The Big Four - (Hercule Poirot) by Agatha Christie (Paperback)

About the Book

Number One was the greatest criminal brain of all time; Number Two was a multi-millionaire; Number Three was a beautiful Frenchwoman; and Number Four was "the destroyer," the ruthless murderer with a genius for disguise, whose business it was to remove those who interfered with his masters plans. These four, working together, aimed at establishing world dominance. Hercule Poirot was preparing for a voyage to South America when an uninvited guest, coated from head to foot in mud, stood at his doorway, collapsed, then recovered long enough to scribble the number four on a piece of paper. It's now up to Poirot and his faithful assistant Hastings to follow the clues and stop a deadly cabal from achieving its devastating end.

Book Synopsis

Beloved detective Hercule Poirot takes on an international gang of super-criminals and introduces the world to his identical twin, Achille Poirot. From Agatha Christie, who "created the modern murder mystery" (The New Yorker).

When a series of apparently unconnected murders attracts the attention of Hercule Poirot, one small detail stands out: the mysterious recurrence of the number four. Poirot travels from London to Paris and from Belgium to Italy, solving one mystery after another but always remaining a step behind the shadowy foursome he suspects are responsible. A final daring confrontation puts the eccentric detective's life on the line--until his twin brother, Achille Poirot, comes to the rescue.

A VINTAGE CLASSIC MYSTERY

Review Quotes

"Agatha Christie created the modern murder mystery." --The New Yorker

"Christie's books are so much more than great puzzles. Each of her novels demonstrates a profound understanding of people-how they think, feel and behave-all delivered in her crisp, elegant, addictively readable style." --The Guardian

"Christie wrote brilliantly compact, stylized and efficient mysteries. . . . The genre in its lean classic English form fit her like a cat burglar's thin black glove." --John Updike

About the Author

AGATHA CHRISTIE (1890-1976) was born in Devon, England. She wrote more than 70 books and 150 short stories, as well as works for stage and screen. Her novel And Then There Were None is considered the world's bestselling mystery novel, and her play The Mousetrap is the longest-running play in London theater history.

About the Introducer LAURA THOMPSON is the author of Agatha Christie: A Mysterious Life, which was a finalist for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for biography. She is also the author of the critically acclaimed biography of Nancy Mitford, Life in a Cold Climate, and of The Six: The Lives of the Mitford Sisters.