Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis : Famed Belgium detective Hercule Poirot hunts down a London serial killer that selects his/her victims according to their intials. However, he must also avoid being apprehended by the local police, who don't want his help and want him to leave the country. Who's in it? The movie stars Tony Randall , Robert Morley , Anita Ekberg , Maurice Denham and Sheila Allen. Review: I came across this movie the other day and, after enjoying the Miss Marple films I've seen recently, decided to give a Hercule Poirot mystery a try as well. After all, he is my favorite Agatha Christie detective. I had a chance to watch the film yesterday evening and, unfortunately, it just wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. To be fair, the mystery itself wasn't too terrible. It has been more than three years since I read the book that inspired this film and, even though I kind of remembered the ending, the film had just enough going on to make me wonder if I was right about t...

Synopsis: When charwoman Mrs. McGinty is murdered, her lodger, James Bentley is arrested for the crime. Even though Bentley was convicted by a jury, the soon-to-be-retired Superintendent Spence has doubts about his guilt and turns to Hercule Poirot for a second opinion. Poirot agrees to investigate but the only thing that points him in the direction of another killer is an inaccurate newspaper clipping referring to other crimes. Did Mrs. McGinty know somebody's secret? Review: I was under the impression I had read all of Christie's Hercule Poirot novels until I happened to come across this one at the library a couple weeks ago. I checked it out and wound up finishing it last night. Overall, I have to say I thought it was a decent book. There were a couple things I found I liked about this murder mystery. One of the main ones was the question about whether or not there really was another killer. Despite Spence's doubts, her lodger was found with money stolen from her flo...

Synopsis: A series of short story mysteries featuring fictional detective Hercule Poirot . Mysteries include The Adventure of the Cheap Flat , The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb and The Chocolate Box. Review: I found this book at a "little free library" a couple months ago and decided to hold onto it for a rainy day. I finally had an opportunity to read it and, overall, was happy with my decision to bring it home. When I first picked out this book, I wasn't really sure what to expect from it. My biggest concern was it would end up being a book of cast-off mysteries that just weren't that good. However, I was pleasantly surprised. As is usually the case with books like this, some mysteries were more entertaining than others. But, there were just enough good stories to keep me interested in reading further. In particular, I found I especially liked The Adventure of the Cheap Flat (which had me baffled as to why Poirot even felt the mystery was worth his time) ...

Nearly two years ago, I decided I was going to make an effort to read more books and, as part of that goal, I decided I was going to attempt to read all of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot murder mysteries in order. It took me a year and 11 months (give or take) but, this morning, I finished reading Curtain and said goodbye to the Belgium detective. Image courtesy of Pixabay Normally, I would take the time to review the book. However, after realizing it was (while a bit sad) nothing that really stood out from her other novels (the mystery itself was somewhat interesting but other parts of the book were kind of predictable). I decided to, instead, think about the entire collection I have just completed and list my five favorite and five least favorite of his cases. My 5 Favorites 1. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd This was one of the first books I read (back in November 2017) and remains, to this day, my favorite. This is mostly because it is one of the few murder myste...

Synopsis: While reluctantly attending a literary luncheon, mystery writer Ariadne Oliver is approached by Mrs. Burton-Cox, the future mother-in-law of Ariadne's godchild, Celia Ravenscroft. When Mrs. Burton-Cox inquires about the apparent double suicide of Celia's parents 10 years earlier, asking who killed who, Ariadne is, at first, offended. However, with the question lingering in her head and with Celia's blessing, Ariadne seeks out help from Hercule Poirot in an effort to find out the truth. Review: Some time ago, I made it my personal goal to read all of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot novels. I'm very close to succeeding in that goal, having finished the second-to-last book. Unfortunately, this one turned out to be kind of a disappointment for me. Poirot is easily one of my favorite fictional detectives. However, his later mysteries (published when Christie was in her late 70s or early 80s) just aren't as magical as the books that got me ho...

