Preetam Chatterjee's Reviews > Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories

This was one of the last gifts from my father, and I cherish this tome to this day. It’s Hercule Poirot: The Complete Short Stories by Agatha Christie — a treasure trove that gathers every single one of Poirot’s short-form adventures into one hefty volume.

For a Christie lover, it’s not just a book; it’s like having the detective himself on your bookshelf, complete with his razor-sharp mind, impeccable moustache, and fondness for order and symmetry.

Inside, there are more than fifty mysteries, from early gems like The Affair at the Victory Ball and The Plymouth Express to atmospheric favourites such as Murder in the Mews. It also contains the entire Labours of Hercules cycle — each “labour” a puzzle as cunningly set as any myth, including The Nemean Lion, The Lernean Hydra, and The Arcadian Deer.

What makes this volume special is not only its completeness but the way it lets you watch Poirot — and Christie’s craft — evolve over the decades.

Some stories sparkle with festive charm (The Theft of the Royal Ruby), others with sly humour (Four and Twenty Blackbirds), and many with endings so sharp they’ll catch you off guard even if you think you know Poirot’s methods.

The editions vary: the HarperCollins paperback (approximately 928 pages) is widely available in India for ₹600–700, while the digital versions on Apple Books or Google Books extend to about 1,360 pages due to formatting. The only quibble readers often have is the font size in print — unsurprising for a book that packs in so much mystery.

Whether you read it curled up in an armchair or in quick bursts on a commute, this anthology is an all-seasons companion — a compendium of clever crimes and elegant solutions that never go stale.

For me, it’s more than a must-have Christie collection; it’s a bridge back to the memory of my father, and the joy of stories we both loved.