Hector MacQueen: Ratchett's personal secretary and translator, whose father was the lawyer for the Armstrong family. Binge! Agatha Christie: Nine Great Christie Novels". Entertainment Weekly. No.1343–44. New York City: Meredith Corporation. 26 December 2014. pp.32–33. As in the 2017 film, MacQueen's father was the prosecutor rather than the Armstrongs' lawyer, whose career was ruined after he was threatened into acquitting Cassetti. The adaptation's treatment of Ratchett's murder is much darker in comparison with the novel. The killers gather in his cabin and stab him one by one while he is drugged but awake, rather than stabbing him independently while he is unconscious. The ending dwells on Poirot's horror at the act of mob justice and his moral conflict, in view of his Catholic faith and commitment to the law, when he decides not to tell the Yugoslavian police what he knows. The 18 suspects are an interesting bunch, but their characterisation is sketchy and I found it quite hard to form an opinion on the identity of the murderer and their motives. But Benedict is bang up to date with the inclusion of same sex couples, a person called Sam who uses the pronoun they, and a famous social media influencer. I learned quite a lot!

On a lighter note, Roz has made a concoction called tablet for the journey, a sort of Scotch whisky-laden fudge from her mother's own recipe book. Roz constantly refers to this recipe book and to tablet and the recipe even appears at the end of the novel. On the journey, more or less half the book, involves setting up the characters. We have Meg, a social media influencer, her aggressive reality television show partner, some students, a belittled father, an elderly woman with her adoring son, and some others. When the train is detailed and a body found, it is up to Roz to solve the crime. Having said that, although I can't say I enjoyed this book, I didn't hate it either. It is well-written and compelling. It kept me guessing right up to the ending which seemed an appropriate homage to the original story. Geier, Thom (16 June 2015). "Kenneth Branagh in Talks to Direct Agatha Christie's 'Murder on the Orient Express' (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Los Angeles, California: The Wrap News Inc . Retrieved 11 July 2015. And it’s a shame, because the story itself really isn’t bad. It just has nothing to do with Christmas, reads nothing like the summary implies it will in tone, content, or theme, and has the potential to be a nasty surprise for readers who are sensitive to this type of material.The perfect updating of the classic Christmas Country House mystery . . . Fabulous festive fun’ DEREK FARRELL I'm glad to see that other reviewers agree that there was far too much rape, domestic violence and sexual assault in this book for it to work well as a cosy. Once the train has derailed and the bodies begin to pile up, one of the passengers takes charge. Roz was, until recently, a high-ranking police officer with the Met so she decides to take control of the situation whilst waiting for the local police and fire and rescue services to arrive through the dense snow. Unfortunately, the problem with Roz, as the Poirot figure, is that she is so tightly sandwiched between concern for her daughter and memories of her own estranged mother, to the extent that she is unable to concentrate on the job in hand. Cooper, John; Pyke, B A, eds. (1994). Detective Fiction – the collector's guide (2ed.). London, England: Scolar Press. pp.82, 86. ISBN 0-85967-991-8.

That was the magic of trains. The world seemed to pass you by while you were still, yet somehow you got to where you wanted to go. If only life were like that.” A Japanese adaptation was broadcast over two nights in January 2015 on Fuji Television, [30] titled Orient Kyuukou Satsujin Jiken [ ja], and it featured several famous actors, including Ninomiya Kazunari, Matsushima Nanako, Tamaki Hiroshi, Kichise Michiko, Nishida Toshiyuki, and Sawamura Ikki. The main character, Suguro Takeru, modeled on Hercule Poirot, was played by actor Nomura Mansai. David Suchet reprised the role of Hercule Poirot in " Murder on the Orient Express" (2010), a 90-minute movie-length episode of the television series Agatha Christie's Poirot co-produced by ITV Studios and WGBH-TV, adapted for the screen by Stewart Harcourt. The original air date was 11 July 2010 in the United States, and it was aired on Christmas Day 2010 in the UK. The perfect Christmas read . . . and puzzles galore for both readers and the players of the game’ W.C. RYAN The setting is somewhat less exotic than the Orient Express - here it's the sleeper train from London to Fort William - but there's the same opportunity for a tight band of suspects and there's the convenience of a train that gets derailed in a snowstorm, isolating the suspects and the detective - in this case a newly retired Met detective inspector, heading up to Scotland because her daughter's about to give birth.Even for that, I have to say I really enjoyed this book , it was a real puzzle to solve and I did half get it right but not completely, which in all honesty I was happy about as I love the reveal! Arrive promptly at Pedley Street Station and be prepared to board. You’ll be seated in one of the train’s eight booths, with each booth seating eight guests. From the very moment you step aboard, be wary. Although a train journey seems innocent enough, the fact that the recently discovered Jewel of the Empire is being transported on your journey may throw a spanner or two in the works. Worse than the fact a precious diamond might go missing is the troubling rumour that someone on board has something much more ghastly planned. Everyone is a suspect on The Murder Express…including you!

