Agatha Christie

The Mysterious Affair at Styles was written in first person, by and narrated by Captain Arthur Hastings.

The plot of The Mysterious Affair at Styles takes place in England during Word War 1 at Styles Court. Styles Court is Court is a country house located in Essex. The owner John Cavendish invites the young captain Hastings, an old friend of his to reside at the house while he recuperates from the injuries he received in the war. The other people that are residing in the house are Mr. Inglethorp, whom nobody trusts or likes except for his wife, John her oldest stepson, Johns wife Mary, the younger brother Lawrence, and the orphan Cynthia.

The week after Hastings moved in John’s wealthy stepmother Mrs. Emily Inglethorp is found murdered by strychnine poison and her husband is the main suspect. Alfred Inglethorp has the most to gain from her murder, and everyone already assumed that he was after her money to begin with because he was much younger then she. Before Emily was murdered Alfred was seen in the village buying strychnine. Mr. Inglethorp denies purchasing the strychnine, and he will not offer an alibi.

After the murder Hastings enlists some help from Hercule Poirot who is near by at Styles St. Mary village. Poirot puts together the events surrounding her murder. The day Emily was murdered she was heard having an argument with her husband, or with her stepson. After the argument Emily seemed to be in distress, and created a new will, that no one can find. Her husband left that evening and stayed in a village close by, and was not home when the posing took place. Leaving it hard to determine when and where the poisoning actually took place.

Alfred was to be arrested before Poirot intervened, saying that he had proof that Alfred could not have bought the poison. The police from Scotland Yard later arrested John, but then Poirot clears John.

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