Agatha Christie Titles In Other Words (2) Quiz

Answer: Murder at the Vicarage

This was the first novel in which the character Miss Jane Marple featured. In her autobiography, Agatha Christie said that when she created Miss Marple, she had no idea that Miss Marple would eventually become a serious rival to Hercule Poirot.

Answer: Appointment with Death

This novel features Hercule Poirot, who solves the murder of Mrs Boynton, the nasty, sadistic matriarch of the Boynton family. The character of Mrs Boynton was originally written for the novel "Death on the Nile".

Answer: Cat Among the Pigeons

A revolution has taken place in the Middle East and, as a result, a fortune in jewels is missing, leading to the murders of three school teachers at a prestigious English girls' school. It takes a very intelligent school-girl to discover where the jewels were hidden and bring Hercule Poirot into the case to solve the murders.

Answer: The Clocks

In this novel Hercule Poirot is challenged to prove his assertion that a mystery could be solved without leaving one's chair; that "it was perfectly possible to lie back in one's chair, just think about it all, and come up with the answer. That it was quite unnecessary to go and question people and run about looking for clues". In which, of course, he succeeds!

Answer: Elephants Can Remember

This novel features both Hercule Poirot and Ariadne Oliver and chronicles their attempt to determine who killed whom in a murder-suicide that occurred many years ago. Despite the title, an underlying theme is the faulty nature of people's memories.

Answer: The Labours of Hercules

Poirot decides to take on only select cases which, in some way, reflect or symbolise the story of the Twelve Labours of Hercules from Greek mythology. In many of the cases, the connection between the case and the original myth is somewhat tenuous!

Answer: Nemesis

"Nemesis" is the sequel to "A Caribbean Mystery". In the first novel, Miss Marple is likened to Nemesis, the Greek goddess of retribution. In the follow-up novel, Miss Marple receives a posthumous request to act as Nemesis once more to right a wrong, find the real murderer and free an innocent young man from prison.

Answer: Murder is Easy

Seven murders by seven different methods and each appears to be an accident.
Murder is easy when the perpetrator is above suspicion -- "just the last person any one would suspect".

Answer: The Pale Horse

In "The Pale Horse", a number of people are murdered with thallium, a poison that often goes unrecognised because its effects vary widely and symptoms are often attributed to other medical conditions. A distinctive sign, however, is profuse hair loss. Allegedly, a number of lives have been saved by readers of this novel who recognised the symptoms of thallium poisoning in others.

Answer: Sparkling Cyanide

Agatha Christie originally called this novel "Remembered Death" and did not like the publisher's choice, "Sparkling Cyanide". The novel begins with the first anniversary of the death of Rosemary Barton. Rosemary is a plant that is used as a symbol of remembrance, particularly at funerals. "Rosemary for remembrance" is a recurring theme throughout the novel.