Lord Edgware Dies

Lord Edgware Dies

Dust-jacket illustration of the first UK edition
Author	Agatha Christie
Cover artist	Lambart
Language	English
Genre	Crime novel
Publisher	Collins Crime Club
Publication date	September 1933
Publication place	United Kingdom
Media type	Print (Hardcover & Paperback)
Pages	256 pp (first edition, hardcover)
ISBN	NA
Preceded by	The Thirteen Problems
Followed by	The Hound of Death

Lord Edgware Dies is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in September 1933 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year under the title of Thirteen at Dinner. The UK edition retailed at seven shillings and sixpence (7/6) and the US edition at $2.00. The novel features Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings and Chief Inspector Japp.

Plot summary

Jane Wilkinson, an actress, is suspected of murdering her husband, the fourth Baron Edgware, so that she can marry the Duke of Merton. The plot begins with Jane asking Poirot to convince her husband to agree to a divorce. When Poirot reluctantly does so, Edgware says that he has already agreed to a divorce and written a letter to Jane informing her of the fact. When Poirot reports this to Jane, she denies ever having received such a letter.

On the night of the murder, Wilkinson supposedly goes to the Edgware house, announces herself to the butler, and goes into her husband's study. The next day, Lord Edgware is found murdered and Chief Inspector Japp tells Poirot all about it. But in that morning's newspaper, they discover an article about a dinner party that was held the previous evening where Jane Wilkinson was reportedly a guest.

At the party, there were thirteen guests at the dinner table. One guest mentioned that thirteen people at table means bad luck for the first guest to rise from the table (hence the alternative title of the book Thirteen At Dinner) and Jane Wilkinson was the first to rise. Among the guests is an actor named Donald Ross, who spent a lot of the evening speaking with Jane. So the police are, at first, baffled with the case, as is Poirot.

On the same morning as Lord Edgware's murder, comedienne/actress Carlotta Adams, who is known for her uncanny impersonations, is found dead due to an overdose of Veronal. A mysterious gold case with the sleeping powder in it is found among her possessions. The case bears an inscription reading: "From D, Paris, November". Poirot tries to decode this and arranges the evidence together.

A few days later, Jane makes an appearance at another dinner party where the guests talk about Paris of Troy. However, the Jane Wilkinson at this dinner party is thinking that the guests, again including actor Donald Ross, are referring to the city in France. Ross can't understand this because, at the party on the night of the murder, Jane was speaking knowledgeably about the mythological Paris. Ross goes to ring up Poirot about his discovery, but before he can say what he discovered, he is stabbed.

In the conclusion to the book, Jane Wilkinson really is the murderer, having paid Carlotta Adams to impersonate her at the party on the night she killed Lord Edgware. Jane's motive for killing Lord Edgware was because the Duke of Merton was an Anglo-Catholic and didn't want to marry a divorced woman. In the last chapter, she writes a letter to Poirot before her execution and tells him how she committed the crime.

With her made up alibi in place, Jane simply takes a taxi to the Edgware house and murders her husband. Later, she and Carlotta meet up in a hotel where they toast Carlotta's successful "performance" and ostensibly so Jane can pay Carlotta. However, Jane slips Veronal into Carlotta's drink, effectively killing her. Jane also discovers a letter Carlotta has written to her sister and is panicked by how Carlotta talks openly in the letter about their arrangement. However, Jane believes she sees a way she can use the letter to her advantage. At the top left hand corner of the second page is the word "she" (referring to Jane paying Carlotta to take her place at the party). Jane tears off the 's' leaving the word 'he'. (Though Poirot initially wonders about the torn corner during his investigation, using his "little grey cells" he eventually figures it out.) Jane then puts the remaining Veronal phials inside the gold case to make it look as if Carlotta was a Veronal addict. Jane ordered the gold case the week prior, which Poirot discovers when he questions the engravers. He further realises that "November" was engraved on the case specifically to throw him off. Unbeknownst to Jane, Carlotta had been knowledgeable about Greek Mythology, so she talked a lot about the subject with Donald Ross. At the second dinner party, Jane realizes she's made a mistake about Paris and has to kill Donald Ross to prevent him from telling Poirot about his discovery that the Jane at the party (on the night of the murder) was not really Jane, but Carlotta Adams.

Lord Edgware Dies is the thirteenth detective/mystery novel by the Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie. It is also the seventh staring the Belgian detective with his "little grey cells" Hercule Poirot and his ever faithful friend, Captain Arthur Hastings. It also contains a guest appearance by Scotland Yard's Chief Inspector Japp.

Interestingly enough current readers can find this novel printed under two different titles, which at times can be confusing. Out of curiosity I checked my local public libraries (two different library systems) and found that one had the novel listed under the original title, Lord Edware Dies, which was how the book was originally published in the UK during the early fall of 1933. The other library had the book listed as Thirteen for Dinner, which was the American title as published in the late fall of 1933.

