The Mysterious Affair at Styles

Hercule Poirot Mysteries, Book 1

By: Agatha Christie

Narrated by: Richard Armitage

Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Agatha Christie's debut novel was the first to feature Hercule Poirot, her famously eccentric Belgian detective. 

A refugee of the Great War, Poirot is settling in England near Styles Court, the country estate of his wealthy benefactress, the elderly Emily Inglethorp. When Emily is poisoned and the authorities are baffled, Poirot puts his prodigious sleuthing skills to work. Suspects are plentiful, including the victim’s much younger husband, her resentful stepsons, her longtime hired companion, a young family friend working as a nurse, and a London specialist on poisons who just happens to be visiting the nearby village. 

All of them have secrets they are desperate to keep, but none can outwit Poirot as he navigates the ingenious red herrings and plot twists that earned Agatha Christie her well-deserved reputation as the queen of mystery. 

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.  

Public Domain (P)2020 Audible, Inc.

HELLO POIROT!!!!

Agatha Christie, the worlds greatest mystery writer introduces the eccentric & amazing Inspector in this debut novel full of richly described, but numerous characters & suspects. You will likely need the accompanied PDF file which comes along with this book to keep them all straight in your head. It was a bit mind boggling remembering who was who but it was well worth it. Richard Armitage is one of my favorite narrators. He brings them all to life. This is a great listen. Don’t miss it! I hope this is helpful.

Poirot is a Legend

If you love Agatha Christie's Poirot, then you will love this performance. Poirot is an eccentric detective with a quirky way of figuring out the clues of a crime. He has you guessing almost to the end. If you've never read this series, now is the time to start. They are a fun and entertaining read. Richard Armitage, as usual, gave a stellar performance.

Hilarious and captivating

Hastings, the quintessential Englishman, narrates and colors the story with his own unique perspective which stands in sharp contrast to reality at times. This results in a delicious irony, performed with relish by Armitage. I loved it especially because Hastings is not performed as a caricature, he's real and endearing and likable.

Poirot, through Hastings' eyes, is a bit of a caricature at first, but once Poirot comes to life, you are aware of an impressive intellect at work. I really liked this. Hastings, too, eventually begins to see that his own point of view may not be set in stone.

It's not just Poirot and Hastings that is brought to life in the performance, every character is portrayed with a deft touch and at times I forgot that I wasn't listening to a performance by a full cast.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's a wonderful reintroduction to Agatha Christie. Please, please, please let Richard Armitage read the rest of the Poirots. I look forward to many, many more!

Armitage narration

What a wonderful story with a perfect narration. Sublime. It simply couldn't be better. Ever once in a while you find a truly great voice actor. This is one. What a treat.

Very entertaining

Richard Armitage was a great narrator. I was at first very confused by the introduction of so many characters in such a short time but I had them sorted out soon enough. looking forward to listening to the rest of her books.

Truly mysterious book. Brilliant classics.

The story is brilliant, the play of actors is BRILLIANT. This makes the book the one you would not want stop listening to.

Richard Armitage is brilliant

Brilliantly performed, Agatha Christie's first Poirot book remains timeless. The interplay between Hastings and Poirot, both voiced by Armitage, is very well done

Excellent!

Richard Armitage narrating a book included for free with Audible Plus? Yes please! I enjoy watching the Miss Marple TV series, but never got into the Poirot series. I’m so glad I gave this book a try! The characters, setting and narration are all excellent, and the unfolding mystery is top notch! I was captivated throughout and didn’t want to stop listening. Enjoy!

Intriguing, full of curves that keeps you involved

Clues abound! If you like who-done-its, you should thoroughly enjoy this story. You not be disappointed

The Voice of Hercule Poirot

Though Richard Armitage is well-known as an actor, perhaps he should stick to his native accent when reading for audible. The story was vintage Agatha Christie and enjoyable enough but the fake French accent used for the Belgian Poirot was just awful. It distracted entirely from the character and story.