My Top 10 Best Agatha Christie Novels (Spoiler-free)

[@cafeaulivre]

Which is your favorite Agatha Christie novel? Was it in this list or is it something totally different? Let me know down below and we'll talk Agatha Christie some more!

[@rebecca_is_book-hooked]

Taken by the Flood and Body in the Library are 2 of my favorites that I don’t hear people talking about as much.

[@haridaspal4146]

And then there were none

[@kaamilmemon5933]

Murder of roger ackroyd

[@ButOneThingIsNeedful]

Ten Little Indians

[@Jannah1]

My two absolute favorites are Five Little Pigs and One, Two, Buckle My Shoe. (Yes, her nursery rhyme titles are mixed in quality.) In the first, you need a profound understanding of character to solve the mystery. That’s it. You read the text, you think about people, and you can solve the case. The latter I love for what it reveals about Poirot. His values are tested here, and he has to face himself as an ageing man in a changing world.

[@cafeaulivre]

She did have a thing for nursery rhymes, didn’t she? 🤣 Have you read Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case? Think you might enjoy that one as well.

[@sherrirabinowitz4618]

I love the Mysterious Mr. Quinn, I think they are fascinating. I think she loved them so much is because she was into the mystical and because she could write them whenever she wanted, there was no deadline. Which must have been pure joy. For your question, I like all Poirot's companions. I can't choose.

[@cafeaulivre]

Agreed, I think she wrote Quin purely for her own amusement, be damned what the public thought of it!

[@sherrirabinowitz4618]

@@cafeaulivre exactly, when I discovered them I ate them up, I read as many as I could. I have huge book of her short stories and most of them were in it, but I had to hunt to read some that were scattered in other collections.

[@saraloveslfc]

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was my first Christie and I loved it so much I was scared that I had read the best one first for a minute. But then I went on to read Murder on the Orient Express and I have to say it’s my new number one. I guess I just really love a good plot-twist.

[@cafeaulivre]

Then do try Crooked House some time 😉

[@ellenyoung9223]

I’ve read all of them and many of them multiple times. I suppose some were better than others but I just loved her characters. I ended up downsizing some years ago and passing on about 80 Christie paperbacks but such good memories.

[@cafeaulivre]

I’m on the fence myself: my AC collection is old and I do like the newer cover designs, but I can’t seem to part with them yet

[@NellyVilla09]

I love all agatha christie twists, but The Murder of Roger Ackroyd will always be the one that I was personally most surprised by 🤍

[@cafeaulivre]

I can see that, yes…I was pondering giving it a place on the list, but for some reason, it always felt a bit ‘mediocre’ to me…maybe I was reading too many Agatha Christie’s in a row at that time 😝

[@rebecca_is_book-hooked]

Roger Ackroyd is also a huge favorite of mine and definitely delivered an unexpected twist, but I think the most surprising twist for me was Crooked House.

[@dhivyabharathialagirisamyr523]

The murder of rager Ackroyd was extremely unsettling for me. The ending felt like an itch I could not scratch, very anti climatic and not sure whether it was good or bad.

[@StefkoMinkov]

The pacing was kind of slow and not so entertaining for me but the end is my favorite. The opposite i feel about Then there were none. Loved the dynamic and the vibe but didn't like the end.

[@rebecca_is_book-hooked]

Thank you for keeping this spoiler-free!

[@cafeaulivre]

I want people to discover these books on their own 😋

[@alidabaxter5849]

I think the plot of The ABC Murders is a work of genius. I also love The 4.50 from Paddington, The Murder at the Vicarage, and Three Act Tragedy.

[@cafeaulivre]

ABC is one of those great plots, I agree! 😊

[@TapasChakrabarty-j7r]

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd my favorite. Love from India

[@cafeaulivre]

Seems a popular one with a lot of people 😊

[@nerdlove1071]

Just to clarify: Curtain was the last published book featuring Poirot, and was the last in his storyline, but was actually written in the 1940s. Christie was worried she might pass away during WW2, so she wrote Curtain and Sleeping Murder to have two last books, one with Poirot and one with Marple, to be published after she passed away. So Curtain was written a long time before Elephants Can Remember. :)

[@andrewhelm2813]

I think "Five Little Pigs" has to be my favourite Agatha Christie novel, and the books featuring Ariadne Oliver would feature heavily in my top ten - a character who shared the writer's own pet peeves: being saddled with a foreign detective she created - and loathed; readers pointing out each and every inconsistency in a particular book; being uncomfortable at public speaking...and the dreaded taxman.