Either way the story centers around the murder of Lord Edgware, though that is not how it begins. Like so many of the previous murder cases Poirot and Hastings have been involved with, this one began with no suspicion of a crime. While enjoying dinner at the Savoy Poirot is approached by the beautiful American actress, Jane Wilkinson (a.k.a. Lady Jane Edgware, wife of George Alfred St. Vincent Marsh, fourth Baron Edgware). Jane begs for Poirot's help in getting a divorce from her husband, but foolishly adds that if he can't help her she will be left with no alternative but to "bum him off myself." Curious as the interesting situation Poirot agrees to pay Lord Edgware a visit.... which leads to some surprisings news: Lord Edgware will give his wife the divorce she so desires. Poirot returns to give Jane the news and all seems well until things take a nasty turn... The morning after Poirot's visit, Lord Edgware is found dead and it appears the very last person to see him was his wife! One thing leads to another and the bodies start to pile up...

In typical Christie fashion, the reader is taken on an exciting ride the moment the story begins with twists and turns and clues and false clues and dead ends before reaching an exciting reveal. As for the detectives... Japp, as usual, jumps to conclusions, Poirot is as reserved and puzzling as ever, and Hastings as skeptical of Poirot's methods as always... You'd think he'd get over it with time and the rate of success by Poirot! In the end Poirot solves the case, gives the credit to Japp and the rest of Scotland Yard, and if the reader is attentive enough they should not have to difficult a time figuring out some, if not all of the answers to this mystery. I was so very close to solving this one, but was off a small degree with my guess of "who dun it". (Oh well, better luck next time.) As a side note, I did notice an echo of familiarity about some of the characters or settings in this story, yet even with that feeling the story remained a enjoyable read with a fresh plot. On a scale of 1-5, 1 being horrible and 5 being excellent I would rate Lord Edgware Dies (or Thirteen for Dinner) a 3.5. I liked it; it was a good read. Next on my list to read is: Murder on the Orient Express. Watch for a review in May. To read any of my past Christie mystery reviews click on the Agatha Christie label on the right-hand sidebar.

References to other works

In chapter 7, Poirot mentions that once he found a clue, but since it was four feet long instead of four centimeters nobody would believe in it. This is probably a reference to a situation occurred in The Murder on the Links, where Poirot found a piece of lead-piping which he concluded will be used to disfigure the victim's face so that it would be unrecognizable. Nevertheless, the artifact was described in that Novel as a two feet long lead-piping instead of a four feet one.

In chapter 25, Hastings tells Donald Ross that Poirot has left for an appointment relating to his investigation of another case, "the strange disappearance of an Ambassador's boots". When Poirot returns from the appointment, he tells Hastings that it was a case of cocaine smuggling, and that he had spent the last hour in a ladies' beauty parlor. This case sounds identical to the one in the Tommy and Tuppence story "The Ambassador's Boots" from "Partners in Crime", 1929, except that Poirot mentions a girl with red hair (Hastings is often described by Poirot as partial to redheads), while the girl in "The Ambassador's Boots" has blonde hair, or black hair when in disguise.

References to actual history, geography and current science

The character of Carlotta Adams was based on the American dramatist Ruth Draper (1884–1956). In her Autobiography, Christie says, “I thought how clever she was and how good her impersonations were; the wonderful way she could transform herself from a nagging wife to a peasant girl kneeling in a cathedral. Thinking about her led me to the book Lord Edgware Dies.” In writing this, Christie forgot that she had previously used the Draper idea in the short story The Dead Harlequin, published in The Mysterious Mr. Quin (1930), where the character was called Aspasia Glen and was the murderer’s accomplice, rather than the victim.

In chapter 7 inspector Japp mentions the Elizabeth Canning case which was a real kidnapping case occurred in London in 1753. Such case created a lot of sensation in its time due to the inconsistencies of the victim's declarations and the alibis of the perpetrators. Japp mentions this case due to the particular fact that the suspect was seen at two places at the same time. In the novel the suspect, Lady Edgware, was seen at a dinner party at the time that she was seen visiting the victim; whereas in the Canning case the suspect, Mary Squires, was seen traveling during the time that Elizabeth Canning said she had her imprisoned.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

Lord Edgware Dies (1934)

Main article: Lord Edgware Dies (1934 film)

The novel was first adapted in 1934 as an eighty-minute film directed by Henry Edwards for Real Art Productions. The film was the third to star Austin Trevor in the role of Poirot after his appearances in Alibi and Black Coffee, both in 1931.

Thirteen at Dinner (1985)

Main article: Thirteen at Dinner (film)

The novel was then adapted for an eighty-seven minute TV movie in 1985 starring Peter Ustinov in one of his six appearances as Poirot. The production was made under the US book title of Thirteen at Dinner and co-starred Faye Dunaway in the dual role of Jane Wilkinson and Carlotta Adams. The story was updated to be set in contemporary times and not in the 1930s. Acting the part of inspector Japp of Scotland Yard was David Suchet.

Agatha Christie's Poirot (2000)

The book was adapted by Carnival Films as a one-hundred-and-twenty minute drama and transmitted on ITV in the UK on Saturday, February 19, 2000 as a special episode in their series Agatha Christie's Poirot.

