N or M?

Product Information

The newton-metre or newton-meter (also non-hyphenated, newton metre or newton meter; symbol N⋅m [1] or Nm [1]) [a] is the unit of torque (also called moment) in the International System of Units (SI). One newton-metre is equal to the torque resulting from a force of one newton applied perpendicularly to the end of a moment arm that is one metre long. This is a Christie novel with a really great title (though it was originally published in the US under the name Remembered Death).

Dinner parties, multiple murders, and a solid core cast of suspects make this one of the most satisfying reads amongst all the best Agatha Christie books ranked here. Most of the best Agatha Christie books have a murder at their centre, and someone — often Poirot or Marple — to solve it. Here, however, we have the Belgian sleuth on the trail of a serial killer.

Open Library

The claustrophobia of this novel adds an exciting tonal element as well, as Poirot interviews suspect after suspect while they’re all trapped on a train. What happens instead is that the lights go out, a gunshot rings out, and someone drops dead. A fantastic setup for a murder mystery, even by Christie standards. Quite often, even with the best Agatha Christie novels, there are obvious red herrings or moments of staging that the reader can see through. Mrs Lancaster cryptically says to Tuppence: “Was it your poor child? There behind the fireplace.” A chilling question.

Five Little Pigs is a Hercule Poirot novel with a unique structure: a young woman calls up the now aging sleuth and asks him to dig up the sixteen-year-old murder case for which her mother went away. The fact that it’s not one of the very best Agatha Christie novels shows just how strong of a writer she is, when this novel is still so good.

II. Content of the novel

Hastings’ perspective also adds some comedy to the narrative, as his banter with Poirot is always welcome. What makes Endless Night so unique is that it’s not really a murder mystery novel. It’s a piece of gothic fiction. This is Agatha Christie going full gothic, and it’s incredible. One thing that’s missing from this one, however, is the expected wit and humour. This is a slightly blander Marple novel, in that sense. That’s exactly how Three Act Tragedybegins, which is enough to earn it a spot on this list of Agatha Christie books ranked.