Synopsis: Mystery novelist Ariadne Oliver is helping a friend prepare for a kids' Halloween party when 13-year-old Joyce Reynolds tells her she once witnessed a murder. Since Joyce is known to be a compulsive liar, nobody believes her. However, later that evening, someone drowns Joyce in the apple-bobbing tub. Disturbed by the incident and partially blaming herself, Ariadne reaches out to long-time friend Hercule Poirot for assistance. Review: My wife and I wound up spending a good chunk of last week binge watching the final season of Orange is the New Black and, because of that, it took me a bit longer to get through this book than I normally would have expected. I finally finished it yesterday and, overall, I was happy I read it. When I first started reading this book, I thought the mystery was going to be a little too easy to solve. After all, Joyce was apparently murdered because she witnessed a murder so, in theory at least, the only thing I needed to do was figur...

Synopsis: When typist Sheila Webb showed up for an appointment with the blind Miss Pebmarsh, the last thing she expected to find was the stabbed body of a mysterious, well-dressed man. In a panic, she flees the house and falls into the arms of a British secret agent, Colin Lamb, who calls his friend, Inspector Hardcastle, and ends up assisting with the investigation. The murder case proves to be a baffling one. Miss Pebmarsh, who has not been at home most of the day, swears she doesn't know the man and did not make a call to hire a typist. On top of it, four of six clocks found in the room with the dead man did not belong to her and were likely either brought into the house by the victim or the person who killed him. When interviews with the neighbors shed no additional light on the case, Colin turns to his former mentor, Hercule Poirot , for advise. Review:  When I checked out this book at our local library last week, I wasn't really sure what to expect from it. The d...

Synopsis: Founded by Headmistress Honoria Bulstrode and teacher Miss Chadwick, Meadowbank School has become one of the most prestigious girls' prep schools in England. The school's reputation takes a hit, however, when some of its staff members are murdered and one of the students is apparently kidnapped with the motive possibly being related to valuable jewels that were smuggled out of a Middle Eastern kingdom days before a revolution broke out. At the request of one of the students, Hercule Poirot gets involved with the investigation. Review:  I started reading this book Sunday morning and, thanks mostly to waiting around at an ice rink for about 90 minutes, I was able to finish it yesterday evening. While the book started out OK and had a halfway decent plot, I honestly didn't like it as much as I thought I would. My biggest problem with this book is the motive behind at least two of the deaths isn't much of a mystery. Normally, motive is one of the toughes...

Synopsis: Hercule Poirot receives a surprise phone call from mystery writer Ariadne Oliver inviting him to Nasse House in Devon, the home of wealthy Sir George Stubbs. Officially, Poirot is there to attend a festival and award a prize to whoever solves a pretend murder mystery designed by Ariadne. Secretly, he was invited because his friend feels as though something is amiss and a real murder is being planned. When the 14-year-old village girl picked to play her pretend murder victim is found strangled, her suspicions are confirmed and Poirot must help the police figure out who killed the teenager and whether or not Sir George's much younger wife, Hattie, who disappeared at about the same time the murder was being committed, is also dead. Image Courtesy of Pixabay Review: I wound up reading back-to-back Hercule Poirot novels this week. The first one, Hickory Dickory Dock , was OK but not one of my favorites. This one, however, turned out to be one of those books I simply ...

Synopsis: Hercule Poirot 's secretary, Miss Lemon, is normally robot-like with her perfection. So, when she uncharacteristically makes three mistakes in a letter she has typed, he knows something is amiss. When she admits she is distracted by some strange happenings at a hostel run by her sister, Mrs. Hubbard, the detective agrees to hear the story and give consultation. However, when Mrs. Hubbard explains the series of strange events, ranging from stolen items of various values to a rucksack that had been cut to pieces, he suspects there might be something more sinister going on. Unfortunately for him, his suspicions are confirmed when one of the students she is housing is murdered. Image courtesy of Pixabay Review: The Hamish Macbeth book I had intended on checking out at the library was already gone so, since I wasn't really in the mood to pick a book at random this time, I ended up going with another detective series I've been reading frequently. I finished t...

