Murder On The Orient Express
"Murder on the Orient Express" is a classic detective novel written by Agatha Christie. The story revolves around the famous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot as he investigates a murder that occurs aboard the luxurious train, the Orient Express.
The tale begins with Hercule Poirot boarding the Orient Express in Istanbul, intending to travel to Calais and then on to London. The train is unusually crowded for the time of year, and Poirot manages to secure a first-class compartment. During the journey, a wealthy American named Ratchett is found murdered in his compartment, stabbed multiple times.
The train is stuck in a snowdrift, providing a unique setting for this locked-room mystery. Poirot is enlisted by Ratchett's friend, M. Bouc, who is also a director of the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits, to solve the case. Bouc believes that the local police may not be up to the task and values Poirot's renowned detective skills.
As Poirot delves into the investigation, he uncovers that Ratchett is, in fact, a notorious gangster named Cassetti, responsible for the kidnapping and murder of a little girl named Daisy Armstrong. The Armstrong family tragedy had garnered significant public attention, and Cassetti had managed to escape justice due to legal loopholes.
Poirot interviews the passengers and examines the evidence meticulously. He discovers that each passenger had a motive to kill Cassetti because they were somehow connected to the Armstrong case. The group of conspirators, which includes a diverse cast of characters, decides to take justice into their own hands, as they believe the legal system failed them.
The characters involved in the conspiracy include Colonel Arbuthnot, the Armstrong family's former army officer; Mrs. Hubbard, a widow who turns out to be Linda Arden, the godmother of the murdered child; Hector MacQueen, Cassetti's secretary; Princess Dragomiroff and her maid, Hildegarde Schmidt; Pilar Estravados, a missionary; the Italian-American car salesman Antonio Foscarelli; the Swedish nurse Greta Ohlsson; Countess Andrenyi, a Hungarian aristocrat; and her husband, Count Andrenyi.
The group devised a plan to murder Cassetti collectively, ensuring that no one person could be identified as the killer. Each member of the group played a specific role in the murder, creating an intricate alibi for everyone involved. However, Poirot, with his keen powers of observation and deduction, unravels the truth.
In the end, Poirot presents two solutions to the authorities: the official one, which involves the arrest of an innocent suspect to satisfy the legal requirements, and the true version, explaining the orchestrated justice meted out by the passengers. The authorities choose the official solution, and Poirot reflects on the morality of the situation.
"Murder on the Orient Express" is celebrated for its clever plot, intriguing characters, and the moral ambiguity it introduces regarding the concept of justice. Agatha Christie's skillful storytelling keeps readers engaged until the final reveal, making it one of her most iconic and enduring works.