Peril at End House: A Hercule Poirot Mystery: The Official Authorized Edition

Great mix of characters. Lots of twists and potential suspects. I am happy to say that I guessed the real killer but not the whole story. Typical Agatha Christie genius.

Peril at End House, the eighth book in the Hercule Poirot cozy mystery series, was selected as the next book to read in the April 2018 Agatha Christie Readathon that I'm hosting on my blog at This Is My Truth Now. Four weeks of books from all her different series and lots of fun with her canon. I'm really glad this book won the poll as I hadn't read it before. And who wouldn't love a book with a title containing the words 'peril' and 'end' ?Poirot has never been more sarcastic and witty than in this book. It's charming but at the same time, if he said the things to me that he says to his sidekick, I'm not sure I'd turn the other cheek so quickly. But it makes his complex personality all the more interesting and readable! It's always amusing to see how he falls into the capers he investigates... in this one, he stumbles upon a woman who thinks she's just been hit with a tiny piece of falling debris, but it's a bullet. Then he learns someone is trying to kill her -- unsuccessfully three times prior to this experience. Who has that kind of luck? Both the victim for surviving all the attempts and the villain for not succeeding.The cast is a great size in this mystery. There are a number of servants, guests and friends in the house where main character, Nick, a woman with little remaining family, is trying to find her way. In typical Christie fashion, the suspicion is cast on everyone from Nick's suitors to her cousin, her best friend to her lawyer. Or is there a team of killers? It gets more complex as we learn she was set to inherit more money than even she'd known about; now there's a motivation to kill, Poirot thinks. What if it's not about the money you currently have, but the money you're set to get... so let's kill off a few people in a row and make that chain happen more quickly. I'm not giving away any spoilers here, this is discussed fairly early on in the novel. But knowing that makes the details even more delicious. So does the different types of romance happening in the book, as well as the visit from the Australian couple who seem to know something more than they are letting on! So many wonderful little nuggets in this 100-year-old detective wonder. It's a bit sad, too, when you see what happens at the end. People are complicated and really need guidance in life, and it was interesting to see how Poirot can fill that role sometimes.My only slight concern with this one and why I give it a ~4 is that the ending was a little confusing at the same time as open to a bit of interpretation. I can't say more than that without giving thigns away--and it's still a strong mystery--but I like my Poirot answers to be more concrete. He always leaves a few dangling threads but I was afraid if I pulled too hard on this one, I'd be left with a rather stringy garment, and who wants that? All in all, I'm really happy with this one. Descriptions are spot on and witty. I felt like I was at the house. The fireworks made it more spooky. The mysterious cousin who was really never intended to be there makes things even more interesting, especially when you learn some interesting facts about this family and their history.My favorite part was the list of suspects draw out in the book like a chart... really pulls it together, but also helps readers decide for themselves whodunit?!?! I may have to re-read them all this summer when I have a bit more time! Thanks to everyone participating on the blog with this Readathon!

A typical Agatha Christy Poirot book. Compelling and fun read.

So far, I have read eight Hercule Poirot books (in order, from the beginning) and this one captures my attention like none other. I read it in only a few hours because I simply could not put it down. As always, the ending was as surprising as it was interesting.

I just discovered Agatha Christie and Poirot this year, and have been obsessed. I enjoyed this book but I found the ending to be a little bit crammed. There were too many twists, which I think took away from the main storyline at the end. I did really like the fact that Hastings is in this book, I find his love/hate bromance with Poirot hilarious and endearing. These two characters have such great chemistry that it alone can liven up a whole book.As far as the other characters, I thought they could be a little bit more developed. I'm not good with names, I love when Agatha Christie describes her characters in such detail that I don't even have to learn their names I just remember their characteristics. I found that I did have to learn the names of most of the characters in this book, which was fine.If we break this book into 3 acts, I'd say the first 2 acts were slow but full of hidden details that are easy to miss. The final act was crammed full of stuff and very fast moving. It's the equivalent of climbing up a slow hill for a very long time only to fall off a cliff! Overall, it's a great read. The mystery is solved and all your dying questions are answered. The twists are not forced like a lot of modern mysteries, there is a method to Christie's madness. If the final act was a teeny bit less busy and the characters were a little more complex, I would have given this 5 stars.

Twists you cannot imagine, in a story that keeps you reading and not wanting to stop. We would all dream of a house with this location, living a lifestyle with money, and freedom to travel. Young and old characters come together to make another fascinating book. Jim Weaver

Not bad…a little far fetched at times and it dragged on at times. For the most part, a good read.

While I enjoyed the twists and turns in this story, the voice did not sound like Agatha Christie stories I’ve read in the past. Did she have ghost writers? The Herculean summary at the end reveals a surprise or two. In spite of the voice not sounding like Agatha Christie, the plot was engaging and Poirot did not disappoint.

I remember seeing this dramatized on TV but couldn’t recall who done what so I thought I’d read the book. It feels like a very different style than many of the stories in this series, although Poirot has frequently been away from home. The conclusion is a double whammy and not predictable. Highly recommended.

Buon libro di evasione per mantenere in allenamento l'inglese. Tuttavia non va dimenticato che è un libro molto datato e quindi le espressioni idiomatiche non sono attualissime.

Generally I enjoyed this read and would recommend it to any one liking a twist in the tail. As always Mrs Christie never lets us down .

einer meiner Lieblingskrimis

All the intro is there at the back of the book, so I am not repeating here again.Coming to the story, the storyline itself attracted me to read the book and yes, the book was worth every minute I spent reading, BREATHLESSLY!Poirot, I guess, was the first time, he was so close to defeat as the murderer outwitted him twice in his presence yet he outwits by his brilliant logic and reasoning and ends the book perfectly. All the characters were good and Christie creates a very good impression on us that the innocent person is the murderer but in truth, someone else is.There were good links and connections and the ending was unpredictable! By the way, another add on, the book is not too slow or too fast, just a perfect pace and not too boring.Please do read this book, do not miss it.