[@cafeaulivre]

Ariadne is so much fun 🤩

[@kil0chrl7e]

And Then There Were None made me fall in love with not only Agatha Christie but whodunnits in general! Absolutely her best! ATTWN and Murder Affair in Styles are my top 2 ✨

[@cafeaulivre]

It’s such a great book 😋

[@shisharma]

And then there were none is my all time favourite by Agatha but i also enjoyed murder on the orient express, the murder of roger ackroyd . I haven't heard of the mysterious mr. Quinn i would give it a shot . Thankyou for bringing up such recommendations ❤

[@beth3535]

Quinn was the first I read. Made me a fan even though it was so different.

[@beth3535]

I hated Poirot as well. Still read them as well.

[@cafeaulivre]

Definitely give Quin a try, it’s something totally different 😋

[@cafeaulivre]

He’s just a bit too perfect and arrogant 😝

[@inkbendsend7684]

Mine is and always will be And Then There Were None. But I can't wait to read some of the others you described. Thank you!

[@cafeaulivre]

Excellent choice though….I love And Then There Were None!

[@ButOneThingIsNeedful]

Regarding #6, I have a theory that Dame Agatha loved playing cards, and the game of bridge in particular. Contract bridge was sweeping the Western world at the time and it makes an appearance in several of Christie's stories. I'll just bet she was a very skillful player too. If anyone in the comments can confirm my theory please do!♠♥♣♦

[@avisilas]

Mine is Ordeal by Innocence. Thank you for your great vid.

[@elleo9920]

I love After The Funeral, it's definitely a top 10 Christie for me 😊

[@booksncoffee-j5u]

My favorite Agatha Christie is The Moving Finger. I loved the whole poison pen letter thing.

[@cafeaulivre]

If I’m not mistaken, it was one of her favorites too!

[@unleashthereaders5140]

I haven't read nowhere near as many Agatha books but so far one of my favorites is definitely Destination Unknown

[@cafeaulivre]

So many more to explore, I love it! :)

[@alexlella8771]

I basically agree with you about "And then there were None". It was actually the first Agatha Christie book I ever read back when I was thirteen. In a way, that was a bad place to start because every Agatha Christie book I read after that was something of a disappointment.

[@cafeaulivre]

I can see how the bar was set high after that one, yes

[@garryd7748]

We always love the novel that got us into Christie novels…. I read Cat Among the Pigeons at school, and the school setting made it totally memorable for me.

[@cafeaulivre]

Oh, I can imagine! I never got to read Agatha Christie at school, not even at uni. Guess she isn’t considered ‘classic lit’ enough 😢

[@sealfan1000]

I love Mr. Quinn! Thank you for including this gem!

[@cafeaulivre]

Im a big fan myself 😁

[@smatternschain]

They Came to Baghdad would be on my list. Victoria Jones is such a great character. Has all the clever trappings of great AC with more action than most (I'm told).

[@cafeaulivre]

AC isn’t normally known for being ‘action-packed’, that’s true.

[@paulclay8547]

I have read them all many times. Never get tired of them

[@cafeaulivre]

They truly are timeless!

