The December prompt for Read Christie 2022 is ‘a story containing precious jewels’ and the book chosen for the group read is Hercule Poirot’s Christmas. I read that one a few years ago, so decided to try The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding instead. This is a collection of six short stories and although only the first one contains precious jewels and has a festive theme, I thoroughly enjoyed reading all six of them!
Agatha Christie herself selected the stories for this collection and the first five in the book are Poirot mysteries. In the title story, The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, Poirot joins the Lacey family at their country house, supposedly to experience a ‘typical English Christmas’. However, unknown to the family, he has another motive for attending their Christmas celebrations – he is hoping to track down a precious ruby stolen from a foreign prince. Although I felt that the title gave away part of the mystery – it’s obvious that the pudding is going to have some significance – there are still some twists before the full solution becomes clear. And I loved the Lacey children who decide to present Poirot with a murder as a special Christmas treat!
The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding was apparently inspired by Christie’s own memories of spending Christmas at Abney Hall, her sister’s home in Cheshire (presumably without the stolen jewels and murders). The other four Poirot stories in this collection are not set at Christmas, but are equally enjoyable to read. The Mystery of the Spanish Chest, in which a dead body is found in a chest after a party, is excellent. I had no idea who the culprit was or how the crime was carried out and I loved watching the plot unfold. The Under Dog, where Poirot investigates the death of a man who has been hit on the head with a club, is another good one. It’s quite complex and involved and I think it could easily have been developed into a full length novel.
The next two stories are quite unusual. In Four and Twenty Blackbirds, a man who usually dines in the same restaurant every Tuesday and Thursday without fail suddenly turns up on a Monday and asks for food he has never ordered before. Poirot is intrigued, particularly when he hears three weeks later that the man has died after an accidental fall downstairs. I found part of the solution easy to guess, but again there’s more to this story than it would seem at first! Then, in The Dream, Poirot is summoned by an elderly millionaire who is having a recurring dream in which he shoots himself with a revolver. When the old man does actually die a few days later in exactly the manner he has described, Poirot is called back to investigate. I loved this one – it’s very cleverly done!
After all of these Poirot mysteries, it was nice to see Miss Marple make an appearance in the final one, Greenshaw’s Folly. In this story, the elderly Miss Greenshaw, the current owner of the house known as Greenshaw’s Folly, is murdered in the garden just after making a new will. Miss Marple is brought into the mystery by her nephew Raymond West, whose niece has been working at the house, and through her usual methods – a knowledge of human nature and trying to decide who the various suspects remind her of – she proceeds to solve the mystery.
Overall, this is a great collection and I hope I’ve managed to give you a taste of each story without spoiling them too much. I’m looking forward to taking part in Read Christie 2023 next year!
She Reads Novels 
This does sound like a great collection! My partner and I have just discovered all the series of Poirot that are still on ITV Hub, and I’ve started reading Christie again to complement. I’ve just borrowed Sparkling Cyanide, which looks promising. But Hercule Poirot’s Christmas might be just the ticket for the seasonality of it all!
Hercule Poirot’s Christmas is a good one – not one of her very best, but it has a clever solution and is obviously perfect for this time of year!
I love the title story, Helen, but some of those others are new to me and they all sound great fun. Merry Christmas to you and thank you for your reviews over the past year 🎄
Merry Christmas to you too, Sandra. All of the stories in this book are excellent – there wasn’t a weak link at all!
So Read Christie happens every year then? Perhaps I should join in, if only from time to time?
Yes, it’s a yearly event and there’s no need to commit to all twelve books. I think I’ve joined in with seven this year.
I’ve looked up the challenge, and I’m in – at least from time to time. Thank you for a year of great reviews and reading ideas. I don’t follow many book blogs, because I couldn’t cope with the TBR list, which is bad enough as it is. But yours has become a must-read with its thoughtful reviews. Looking forward to your choices next year! And … happy Christmas – may there be a book or two for you under the tree.
Happy Christmas to you too, Margaret, and thank you for the kind words about my blog!
Very tempted to read these mysteries. I love Poirot stories the most.
I prefer Poirot too, but it was nice to see Miss Marple in the last of these stories!
Oh lovely! It’s ages since I read these and you make me wish I’d revisited them this year!!
I’m sure I’ll be revisiting them myself, once I’ve had time to forget some of the details!
I don’t know any of these stories and what a perfect title! Looking forward to taking part in Read Christie ’23, thanks for putting me on to it!
Yes, it’s a great title and the first story at least was very Christmassy! I hope you enjoy Read Christie 23.
I have read these but too long ago to remember the details. Must dig it out again.
I’m sure they’re worth reading again, particularly now that you’ve forgotten the details.
I always enjoy rereading Christie. She has so many side plots and small details that one doesn’t always remember so one always finds something new.
These stories do sound like a lot of fun. I want to read more Agatha Christie next year, so I’ll have to rememver this collection. I’ve never read any of her short stories before.
Her short stories are great! This would be a good collection to start with.
This sounds like a good, quick read and I haven’t read any of her short stories yet. I just bought a collection of her stories for my Kindle called Midwinter Murder that I want to read in 2023.
I haven’t read the Midwinter Murder collection yet. I hope it’s a good one!
This is a lovely collection and the first is my favorite; I especially enjoy listening to Hugh Fraser’s reading of it.
Yes, the first story is lovely and perfect for the Christmas season. I don’t often listen to audiobooks, but would like to hear Hugh Fraser narrate that one.
Nice choice for Christmas! I think I have read most of them, but I’m sure I haven’t read the last one.
I suppose most of these stories will have also appeared in other collections. The last one was really good and it was nice to have a Miss Marple story after all the Poirot ones.
I read this collection last Christmas and loved it too. Every story is good, and although they don’t all have a festive theme, sometimes it’s nice to escape from Christmas at Christmas! 😉 Merry Christmas! 🎄
Yes, this is a great collection – not a weak story amongst them. Merry Christmas to you too!