Christie’s Best and Most Unforgettable Works

I believe that I have read enough of Agatha Christie’s novels by now to finally compile a list of her best whodunits of all time. These ten titles are selected by their themes (for example, locked-room murders and nursery rhymes) and contain some of the best plots and twists among the 80 odd books she wrote. I will focus on the full-length novels; that is why you will not find any of her short story collections or plays featured here.

Here is, in no particular order, what I consider as Agatha Christie’s ten best titles of all time (contains spoilers). What are your favourite titles?

1. Ordeal by Innocence

One of the more famous examples of murders committed in retrospect. Two years before the main event, Arthur Calgary went on an expedition out of England without realising that he was the alibi needed by a man, Jacko Argyle, to clear himself of a murder charge. Argyle died in prison and when Calgary returns, he is determined to clear Argyle’s name from murder. Psychology of the innocent is another main theme in this novel, as the title cleverly describes it.

Titles with similar theme: Five Little Pigs, Elephants Can Remember, Sleeping Murder

2. And Then There Were None (also known as Ten Little Indians)

We all know how Christie loves to use nursery rhymes in her works, and this is one of the classic titles. Ten people, each with a guilty secret to hide, are invited to an isolated island by a man known as U.N. Owen. One by one, the ten guests are killed, the methods following the rhyme exactly. I have always felt that this novel has one of the most ingenious plots ever written by Christie.

Titles with similar theme: Hickory Dickory Dock, A Pocket Full of Rye, Five Little Pigs

3. The Mysterious Affair at Styles

This novel is unforgettable in the sense that it was the first whodunit written by Christie, which served as the foundation for her many other wonderful works today. This novel introduces us to Hercule Poirot, the little detective with egg-shaped head and the formidable moustaches. Overall, the plot, method and solution are surprisingly simple.

4. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (also known as Alibi)

Ah-ha. Much can be said about this one. Christie is said to be the first crime fiction author in history to make the first-person narrator as her culprit, effectively placing this novel as one of the most controversial whodunits of all time. Christie was even accused of cheating her readers with the shocking solution; however, I believe this is the title that redefines the modern crime fiction genre.

Titles with similar theme: Endless Night

5. Murder on the Orient Express (also known as Murder in the Calais Coach)

Yet another title that is well-known for it’s plot twist. Detective Hercule Poirot boarded a train, the Orient Express to Istanbul but on the way a passenger, Ratchett was murdered in his cabin. Again, Christie utilizes the “locked room murder” concept together with the manipulation of time to create false alibi for the murderer(s). Not much action takes place in this book; most of the work were done by interviewing the suspects and Poirot’s little grey cells did the rest of the job. This title is also one of the few in which Poirot allowed the murderer to escape justice in the end.

Titles with similar theme: Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Murder at the Vicarage, Hercule Poirot’s Christmas, Murder in Mesopotamia

6. Death on the Nile

One of the titles adapted into a movie, Death on the Nile is well-known for it’s exotic scenes on the Nile River and Cairo in Egypt. The murder took place on a cruise ship where a beautiful young heiress was murdered, apparently for revenge. However, the “motive vs. opportunity” part poses the biggest problem to Poirot; all the characters with the strongest motives to kill had unbreakable alibi. This title is not one of my favourites, but the ending is quite romantic.

7. They Came to Baghdad

And who says that Christie’s works are all just about crimes? While we are still on the topic of romance, one cannot forget They Came to Baghdad. There are no serious murders here (although we have a lot on government conspiracies) yet it is a funny and enjoyable read. Fancy an adventure deep into the Middle East where you can meet the fakirs and British double agents? Then take a break from the usual Poirots and Marples and dig your hands into this one!

Titles with similar theme: The Man in the Brown Suit

8. The A.B.C Murders

Finally, Captain Hastings is back! This time we have a serial killer at work. The victims were apparently chosen by their names (initials A, B, and so on) and a copy of the A.B.C railway guide is left on each of the crime scenes, opened at that particular alphabet’s page. Sounds like a creepy serial killer, but all it takes is a chance remark from Hastings to put Poirot on the right track to solve the case. This is one of the titles which feature multiple murders by one killer.

Titles with similar theme: And Then There Were None, Death Comes as the End

9. Death in the Clouds (also known as Death in the Air)

First we have murder on a train, then on a ship. Now we have one committed on an airplane. Seems like Christie never runs out of ideas for her crime scenes, and in this case, the method of murder as well. The victim here supposedly died as a result of a poison dart fired from a blowpipe in the middle of a cabin full of passengers. This “murder in a room full of witnesses”  theme is also used in some of her other works.

Titles with similar theme: Three Act Tragedy, Sparkling Cyanide

10. Sleeping Murder

And finally, no list is complete without the dear old Miss Jane Marple. With her uncanny ability to see through the seemingly most insignificant details, Miss Marple helps Gwenda and Giles Reed solve a murder that took place almost twenty years ago in their house, although she advised them to “let sleeping murders lie”. There are many more good cases featuring Miss Marple, such as 4.50 from Paddington and The Mirror Cracked from Side to Side, but this novel is her last one to be published.