[@paulclay8547]

My favourite Agatha Christie book is Murder In Mesopotamia

[@cafeaulivre]

She knew her archeological digs very well, as she accompanied her second husband on his expeditions

[@paulclay8547]

I should of said Murder In Mesopotamia is my favourite Hercule Poirot book

[@thelavenderhatter5924]

I recently just played Hercule Poirot in my college’s theatre show of Murder on the Orient Express. It was a deep honor to wear the mustache of the famous Belgian detective! I did my hw on the various actors and adaptations and partially read the novel, wanting to be as authentic as I could. The dean of the college library bought me Murder on the Orient Express, Cards on the Table, and And Then There Were None. Now that I have leisure time in my semester I was going crazy deciding which one to read first. From what I understand, the Poirot books are generally stand alone? I was thinking of reading Cards cause I was already familiar with Orient Express plot (for 3 months🤣), but then you mentioned the Avengers Assemble moment. Could you enlighten me about the first appearances of these other detectives with Poirot? Are there other books that they are in that I should read first? Furthermore, if you could give me recommendations for your favorite three other Poirot novels (excluding Orient and Cards), I would be very grateful. I want to have a small collection of the “best” For now I will be reading And Then There Were None since that’s separate from Poirot series. 🕵🏻‍♂️ Merci beaucoup for the video!

[@cafeaulivre]

All books are standalone, so there is no particular order you need to read them in. As for other Poirot novels: Murder on the Nile is certainly worth the read. I’m also a fan of the short stories: they are ideal if you don’t have the time for a full novel. Also, I think I’d include The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. I’ve done another video on where to start reading Agatha Christie books that might be useful too, so feel free to browse my channel for that one as well.

[@thelavenderhatter5924]

@@cafeaulivre Thank you again! The short story collection does interest me greatly as well as Roger Ackroyd. I’ll check out the video!

[@ellie4388u]

Absent in the Spring, written by the name of Mary Westmacott is also an interesting character study. Highly recommended.

[@cafeaulivre]

I still have to read most she wrote under that name to be honest. Maybe something for this fall 😊

[@aiscahill]

I’ve only just put down an Agatha Christie book that I didn’t love and had been wondering which ones I should try instead. The perfect list at the right time ☺️

[@cafeaulivre]

Which one did you dnf?

[@aiscahill]

@@cafeaulivre The Murder on the Links. Maybe it was a case of right book, wrong time but I couldn’t get into it at all.

[@cafeaulivre]

I don’t really like Murder on the Links myself

[@matthewhines9787]

Death On The Nile is probably my fave. I do love Sparkling Cyanide though.

[@cafeaulivre]

Sparkling cyanide is a great one, I agree, another excellent example of her mastery of poisons

[@matthewhines9787]

@@cafeaulivre I love it because of the whole directly observable yet never seen actions of the villain. Like the subtle redirection of seating just by changing one place to put the right person in front of the cyanide, or the waiter's jacket that basically allowed the others' subconscious to fill in the rest of the "waiter" role so no attention was paid to him. It was almost like he was using their subconscious to help him manipulate the situation. It's really a lowkey commentary on how classist the London social culture was.

[@paulclay8547]

My favourite all time Agatha Christie book is And Then There Were None

[@aissadibaga5892]

Mine too

[@bobdal1946]

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd and The Mysterious Affair at Stiles

[@lindybjork2712]

Hastings is my favorite sidekick and Poirot's my favorite detective. Death on the Nile is my favorite Poirot. I just love the characters and the plot of that one.

[@cafeaulivre]

I didn’t include Death on the Nile because I already had MotOE, which I still prefer. But maybe I’m biased, because I love the actual Orient Express train 😍

[@lindybjork2712]

@@cafeaulivre It is a good one. It's next in my reread.

[@Daria-4215]

I like your Top 10 although I haven’t read Curtain just because I don’t want to say good bye to Poirot . Also among my favorites there are Why didn’t They Ask Evans, Absent In The Spring and her An Autobiography.

[@cafeaulivre]

Poirot will always live on 😊

[@clearestlittlekid]

I LOVE YOUR LIST 🤩 BUT FOR ME DEATH ON THE NILE IS MY FAV

[@FrankBurnsie]

Curtain was written in the 1940s. It was not the last book she wrote. She originally wanted to keep it unpublished until after her death but was convinced by her editors to publish it while she was alive. So while it was the last novel published while she was alive, it was not the last novel she wrote. That would be the abysmal Elephants Can Remember.

