But if there was a slightly condescending element of what we might now call “mansplaining” to both suggestions, Christie was not offended. The novelist read the Prince’s flattering letter with a smile, because the idea suggested by the man who would in the 1960s become the “unofficial godfather” of Prince Charles was exactly the same as the one her brother-in-law, James Wattis, had come up with a few months earlier. He then went on to offer her what he thought was a unique and fun idea for a plot. The future Earl Mountbatten, last British Viceroy of India, was a fan of Christie’s work, he explained in his note. Prince Louis of Battenberg was a fashionable Royal Navy officer and pal of the louche and stylish Prince of Wales (the one who’d abdicate the throne to marry Wallis Simpson). Not only beloved by generations of readers, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was one of Agatha Christie’s own favorite works-a brilliant whodunit that firmly established the author’s reputation as the Queen of Mystery.In the spring of 1924, the young detective writer, Agatha Christie-whose third novel- The Murder on the Links-had been published six months earlier to favorable notices-and even the odd blush-inducing comparison to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle-received a letter from an unexpected source. Luckily one of Roger’s friends and the newest resident to retire to this normally quiet village takes over-none other than Monsieur Hercule Poirot. However, the evening post brought Roger one last fatal scrap of information, but before he could finish reading the letter, he was stabbed to death. Then, tragically, came the news that she had taken her own life with an apparent drug overdose. He suspected also that someone had been blackmailing her. He knew that the woman he loved had poisoned her brutal first husband. In this official edition featuring exclusive content from the Queen of Mystery, Hercule Poirot comes out of retirement in one of Agatha Christie’s ten favorite novels, which was also voted by the British Crime Writers’ Association as the “Best Crime Novel of all Time.” “Agatha Christie’s indelibly etched characters have entertained millions across the years and a love of her work has brought together generations of readers-a singular achievement for any author and an inspiration to writers across the literary landscape.” -Jacqueline Winspear, New York Times bestselling author of the Maisie Dobbs novels

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