BOOK REVIEW: Curtain
Author: Agatha Christie
184 Pages
Copyright: Written 1940′s, published 1975
Highly Recommended Read!
* * * * ( 5/ 5 ) rating
The last case for Hercule Poirot. Infirmed and dying, H. Poirot enlists friend and long time colleague Captain Arthur Hastings as his eyes and years to apprehend a serial killer Poirot will only identified as “X” – a murderer who has never committed a crime.
H. Poirot knows a murder will occur at the Styles Court – a country house turned bed and breakfast and that one of the eclectic guests is “X”. Masterfully written all are suspect as the ruthless “X” : Dr. John Franklin, a workaholic research chemist; Barbara Franklin, his invalid wife of questionable infirmities; Judith Hastings, Franklin’s laboratory assistant and head-strong daughter of Capt. Hastings; Nurse Craven, a somewhat unsympathetic yet observant nurse to Mrs. Franklin; Sir William Boyd Carrington, a pompous but likable former governor of India; Major Allerton, a crass womanizer; Stephen Norton, a nervous bird-watcher; Colonel Toby Luttrell, quiet owner of Styles Court; Mrs. Luttrell, his domineering wife; Elizabeth Cole, a handsome woman with deep secrets.
The more I read the more my suspicions jumped from character to character. All, and none, fit the profile of a murderer. Not until H. Poirot’s final manuscript did all the pieces fall into place. Every detail and clue are meticulously revealed and delightfully, true to form, Agatha Christie provides a final twist no one would have foreseen – except Poirot himself.
A wonderful read and highly recommended.
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About Suzanne Fyhrie Parrott