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fishreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
"The Mysterious Affair at Styles" opens with the character of Lieutenant Hastings retelling the events of how he happened to be invited to Styles Court by his acquaintance John Cavendish, the stepson of Styles Court's current owner, Mrs. Inglethorp. Mrs. Inglethorp, a lady in her seventies, became the family matriarch after the death of her first husband, Mr. Cavendish, who left the majority of his wealth to his wife instead of his two sons. While Mrs. Inglethorp might have been perfectly generous to her two stepsons, her second marriage to Arthur Inglethorp, a man twenty years younger, made the rest of the family quite displeased.
A few days into Lieutenant Hastings's stay at Styles Court, Mrs. Inglethorp dies in her bed, her symptoms seemingly pointing to poisoning. Hastings invites Hercule Poirot, a very famous detective who left quite an impression on him after they met in Belgium, to investigate the case.
It took me a few days to finish this book, as I kept falling asleep after reading only a few pages in the evening. In the beginning, during the setup of the scene and before Poirot's arrival, the writing did drag a bit. Lieutenant Hastings might entertain the idea of being a detective and proclaim his methods further advanced than Poirot's, but his overconfidence couldn't have been more obvious. Maybe it makes me a mean person, but I did enjoy the parts where Poirot would not so subtly insult Hastings's intelligence. At the same time, I have to say Poirot seemed quite fond of Hastings and appreciated his other qualities.
As for the murder mystery, even though my initial assumption of who the culprit/s might have been was correct, all the subsequent events and clues managed to throw me off the track completely, so by the end, I was quite surprised by the reveal.
I'm not sure about other editions of the novel, but the one I got for free contained a few racist slurs and instances of antisemitism.
I decided to rate this book somewhere around 3 stars as I didn't find it the most compelling, can't-put-the-book-down type of mystery. I still found it sufficiently entertaining, even if I had to pause more than a few times to look up translations of Poirot's random French exclamations. It did make me wonder if reading a translation in my native language (hopefully with readily annotated French translations) might make the experience somewhat more enjoyable.
Themes: single POV, murder mystery, detective
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Antisemitism, Classism, Incest, Racial slurs, and Infidelity
Minor: Death of parent
ninahuynh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, and Murder
jessthanthree's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Murder, Death of parent, Racism, Death, and Infidelity
Minor: War, Medical content, Racial slurs, and Incest
missgrangerr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death, Racial slurs, and Murder
leosaki's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Minor: Murder, War, Infidelity, Medical content, Death, and Death of parent
ellanarose's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Racism, Sexism, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Murder, and Racial slurs
nagaakil's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Medical content, Incest, Murder, Emotional abuse, Drug abuse, Toxic relationship, Death, and Infidelity
oceanwriter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Racial slurs, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Antisemitism
Minor: Racism
a_random_fangirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Medical content
hocuscrocus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death and Murder