The Murder on the Links is the third detective novel by Agatha Christie , written in 1923 , first published in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company, [1] and the United Kingdom by The Bodley Head [ 2] in the same year. In the USSR, first published in 1982 by the publishing house Physical Education and Sports , in the collection "Sports Detective" [3] . A novel from a series about Hercule Poirot with the participation of Captain Hastings .
| Golf Killing | |
|---|---|
| The murder on the links | |
| Genre | Detective novel |
| Author | Agatha Christie |
| Original language | English |
| Date of writing | |
| Date of first publication | 1923 |
| Publishing house | Dodd, Mead and Company |
| Previous | |
| Following | |
Content
Story
The novel begins with the fact that Hastings meets a young woman on the Paris-Calais train, with whom she falls hopelessly in love. Her name is Dalsey Duvin (nickname: Cinderella). French oligarch Paul Renault killed at his Genevieve villa. The day before his death, he sent a letter to the legendary detective Hercule Poirot, asking him to come to his villa.
Poirot does not have time. At night, two unknowns attack Monsieur Reno and his wife. Madame Renault is tied up, and her husband is taken away. Later, his body will be discovered on an unfinished golf course. Poirot discovers that two weeks before his death, Renault changed his will. According to the new testament, he bequeathed all his property to his wife, and left practically nothing to his son.
At the crime scene, the watch of the murdered man was found, which, although broken, continues to go, but hurries for exactly two hours. Poirot has many questions. In particular, he was surprised that the servants had not heard anything, that the body had been left where he was quickly found, that the clock was in a hurry.
Quote
| I have already described Hercule Poirot in other notes. Extraordinary man! He is 5 feet 4 inches tall, his egg-shaped head is slightly tilted to one side, eyes glowing with green fire in moments of excitement or anger, a tough military mustache and a colossal sense of self-esteem! Poirot is very neat and always smartly dressed. He has an innate passion for order of any kind. If he sees someone crookedly pinned jewelry, a speck of dust or a mess in his clothes, he will be tormented until he fixes it. "Order" and "logic" are his gods.Agatha Christie. Golf Killing |
| A person thinks with stereotypes, and no matter whether he lives within the framework of the law or transgresses it, he acts according to his character. No matter how many crimes he commits, all of them will resemble each other like two drops. A classic case - a certain Englishman gets rid of his wives, drowning them in the bath. If he had invented something else, he probably would have managed to escape punishment to this day. But one of the universal laws of human psychology weighs on him: the criminal is sure that once he got away with it, he will succeed both the second time and the third. As a result, he pays for the triviality of his thinking.Agatha Christie. Golf Killing |
Characters
- Hercule Poirot
- Arthur Hastings
Inhabitants of Villa Genevieve
- Paul Renault - the owner of the villa
- Eloise Renault - His Wife
- Jack Renault - Their Son
- Francoise Ariche - Servant
- Leon Ular - young maid
- Denise Ular - her sister, also a maid
- Gabriel Stonor - Secretary of Renault
Inhabitants of Villa Margarita
- Madame Dobrey is a neighbor of Fields
- Marta Dobrey - her daughter
Other characters
- Lucien Becks - Commissioner of Police
- Monsieur Ote - Magistrate Investigator
- Monsieur Giraud - detective
- Dr. Duran - Local Doctor
- Bella Duvin - actress, bride of Jacques Renault
- Dalsi Duvin - her sister, Hastings' future wife
- Maître Grosier - Renault attorney
- Japp is an inspector of Scotland Yard.
Screen version
The novel formed the basis for the final third episode of the 6th season of the British television series Poirot Agatha Christie . The role of Hercule Poirot was played by David Suchet [4] [5] . The plot of the film is different from the novel.
- In particular, Poirot and Hastings rest in France, and do not go there at the invitation of Renault.
- Renault is the host of the hotel where Poirot and Hastings live.
- Also, in the house of Renault there is only one servant - Leoni, and Denise, the old Francoise is absent.
- The image of Dalsey is generally abolished, and Bella, the bride of the younger Renault, leaves him for Hastings.
- Many scenes from the novel removed.
Notes
- ↑ John Cooper, BA Pyke. Detective Fiction - the collector's guide: Second Edition (Pages 82 and 86) Scholar Press. 1994. ISBN 0-85967-991-8
- ↑ The English Catalog of Books. Vol XI (AL: January 1921 - December 1925). Kraus Reprint Corporation, Millwood, New York, 1979 (page 310)
- ↑ A. Christie. Killing on the golf course. // In the book: Sports detective: Collection. - M.: Physical education and sport, 1982
- ↑ Agatha Christie: Poirot Murder on the Links (1996)
- ↑ “Murder on the Golf Course” on the website of the TV Center TV channel
Links
Agatha Christie. Assassination on a golf course (inaccessible link)