by Agatha Christie.
Poirot is on vacation when the lovely Arlena Marshall is found strangled to death. In a flash, he is on the case. With panache he puts his 'little grey cells' to work as he wades through the plethora of likely suspects.
The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, by Agatha Christie.
A collection of six Christmas-themed short mystery stories. Five feature indomitable Belgium detective, Hercule Poirot and one Miss Jane Marple. (Large Print)