Synopsis: Artist Amyas Crale is poisoned and his wife, Caroline, commits suicide after she is convicted of the crime and incarcerated. Sixteen years later, their daughter, Carla, believing her mother was wrongfully convicted, asks Hercule Poirot to re-open the case. Poirot agrees to take the case and, since all physical evidence has been erased by time, focuses on the witnesses who were there the day Amyas died. Review: I picked up this book at our local library a few weeks ago and, despite not having as much free time for reading as I would prefer, managed to finish it late last week. Overall, I have to say this one made my list of favorite Hercule Poirot novels, mostly because the sixteen-year time lapse between the murder and his investigation made this case a little more challenging than some of the others he's been involved with. He had to solve the case based solely on people's memories of the crime with no access to the crime scene or physical evidence. On to...

Synopsis: The young and beautiful Mary Gerrard is dead from morphine poisoning and authorities blame Elinor Carlisle, the wealthy heiress with an apparent score to settle against the woman who unwittingly came between her and her fiance. With Elinor on trial for murder and facing certain conviction, Hercule Poirot is asked to conduct an independent investigation for the defense in an effort to find another plausible suspect. He reluctantly agrees and quickly finds every scrap of evidence points toward Elinor's guilt. Review: I started reading this book about three weeks ago and, since weather and finances kept us from doing anything over Labor Day weekend, was able to finally finish it. Overall, I don't think it was a bad book. But, I'm not sure I liked it as much as some of Agatha Christie's other novels. On the surface, this book had a great plot. Elinor had plenty of motive for killing Mary and the other woman happened to die of morphine poisoning shortly a...

Synopsis: Hercule Poirot dreads going to the dentist but bravely sits through his appointment with Dr. Henry Morley before vowing not to return for another 6 months. When Morley is found dead of a gunshot wound a couple hours later, Chief Inspector Japp is quick to rule it a suicide. And, when one of Morley's other patients dies of an apparent anesthetic overdose, it only strengthens that theory. Poirot, however, isn't convinced. And, when a second dentist patient, Mabelle Sainsbury Seale, disappears, he is convinced the death is a homicide and is possibly part of a larger conspiracy against prominent banker Alistair Blunt. Review: Our local library didn't carry this Agatha Christie book and I wound up getting it on Kindle instead. Since I had to pay for it, I was somewhat concerned I wouldn't like it. But, as it turns out, it was a pretty decent mystery. One of my biggest concerns about this book, when I started reading it, was it was going to go down a path ...

Synopsis: In his youth, Simeon Lee traveled the world and made his fortune mining diamonds but was cruel to his wife and alienated all but one of his sons. Now elderly, widowed and an invalid, Lee invites his sons and long-lost granddaughter to his home for Christmas. But, instead of inviting them to make amends, he uses the opportunity to once again show his cruel side by hinting at changes to his will and pitting them against each other. When he is brutally murdered later that same evening, detective Hercule Poirot is called in to assist. Was the murder related to a bag of uncut diamonds Lee reported stolen? Did a member of his family finally snap? Or, was it Stephen Farr, the son of his former business partner who happened to show up at the house unexpected? Review: I was a bit hesitant to check this book out from our local library because, at first glance, I thought it was going to be a Christmas-themed book and it is only July. However, I'm trying to read the Hercule ...

Synopsis: Vacationing Hercule Poirot overhears a pair of siblings as they discuss murdering their tyrannical stepmother, Mrs. Boynton. When the woman is found dead of apparent natural causes, Poirot vows to prove she was murdered and find the killer in only 24 hours. Review: After my disappointment with Agatha Christie's short story collection Murder in the Mews, I was anxious to get back to another Hercule Poirot novel and wound up purchasing this book (via Kindle) from Amazon. I was able to get through a good chunk of the book while at the skating rink last week and finished it this weekend. Overall, I have to say I enjoyed it. The thing that really impressed me about this book was the way just about everyone traveling with Mrs. Boynton had motive for murder, especially her own family members, who were kept under her thumb. Between the step children and the various outsiders who seemed to have their own reasons for wanting the woman dead, it wasn't nearly as clear cu...