I say this in a somewhat jesting way, but I mean this warning with seriousness. What is presented here in the title, the cover art, and the publisher’s summary is a fun holiday mystery. In actuality, this is a very upsetting book about the devastating effects of sexual assault and rape on survivors and includes multiple graphic and unsettling first person accounts of rape, as well as a lot of horror show pregnancy and delivery content as well that I would absolutely not recommend reading while pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant. Die ehemalige Polizisten Roz hat von ihren Kollegen eine Fahrt erster Klasse im Weihnachts-Express nach Schottland geschenkt bekommt. Sie möchte zu ihrer Tochter und deren Partnerin. Die beiden erwarten minütlich ihr erstes Kind und Roz hofft, pünktlich zur Geburt dort zu sein. Das Schneegestöber behindert jedoch den Bahnverkehr und der Zug startet mit Verspätung. Auf der Fahrt denkt Roz immer wieder an die Vergangenheit und dass sie es nicht leicht mit ihrer Mutter hatte und mit ihrer Tochter. Schottland soll ein Neuanfang werden. Nach und nach lernt sie die anderen Passagiere kennen. Einige sind ihr sofort sympathisch, auf andere Bekanntschaften könnte sie auch verzichten. Dr. Stavros Constantine: a Greek physician, who, after the murder, determines Ratchett's time of death.

I am still giving the book 3 stars for the good parts - a clever mystery, intriguing setting, lots of action and a surprise at the end. I liked Roz and enjoyed the role she played in solving the crime as well as preventing total anarchy on board the train! Venice-Simplon Orient Express – the train using original carriages from the Orient Express on which Christie based her novel Book awards: The Top 100 Mystery Novels of All Time Mystery Writers of America". The Library Thing . Retrieved 12 April 2017. There were things I liked about it - the characters were amalgamated well into what was set up to be a modern take on the classic mystery-on-a-train Golden Age plot (yay!) Unfortunately, it wasn't particularly twisty, the solutions were unimaginative and some of the characters behaved in ridiculous ways. Morgan, Janet (1984). Agatha Christie, A Biography. New York City: HarperCollins. pp.201–04. ISBN 0-00-216330-6.

Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival. The next morning, with the train still stalled, Bouc informs Poirot that Ratchett has been murdered and the murderer is still aboard, having no way to escape in the snow. As there are no police onboard, Poirot takes up the case. With help from Dr. Constantine, Poirot examines Ratchett's body and compartment, discovering the following: the body has twelve stab wounds, the window had been left open, a handkerchief with the initial "H", a pipe cleaner, a flat match different from the ones Ratchett used, and a charred piece of paper with "member little Daisy Armstrong" written on it. Fleming, Mike Jr. (29 September 2016). "Johnny Depp To Star in 'Murder On The Orient Express' At Fox' ". Deadline Hollywood. Los Angeles, California: Penske Media Corporation . Retrieved 29 September 2016. There are anagrams hidden in the book as in Benedict’s last which I am rubbish at but at some point I will have a search for!Pierre Michel: the train conductor and the father of Daisy Armstrong's nursery maid, who committed suicide after the murder.