The Queen of Mystery has come to Harper Collins! Agatha Christie, the acknowledged mistress of suspense—creator of indomitable sleuth Miss Marple, meticulous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, and so many other unforgettable characters—brings her entire oeuvre of ingenious whodunits, locked room mysteries, and perplexing puzzles to Harper Paperbacks. In Dumb Witness, Hercule Poirot investigates the very suspicious death of an elderly spinster who, fearing the very worst, had written to the great detective prior to her demise.
Dumb Witness
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“Agatha Christie’s ability to devise intricate plots, coupled with her understanding of human nature—at its best and worst—have made her tales timeless.” (Jan Burke, award-winning author of the Irene Kelly mysteries)
“Novelty, intriguing character types, and ingenuity. ” (New York Times)
“One of Poirot’s most brilliant achievements.” (Glasgow Herald)
“Novelty, intriguing character types, and ingenuity. ” (New York Times)
“One of Poirot’s most brilliant achievements.” (Glasgow Herald)
From the Back Cover
Everyone blamed Emily Arundell’s accident on a rubber ball left on the stairs by her frisky terrier. But the more she thought about her fall, the more convinced she became that one of her relatives was trying to kill her.…
On April 17th she wrote her suspicions in a letter to Hercule Poirot. Mysteriously, he didn’t receive the letter until June 28th…by which time Emily was already dead.…
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Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
As usual Agatha Christie brings her little Belgian detective to solve a murder that may not be a murder. But take nothing for granted in this one as the crime changes and the characters set a winding trail. A wonderful read
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.6 out of 5 stars
14 reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Poirot mystery
Sep 29 2011
By Hal Jordan
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
This is an excellent mystery, first published in 1937, which was the heart of Agatha Christie's prime. Hercule Poirot receives a letter from an elderly woman who is seeking to hire him, but it turns out the woman had passed away several weeks before. Was her death from natural causes or was it murder? Not hard to guess the answer to that one! I found the mystery sufficiently baffling and the resolution satisfying.
Captain Hastings also appears in this novel, playing -- as always -- Watson to Poirot's Holmes. I've never quite figured out whether there is a way of accounting for Hastings's appearances -- he's there in most of the short stories, but in relatively few of the novels. At one point, if I'm remembering correctly, he shares a flat with Poirot, although not in this novel. Hastings is presumably living off a private income with plenty of time on his hands because he is always available to travel with Poirot in unraveling the mystery. Where he lives and what he does when he is not with Poirot is not discussed. In fact, the details of Poirot's life when he is not detecting are left unmentioned in this novel, and barely discussed in any of the others. Clearly, it wasn't Christie's style to get into what she surely must have considered nonessential issues.
While I would not put this among the very best of Christie's books -- The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, The A.B.C. Murders, or And Then There Were None would rank above it, in my view -- it is still very good and I would highly recommend it. Finally, you should note that this book was originally published under the title "Poirot Loses a Client."
Captain Hastings also appears in this novel, playing -- as always -- Watson to Poirot's Holmes. I've never quite figured out whether there is a way of accounting for Hastings's appearances -- he's there in most of the short stories, but in relatively few of the novels. At one point, if I'm remembering correctly, he shares a flat with Poirot, although not in this novel. Hastings is presumably living off a private income with plenty of time on his hands because he is always available to travel with Poirot in unraveling the mystery. Where he lives and what he does when he is not with Poirot is not discussed. In fact, the details of Poirot's life when he is not detecting are left unmentioned in this novel, and barely discussed in any of the others. Clearly, it wasn't Christie's style to get into what she surely must have considered nonessential issues.
While I would not put this among the very best of Christie's books -- The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, The A.B.C. Murders, or And Then There Were None would rank above it, in my view -- it is still very good and I would highly recommend it. Finally, you should note that this book was originally published under the title "Poirot Loses a Client."
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Agatha Christie Doesn't Disappoint with Dumb Witness.
Mar 15 2012
By Toni McCoy
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
What could be suspicious about the death of a wealthy old lady living outside London? Nothing--except that this old lady had just changed her will leaving everything to her mediocre housekeeper and leaving out her neices and nephew. That, and the fact that she had just written a letter to Hercule Poirot that her maid had neglected to mail until after her death. This has everything we love Agatha Christie for, plus a delightful dog, leaving no doubt in my mind that the author had had a few well-loved dogs in her life. As a body, I think all of Mrs. Christie'w works deserve five stars and this is as readable as her other works with the expected twist at the end, but the twist is not quite as unforseeable as in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd or Ten Little Indians, so I gave it four stars.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not So Dumb
Jan 11 2012
By Jeff Farrow
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Paperback
DUMB WITNESS is the 3rd Agatha Christie mystery that henges on a seance & spiritualism (Peril At End House, The Sittaford Mystery--the 4th if you include the weird goings-on in The Pale Horse.) Was Agatha Christie a Spiritualist? "No" is the short answer, but she left the door partly open on the question. I'd call her an open minded skeptic--hey, just like me.
DUMB WITNESS is vintage Christie. You've got the two very odd, spinster spitiuralists who see ghosts everywhere; a Matriarchal Aunt who's got the dough; a good-looking sister & brother who want Aunties' money NOW; suspicous foreign husband married to Aunty's other neice--and a cute little dog named Bob. Oh, yes--last, but definitely not least--the legendary detective Hercule Poirot and his assistant/friend Captain Hastings.
Hercule Poirot, not noted for his affinity with animals (too messy for his obsession with order & neatness), gets custody of Bob when the dog's owner is murdered. During the course of the investigation, Poirot is won over to the pet. How the "egg-shaped" Belgian private detective solves the crime & what happens to Bob is learned & all is revealed.
Poirot & readers find out that Bob is not at all a DUMB WITNESS.
DUMB WITNESS is vintage Christie. You've got the two very odd, spinster spitiuralists who see ghosts everywhere; a Matriarchal Aunt who's got the dough; a good-looking sister & brother who want Aunties' money NOW; suspicous foreign husband married to Aunty's other neice--and a cute little dog named Bob. Oh, yes--last, but definitely not least--the legendary detective Hercule Poirot and his assistant/friend Captain Hastings.
Hercule Poirot, not noted for his affinity with animals (too messy for his obsession with order & neatness), gets custody of Bob when the dog's owner is murdered. During the course of the investigation, Poirot is won over to the pet. How the "egg-shaped" Belgian private detective solves the crime & what happens to Bob is learned & all is revealed.
Poirot & readers find out that Bob is not at all a DUMB WITNESS.
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4.6 out of 5 stars
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