Black Coffee Has Been Written In The 1930s As A Theater Production
Sunday, August 1st, 2010Agatha Christie Black Coffee with Hercule Poirot is a novel based on a theater production. Christie was a very successful mystery writer of a time long ago. It was her first stage play. Charles Osborne, the author of “The Life and Crimes of Agatha Christie”, has produced a Hercule Poirot plot in the form of a book. It is almost as if he wrote it in the persona of Christie herself.
In the novel, the plot is, a scientist, Sir Claud Amory, requests Poirot to help him recover a lost formula that was supposed to be used for the war effort in Britain. Unfortunately, Sir Claud is dead when they arrive. The critical formula has appeared on the table near where Sir Claud died. Poirot arrives after the death.
It becomes apparent that the book is based on a stage play by the way the plot is laid out. Not overly intricate, the reader can make guesses all along as to who the murderer may be. This novel, written in the murder mystery genre follows the classic pattern of Christie’s written work.
The opening scene shows Sir Claud and his family members who are staying with him gathered together in the library. He tells them all that the formula was kept locked away in a safe. He asks them if they know who took it. The secret formula was supposed to assist the military and now it was gone.
It was Sir Claud’s intent to keep everyone in the library with him. He directed the butler to lock them all in. He sat sipping his coffee as they waited for the detective to arrive. He repeated many times that his coffee tasted bitter.
He announced that if the secret formula were returned, he would not blame the person who was responsible. The room went dark. When the lights were restored someone had returned the secret formula. Unfortunately, Sir Claud had sipped his last cup of coffee.
When Hercule Poirot and his sidekick Captain Hastings arrived, they walked into a murder case instead of a missing document case. This murder mystery is fun to read. Christie’s fans and other mystery genre afficionados will be especially enthralled. To add to the appeal, there is not any filthy language in the entire tome. Something of a miracle and dam (sic) refreshing.
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