[@cafeaulivre]

Elephants can remember is indeed something…special 😬

[@MyMessyBookshelf]

I love this video. I cannot get over how similar our lists are… not identical but similar. I enjoyed the Harley Quin stories too but not sure if they would be in my top ten. And Then There Were None was my first Agatha Christie and I think my first “adult” novel when I was 13. I have been hooked ever since.

[@cafeaulivre]

I can imagine you were! Seems quite intense for when you are 13 🫣

[@MyMessyBookshelf]

@@cafeaulivre it was on a school summer reading list to get extra credit and I read it during a thunderstorm on summer break…perfection. It may be why I am still so obsessed with her books almost three decades later. Have you read her Tommy and Tuppence books? I think they are my least favorite but I am wanting to read some and reevaluate how I feel.

[@cafeaulivre]

@@MyMessyBookshelf I have indeed and while they are not my favorite ones plotwise, I do remember liking the dynamics between T&T as a couple.

[@paulclay8547]

My top ten are: 1) And Then There Were None 2) Murder In Mesopotamia 3) A Murder Is Announced 4) Murder On The Orient express 5) A Pocket Full Of Rye 6) Murder At The Vicarage 7) Crooked House 8) They Do It With Mirrors 9) Sparkling Cyanide 10) Elephants Can Remember

[@phyycxis1159]

i read a few 10 years ago but don’t remember them except the orient express. recently i wanted to get back to her books and roger ackroyd seem to be in the top favorites but it was so boring for me, took a month to finish it when it’s a 2 day length book 😅 the letter didn’t surprised me at all

[@cafeaulivre]

I know a lot of people have Ackroyd in their top rankings….I didn’t find it one of her best personally 🫣

[@gsogymrat]

One of my favorite Agatha Christie novels that seems to never make "Best of" lists is "The Pale Horse." I found the supernatural murder-for-hire concept very creepy.

[@cafeaulivre]

If you like that supernatural touch, have you read the Harley Quin novels? You might like them.

[@gsogymrat]

@@cafeaulivre I enjoyed them. I especially liked the interaction between Quinn and Mr Satterthwaite.

[@jesusdelcanto9715]

I disagree about some. Brown Suit is not even one of her better thrillers. I would have put there Death Comes as the End (the one set in Ancient Egypt) or Pale Horse (the one about witchcraft). The best Marple is A murder is announced, hands down. About the Poirot stories, the list should include Five Little Pigs and/or Peril at End House.

[@cafeaulivre]

Luckily she has written so many that all tastes can find their favorites 😊

[@dubbelhenke854]

A good list. She has written so many good ones that its impossible for me to list them. Crooked house, 4.50, Cards on the table, they are all superb. Mr Quin was never my favorite - I rather more liked Parker Pyne. 😊 Curtain was not anong the last ones she wrote though. Like Sleeping Murder she wrote it in the 40s. It is very very good. I like Miss Marple more than Poirot and Murder in the vicarage is great. I loved Why didnt they ask Evans and Death on the Nile. I think that I have read all of the novels. Her last ones were not very good. The ones from 1930 to 1960 are the best IMO. Loved N or M.

[@hg9675]

Crooked house and the murder of roger ackroyd. Brilliant novels

[@cafeaulivre]

Very much so!

[@aminaccount7399]

The most important element in crime books is their shocking, and the more shocking the story is, the more attractive. And certainly none of Christie's works are as shocking as the murder of Roger Akroyd.

[@duskden2]

Surprised you didn't mention Roger Ackroyd here

[@karengustafson7666]

Almost all of these are favorites of mine also.

[@cafeaulivre]

Then you have an excellent taste 😉

[@kaamilmemon5933]

Murder of roger ackroyd?

[@sciagurrato1831]

Points for the bot so obvious with Harley Quin. I just read the stories based on your review. Marvelous. I don’t believe that Christie “hated” her creation - she was just being flippant to some stupid journalist. If you read ‘Curtain’, you know she loved this great creation.

[@sciagurrato1831]

Points for the “Not” so obvious…

[@kevinhurston1555]

To not have the murder of Roger ackroyd in your top ten is criminal