Hercule Poirot on the
trail of a serial killer. There is a serial killer on the loose, working
his way through the alphabet, and the whole country is in a state of
panic. A is for Mrs. Ascher in Andover, B is for Betty Barnard in
Bexhill, C is for Sir Carmichael Clarke in Churston. With each murder,
the killer is getting more confident. But leaving a trail of deliberate
clues to taunt the proud Hercule Poirot might just prove to be the
first, and fatal, mistake.
Recently, I watched that TV adaptation of The ABC murders with John Malkovich :
and I absolutely hated it ! I felt like the director was trying to turn the story into something else, in which case he should have chosen a different novel/character. And the secret of Poirot's past was completely out of this world - in a bad way, it had nothing to do with Poirot's personality. Let it be known that my favourite Poirot will always be David Suchet, who was extraordinary in that part.
Since I had the audiobook on my shelf, I felt the need to check if my memory was right and if the story was still as brilliant as I remembered it, so I listened to it while working from home. It was great, phew !
Hastings, who was missing from the TV adaptation, was there, with his need for action, his irritation and friendship with Poirot and his taste for beautiful girls. I felt sorry for the assumed murderer. I loved every bit of the investigation, even if I've already read it and watched it, it's always so much fun ! And I'm happy I decided to re-read all of Agatha Christie's novels.
By the way, listening to an audiobook is so practical - you read books while turning a tedious job into something you can forget about and do automatically. Hugh Fraser is a wonderful narrator : he can do different voices, different accents and does a great imitation of David Suchet's voice as Poirot. At the time I'm writing this review, I'm also listening to "Elephants can remember", written by Agatha Christie and narrated by Hugh Fraser too, and loving it.
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