The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Review of the novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie.
Published by Harper Collins on 10th June 1926.
Cost: 3ꞌ6 1963 [£7.99]
ISBN 1473-0022 (Paperback Edition - 254 pages)
I have read this novel a number of times, and as it has been discussed a number of times recently in the media, in this Agatha Christie's 125th centenary year, it seems right to review it now.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is a typical Christie story, set in an English village, described by the story’s narrator, Doctor Sheppard, at the start of Chapter 2:
King’s Abbot, is, I imagine, very much like any other village. Our big town is Cranchester, nine miles away. We have a large railway station, a small post office, and two rival “General Stores”. Able-bodied men are apt to leave the place early in life, but we are rich in unmarried ladies and retired military officers. Our hobbies and recreations can be summed up in the one word, “gossip”.
The majority of the story takes place at Fernly Park the home of Roger Ackroyd. As we might expect, Christie has designed her plot well, and in this story it’s woven around the death of two individuals. In the first instance, the apparent suicide of a wealthy Lady called Mrs Ferrars; the manner of death is confirmed by Doctor Sheppard. Having lost her husband almost 12 months previously, it was expected that she would marry the wealthy widower, Roger Ackroyd, but her suicide is unexpected and she posts a letter to Ackroyd on the eve of her death. Sheppard dines with Ackroyd at his house when the letter is discussed, but leaves without knowing its full contents. Later, following a phone call to the surgery, Sheppard returns to Fernly Park at 10 p.m. to find that Ackroyd has been stabbed in the neck. Immediately the residents of the house become suspects, each one having a motive of one sort or another: the housekeeper Miss Russell, Major Blunt a big-game hunter, Mrs Cecile Ackroyd a widowed sister-in-law and her daughter Flora, Parker the butler, Geoffrey Raymond the young secretary of Ackroyd and finally, Ralph Paton the adopted son – there are also the servants in the house, which are questioned as part of the investigation. To assist the reader, we are given two maps; one of the grounds of Fernly Park, and the other is the layout of the study where Roger Ackroyd’s murder takes place. I’m not sure if either of the maps assist the reader, apart from the fact that the placement of one of the chairs in the study is queried.
It is not until Chapter 3 that we discover that Hercule Poirot has settled down to a life in the country for almost a year and lives next door to Doctor Sheppard and his sister Caroline. However, it is not until Chapter 7 that Poirot is approached by Flora Ackroyd to investigate the case, and he agrees with the request that Sheppard assists him in his investigation.
Depending on who you listen to, this story is either Agatha Christie’s masterpiece from which her fame stems or others, that feel she did not stick to the accepted rules of detective fiction, ‘she has deceived her readers’. The debate hangs on the fact that Doctor Sheppard is the narrator of the story.
Most writers of Detective Fiction feel that there are rules that should be followed when writing detective stories and the guidelines set out by the The Detection Club in 1930 are often quoted, for example, in this case the rules to adhere to would be:
Rule 1. The criminal must be someone mentioned in the early part of the story, but must not be anyone whose thoughts the reader has been allowed to follow.
Rule 7. The detective must not himself commit the crime.
Rule 9. The stupid friend of the detective, the Watson, must not conceal any thoughts which pass through his mind; his intelligence must be very slightly below that of the average reader.
However, this story was published in 1926, so there were no rules governing detective writers of the period, it was a case of entertain your readers to make sure enough copies are sold to allow you to continue writing. It was rather a time of distract your readers with Red Herrings and misleading suggestions while your murderer tries to disguise his actions with misdirection.
In this story, Christie introduces a character that she was to go on and develop further; she writes in her Autobiography:
“I think that it is possible that Miss Marple arose from the pleasure I had taken in portraying Dr. Sheppard’s sister in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. She had been my favourite character in the book – an acidulated spinster, full of curiosity, knowing everything, hearing everything; the complete detective service in the home.”
One instance of the pleasure may be revealed in Chapter 16, where Doctor Sheppard and his sister Caroline hold a Mah Jong party, in attendance are Miss Gannett and Colonel Carter. During the game, Caroline reveals her thoughts on possible aspects of the investigation, as expected, based on local gossip:
"That Miss Russell,” said Caroline. “She came here pretending to consult James on Friday morning. It’s my opinion she wanted to see where poisons were kept.”
“My idea about Ralph Paton, I mean.” … “It seems quite clear by now that he didn’t get away from here by train. He must simply have walked into Cranchester. And I believe he’s there still. No one would dream of his being so near at hand.”
“… But there’s one thing I do tell you, James Sheppard. Flora Ackroyd does not care a penny for Ralph Paton, and never has. You can take it from me.”
Caroline is proved right in each instance!
As much as I love the character of Caroline I find I question one point, that of her not being aware of her next door neighbour, Hercule Poirot, who has been living at The Larches for almost a year.
The reader follows Poirot round the village, as he teams up with the policeman assigned to the case, an Inspector Raglan, who as we might expect, questions Poirot’s investigation methods. Poirot persuades Sheppard to assist him, (making him is Watson), and he makes full use of his role of the local doctor, to meet and speak to the suspects, then unravelling the issues as they are reported back to him. The reader can enjoy the odd Belgium phrase and the reminder of the physiological approach used by Poirot, as he uses his 'little grey cells' to unravel the truth of the crime.
Christie throws out strong suggestions as to the name of the murderer to the reader and they are either welcomed with relish, or missed in the fact that they are so enthralled with the story. One such hint is in Chapter 20; Poirot calls unexpectedly on Sheppard, and in an irritable moment, he invites Poirot into his workshop!
In Chapter 23, titled ‘Poirot’s Little Reunion’, the reader gets what they have now come to expect. Poirot gathers all the possible suspects together to declare his findings. He reads from a list he has prepared, the names of the suspected persons. As Poirot challenges those present to speak of their guilt, Christie brings together all the clues that the reader should have spotted, with one exception! But Christie changes tack, and Chapter 24 finishes with a statement from Poirot:
“Messieurs et Mesdames, this reunion of mine is at an end. Remember - the truth goes to Inspector Raglan in the morning.”
Once his suspects have left, Poirot discusses the investigation with Sheppard, and in the closing words of Chapter 25 on page 247 reveals the name of the murderer. That leaves only six pages for the murderer explain his actions. Sheppard discloses that he has been recording the progress of the investigation, and presents Poirot with a manuscript. At 5 a.m. the following morning an update on the manuscript is completed, filling in the missing gaps, but it is only a recap for the reader that has been misled. The murderer opts to take the poison veronal and wishes Poirot had never retired to grow vegetable marrows in the village of King’s Abbot.
I really have enjoyed reading the story again. This story must be considered Agatha Christie’s masterpiece, it was so well received it gave her the encouragement to continue writing and giving her readers so much pleasure. Rating: 5 stars
Dr James Sheppard
25th May 2015
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