The Mysterious Affair at Styles

Written by: Agatha Christie

Synopsis

Emily Cavendish is a widower who took care of her late husband’s sons – John and Lawrence Cavendish. Emily inherited a large portion of her husband’s money and his country-place called the “Styles Court” located in Essex. Even though she was not the biological mother of the two Cavendish boys, they’ve considered her as their own mother. Even with her age, she was energetic, kind and generous.

Later on she remarried to a man named Alfred Inglethorp. Her sons and other close family friends were not fond of him as they thought that he only married her for her money…

Her life seemed great until one night she was found gravely ill on her bed. As the people inside the house rushed in her bedroom, they saw her convulsing and her body was arching in a very strange manner. Amidst the chaos, her second husband, Alfred, was missing in action.

Dr.Bauerstein and Dr.Wilkins were called and they administered first-aid to Emily but it was to no avail. She was gone. Her final word was her second hudsband’s name “Alfred…”

Side note about myself

Feel free to go to the next portion because I will talk just a “little bit” about my personal life.

Since I started working it’s been hard to find time to read. For almost two years I have been on a reading slump. I can extremely feel my TBR pile looking at me with great disgust *shakes head with disappointment*

So I have made a goal this 2022 to read as much as I could and write a review about it just to give myself a little “nudge” to read more.

I have only read two novels written by Agatha Christie in the past (And Then There Were None and Endless Nights). The way she constructed the lines, developed the characters and built the scene were genius. If you are into murder, mystery, and crime stories I highly recommend you read one of her novels.

Achtung: Spoilers ahead!

(Remember. You’ve been warned! There will be a LOT of spoilers.)

While Agatha lay down facts and evidences one by one, I started having “HAAA-I-GOT-YOU!” moments when I thought I already knew who the killer is.

It was so brilliant when Poirot averted the attention from the obvious suspect, Alfred Inglethorp, in Chapter 7: Poirot Pays His Debt. Now, the other characters considered Alfred as innocent and he cannot be acquitted (prematurely).

While I was reading Chapter 8: Fresh Suspicions, I could not contain my excitement and I even scribbled down in a sticky note:

“WAAAAAHHHHH!!!! MARY CAVENDISH AND HASTINGS WERE THE KILLER, AREN’T THEY??? AREN’T THEY?!”.

The novel was written in Hastings’ point of view but I couldn’t help but suspect him as an accomplice because he’s so protective of Mary. Plus the fact that he was invited by John Cavendish – Mary’s husband. Given John’s financial status was on the brink of extinction, I thought that it made sense. He needed the money. For a brief moment I felt proud and sure who the culprit was (or culprits rather) until Agatha presented new facts and my latter idea seemed stupid.

When Monsieur Poirot explained how he caught the TRUE criminal, I sat down for a few minutes… Put the book down… Breathed in and out… I just… Stared into nothing and… Wha-? Ho-how did th– whattt? WHAT? HAAAHH??? I felt so betrayed by my own mind.

Thoughts

The story was not only enjoyable to read. I also learned a lot. Here are some of my takeaways after finishing the novel:

1. Pride can make lovers apart.
   At first I thought that Mary was just “acting” to be concerned when John was arrested by the police since they were partners-in-crime (or so I thought). However, it turns out that during those trying times in their marriage, their love for each other actually blossomed. The same thing also happened with the unspoken love story of Cynthia and Lawrence. Aaaawwwww. Less than three.
2. Whenever you have a chance, straighten the objects on the mantle/table.
   Poirot’s compulsive manner of putting things in order turned out to be a major twist as to how he discovered the missing link. From now on, I’ll start organizing my stuff. Hmm.. *looks hard at my undone chores* ehhh. maybe tomorrow.
3. The people you love, trust and close to you may betray you for personal gains.
   This is a sad reality and it doesn’t only happen in fictional stories. Be safe. Be smart. Choose the people you spend your time with wisely. Trust your instincts!
4. Precipitated strychnine collected at the bottom of the bottle is lethal.
   “This solution deposits in a few hours the greater part of the strychnine salt as an insoluble bromide in transparent crystals. A lady in England lost her life by taking a similar mixture: the precipitated strychnine collected at the bottom, and in taking the last dose she swallowed nearly all of it!“

Note-worthy Lines:

As this is my very first book review this year, I honestly don’t know how to end one (hehehe). So I will just leave you with my top 5 favorite lines:

If you have already read this novel, kindly let me know your thoughts.

Have you guessed who the killer is before Poirot explains?

Which Agatha masterpiece should I read next?