The Mysterious Affair At Styles By Agatha Christie

Author: Agatha Christie

Genre: Crime Fiction

Synopsis

Mr. Hastings, the narrator of the story, visits Styles Court one morning. There he met Emily Inglethorp, the owner, and her family consisting of her two sons, John Cavendish and Lawrence Cavendish, from her first marriage, her second husband, Mr. Alfred Inglethorp, John’s wife Mary Cavendish, Miss Evelyn Howard and Miss Cynthia. That day the household heard a violent fight between Mr. and Mrs. Inglethorp and Miss Howard left the Styles Court due to some misunderstanding between her and Emily. While leaving, she warned Hastings to protect Emily from Mr. Inglethorp as she believed that one day he would kill her. The next morning, the household wake up to discover that Emily Inglethorp has died in her room. Soon the doctors came and declared Strychnine poison as the cause of her death.

Hastings visited Hercule Poirot to enlist help. Poirot learned that as per her previous husband’s will, John would be the vested remainderman of the manor, but Emily herself used to change her wills almost every year and as per the most recent that Emily has made, Alfred Inglethorp would inherit her wealth. On the day of her death, Alfred Inglethorp had stayed overnight in his friend’s house. When her body was found, her document case was found opened which earlier contained a new will which Emily had made before dying.

Later, during the inquest, inspector Japp believed Alfred Inglethorp as guilty of the crime because he was seen buying Strychnine, to which Alfred completely disagreed. Though Poirot found Alfred suspicious but still he convinced Japp not arrest him at the moment. But on further investigation Japp arrests John for the crime, they believed that it was John’s handwriting in the register which had the signature for the purchase of Strychnine.

Poirot soon pronounced John not guilty of the crime charges and revealed that the murder was committed by Mr. Alfred Inglethorp with assistance of his cousin, Miss Evelyn Howard. Strychnine was actually present in Emily’s medicine which she took every night and the pair added bromide powder to her medicine so that the last dose becomes fatal. The pair then left false evidence to charge John as guilty of the crime after which they would flee away from Styles Court forever. Poirot found the last link to solve the case in Evelyn’s room, where he found the letter written by Alfred Inglethorp expressing his real intentions for his wife. And Alferd Inglethorp and Evelyn couldn’t find Emily’s last will because she had destroyed it before dying.