Adapator: Anthony Horowitz
Director: Brian Farnham

Cast:

• David Suchet as Hercule Poirot
• Hugh Fraser as Captain Arthur Hastings
• Philip Jackson as Chief Inspector Japp
• Pauline Moran as Miss Lemon
• Helen Grace as Jane Wilkinson
• John Castle as Lord Edgware
• Fiona Allen as Carlotta Adams
• Dominic Guard as Bryan Martin
• Fenella Woolgar as Ellis
• Deborah Cornelius as Jenny Driver
• Hannah Yelland as Geraldine Marsh
• Tim Steed as Ronald Marsh
• Lesley Nightingale as Miss Carroll
• Christopher Guard as Alton
• Iain Fraser as Donald Ross
• Virginia Denham as Alice

Publication history

• 1933, Collins Crime Club (London), September 1933, Hardcover, 256 pp
• 1933, Dodd Mead and Company (New York), 1933, Hardcover, 305 pp
• 1944, Dell Books (New York), Paperback, (Dell number 60 [mapback]), 224 pp
• 1948, Penguin Books, Paperback, (Penguin number 685), 251 pp
• 1954, Fontana Books (Imprint of HarperCollins), Paperback, 192 pp
• 1969, Greenway edition of collected works (William Collins), Hardcover
• 1970, Greenway edition of collected works (Dodd Mead), Hardcover, 255 pp
• 1970, Ulverscroft Large-print Edition, Hardcover, 380 pp ISBN 0-85-456479-9
• 2007, Poirot Facsimile Edition (Facsimile of 1933 UK first edition), February 5, 2007, Hardcover, 256 pp ISBN 0-00-724022-8

The book was first serialised in the U.S. in The American Magazine in six installments from March (Volume CXV, Number 3) to August 1933 (Volume CXVI, Number 2) as 13 for Dinner with illustrations by Weldon Trench.

Book dedication

The dedication of the book reads:
"To Dr. and Mrs. Campbell Thompson"

Reginald Campbell Thompson (August 21, 1876 - May 23, 1941), married to Barbara, was an eminent British archaeologist and the second expedition leader to employ Christie's husband Max Mallowan to work on one of his digs. The offer of work came in 1930 when Mallowan’s current employer, Leonard Woolley, was proving difficult over his proposed marriage to Agatha and their wish that she should join her husband on the dig at Ur although the real opposition came from Leonard's difficult wife, Katharine (see the dedication to The Thirteen Problems).

Thompson’s dig was at Nineveh and Max joined the team there in September 1931 followed the next month by Agatha. The invitation was only confirmed after the Mallowans had joined Thompson for a weekend in the country near Oxford where they were subjected to a cross-country scramble on "the wettest day possible over rough country" followed by another test to ensure that neither Agatha nor Max were fussy eaters. These were to ensure that both could withstand the rigours of a season in the wilds of Iraq. Used to walking over Dartmoor and having a very healthy appetite, Agatha passed the tests with flying colours. The relationship between the Mallowans and the Thompsons was far more relaxed than it had been with the Woolleys. The only source of contention was that Thompson was notoriously frugal with money and questioned every expense. Horses were a vital part of the expedition but Thompson only bought poor, badly-trained animals. He nevertheless insisted that Max ride them with skill as to fall off one would mean that "not a single workman will have a scrap of respect for you". Christie’s clash with Thompson in regards to this facet of his character was over her insistence on purchasing a solid table to place her typewriter on in order that she could complete her next book. Not seeing why she couldn't use orange boxes, Thompson was aghast at her personal expenditure of ten pounds on a table at a local bazaar (although Max’s recollection in his Memoirs was that three pounds was the sum.) and he took some two weeks to recover his temper over this 'extravagance'. After this though, he made frequent polite enquiries over the progress of the book, Lord Edgware Dies, which was dedicated to him and his wife. A skeleton found on the dig was named 'Lord Edgware'. A singular honour that Christie bestowed on the Thompsons was to read aloud the manuscript of the book to them, something that she normally only ever did to her family (See External Links below).

Dustjacket blurb

The blurb on the inside flap of the dustjacket of the first edition (which is also repeated opposite the title page) reads:

"Supper at the Savoy! Hercule Poirot, the famous little detective, was enjoying a pleasant little supper party there as the guest of Lady Edgware, formerly Jane Wilkinson, a beautiful young American actress. During the conversation Lady Edgware speaks of the desirability of getting rid of her husband. Lord Edgware, since he refuses to divorce her, and she wants to marry the Duke of Merton. M. Poirot jocularly replies that getting rid of husbands is not his speciality. Within twenty-four hours, however, Lord Edgware dies. This amazing story once more reveals Agatha Christie as the perfect teller of Detective stories. It will be difficult indeed to lay down the book until one learns the true solution of the mystery."

External links

• Lord Edgware Dies at the official Agatha Christie website
• Lord Edgware Dies (1934) at IMDb
• Thirteen at Dinner (1985) at IMDb
• Lord Edgware Dies (2000) at IMDb
• British Museum webpage on the Mallowan's work with Dr and Mrs Campbell Thompson