CBR17 BINGO: Border, because the murder takes place just after the train passes over the Yugo-Slavian border, resulting in there being no local police onboard. Also, the collection of guests on the train cross many borders into many different nationalities.
Last year I received a beautiful Folio Society edition of Murder on the Orient Express for Christmas and have been waiting for just the right time to re-read this mystery. When I planned a train trip across the Canadian Rockies, I knew the time was ripe! What better way to enjoy this classic than on a train with an adult beverage or a spot of tea?
Reading a mystery where you know the ending could be considered a let-down, but I can’t recall a time when I didn’t already know the solution to Murder on the Orient Express. I’m a long-time fan of the 1974 film, but I don’t remember when I first saw it or whether I ever had that “aha!” moment of realization. Perhaps it was spoiled for me, as is common with well-known mysteries; nevertheless, I could re-read and re-watch this story endlessly, so captivated am I by the charm and feel of it.
And what’s not to be captivated by? It has the romance of train travel along with an international cast of characters: an American businessman and his English valet; a Russian princess and her German maid; a Hungarian count and his wife; a Swedish missionary; an Italian-American car salesman; an English governess. Add to the mix a Belgian detective and a Greek doctor and you have a veritable United Nations.
One thing that struck me more with this reading was the humor. Agatha Christie can be a bit mischievous, which comes out in several passages. When Hercule Poirot introduces himself to Hector MacQueen, the murdered man’s secretary, Poirot asks whether he has heard his name before. MacQueen replies, “Why, it does seem kind of familiar–only I always thought it was a woman’s dressmaker.” In another instance, when Poirot describes himself to the Countess Andrenyi as an “international detective,” she responds, “You belong to the League of Nations?” Christie, who once described her most famous creation as an “ego-centric little creep,” seems to enjoy knocking Poirot down a peg. Still, Poirot carries that same mischief with a dry commentary and a boyish twinkle. After providing Dr. Constantine with a convoluted explanation of how the murder could have happened, he responds to the doctor’s enthusiastic approval by saying, “You think so? I am glad. It sounded to me a little like the nonsense.”
This is a fun journey no matter how many times you’ve heard the story. While I assume everyone knows the solution by now, I won’t spoil it for the rare person who might still be in for that treat. I’ll just quote Poirot’s observations about the suggestive clues: “the position of Mrs. Hubbard’s sponge-bag, the name of Mrs. Armstrong’s mother, the detective methods of M. Hardman, the suggestion of M. MacQueen that Ratchett himself destroyed the charred note we found, Princess Dragomiroff’s Christian name, and a grease spot on a Hungarian passport.”
Put all that together, and you have one crackin’ mystery!
Side note, the illustrations by Andrew Davidson in this edition are gorgeous!