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Book Review of Death on the Nile (Hercule Poirot, Bk 15)

Death on the Nile (Hercule Poirot, Bk 15)
perryfran avatar reviewed on + 1223 more book reviews


Over the years, I've read several Agatha Christie novels but by no means have I come close to reading her entire output. I read quite a lot of her back in the 70s and 80s but since then I have only read her very sparsely. Death on the Nile is one of her most popular writings and I'm glad I finally got around to reading it. I thought this was one of the best of the Poirot novels in which he faces a real challenge in solving the case. Linnet Ridgeway is a glamorous heiress worth millions. Her best friend, Jackie, arrives at her estate with the news that she is engaged to a charming but broke man named Simon Doyle. Linnet takes a liking to Doyle and is able to woo him and make him her husband, much to the chagrin of Jackie. They decide to honeymoon in Egypt where they meet Poirot along with a number of other characters including Linnet's trust manager and Jackie who has followed the couple to Egypt. Jackie swears vengeance on Linnet and Simon and during a scuffle shoots Simon in the leg. Then Linnet is found shot to death while she was sleeping. So can Poirot figure out who did it? Jackie appears to have an alibi but there are others that may have a motive to kill Linnet. Poirot of course is able to wade through the clues and misdirections to solve this very convoluted case.

I really enjoyed this one as I usually do with most of Christie's novels. I was able to come up with the right suspect but I wasn't sure how the crime was pulled off. I really need to read more of Christie and hopefully I will sometime soon. There is also a recent movie version of this novel starring Kenneth Branagh as Poirot and Gal Gadot as Linnet. Although the movie hasn't received the best reviews, it is available on HBO so I'll be watching it soon.