Synopsis: A short story collection that has super detective Hercule Poirot investigating two murders, solving the theft of valuable government papers and trying to prevent a murder while he's on vacation. Review: I picked up this book at our local library a couple weeks ago and, thanks to my daughter skating once again (meaning I have hours to kill at the ice rink), I was able to get through it relatively quickly. With some exceptions, I like Christie's Hercule Poirot novels and was intrigued with the collection of short stories that were, in essence, offering four mysteries for the price of one. After getting through the book, however, I did find I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be. This is mostly because Poirot is a detective that has a set process that requires the reader to be patient. In short story form, I just felt as though his process was a bit rushed. In addition, some of the supporting characters (something that is usually Christie's stre...

Synopsis: Jacqueline de Bellefort is in love with Simon Doyle and intends to marry him. When her former fiance decides to marry her rich and beautiful best friend, Linnet, instead, she becomes obsessed with ruining things for the newlyweds and follows them on their Egyptian honeymoon. When Linnet is found murdered, Jacqueline is naturally the primary suspect. But, when she is immediately cleared of the crime, it is up to the vacationing Hercule Poirot to figure out who else had motive to kill her. Review: It took me a little longer to read this book than it normally does, mostly because I didn't have as much free time the past few weeks as I normally do. I finally managed to finish this book this morning. To tell you the truth, I figured out who was responsible for Linnet's death (and, later, a couple other murders) about halfway through the book. This wasn't because of any specific clue or anything like that. Instead, Agatha Christie tends to re-use certain con...

Synopsis: After a nasty fall down the stairs leaves the wealthy Miss Emily Arundell bed-ridden and suspicious of her money-hungry family members. In addition to sending for her attorney, she writes a letter to detective Hercule Poirot. However, her letter is not sent until weeks later, after she dies, seemingly of natural causes, shortly after changing her will so none of her family members receive a dime. Poirot, out of curiosity, visits those who knew her and grows suspicious about the circumstances leading to her death. Review: There were a couple other books I was planning on reading before checking out another Agatha Christie book. However, they happened to be in the library archive and, rather than wait for the librarian to retrieve them, I decided to just get a book that was already on the shelf. I had never heard of this book before and the only thing I knew about it was it featured Hercule Poirot . After reading it, however, I have to say it made the list of my favor...

Synopsis: Detective Hercule Poirot is invited to attend a dinner and bridge party thrown by Mr. Shaitana, who has suggested four of his guests have once gotten away with murder. When the host is murdered during the course of the night, suspicion falls on one (or more) of the four he accused of murder. It is up to Poirot, with the help of Superintendent Battle and two other sleuths, to figure out who is responsible and what secret they were trying to keep. Review: I picked out this book a couple weeks ago because I knew, with my daughter's ice show being held last weekend, I would be at the ice rink quite a bit and needed something to keep me from being too bored. As it turns out, I was too busy helping out at the rink most evenings to get through this book as fast as I was expecting to. But, I still managed to find time to get through it and, after finally finishing it last night, I found I wasn't as impressed with it as I had hoped to be. The mystery itself had some...

Synopsis: A nurse, Amy Leatheran, is hired by an archaeologist, Dr. Erich Leidner, to care for his wife, Louise, while he and his team dig for artifacts in Iraq. She soon learns Louise is living in fear because of anonymous letters she believes are related to her first marriage to a German spy. At first, Amy doesn't believe her patient because she believes the letters might have been written by Louise herself, either from guilt or an effort to get attention. However, when Louise is murdered, it becomes apparent Amy and Dr. Leidner were wrong and Hercule Poirot is brought in to help solve the crime. Review: When I went to the library a few days ago, I had intended on taking a short break from Agatha Christie. However, the book I wanted to check out wasn't on the shelf and, since I really didn't have time to search for it (or ask for help from the librarian), I wound up checking out this book instead. And, to tell you the truth, when I first started reading this ...