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Summary: A thinking person's mystery
Review: One of the lesser-known mysteries of Mystery Queen Agatha Christie, but one of her best! If you enjoy tense, brainy mysteries that rely on intelligence and tiny little clues, this is for you!Hercule Poirot is approached by a young woman whose mother was found guilty of murdering her artist-husband fifteen years before. And she wants Poirot to find out the truth about the murder. So, going by the facts from the man's lover, best friend, best friend's brother, and the mother's sister, he must deduce who dunnit. This is so far the only mystery I've ever read where the trail is cold, and unenhanced by any second murders. I just loved the characterizations of Amyas and Caroline, even though they are never actually seen in the book. And the other people are very, very human--you'll find yourself nodding in agreement when Poirot uncovers facets and secrets. The plot is complex and twisty, and it may take multiple readings to fully grasp what is going on. But the texture of the writing style and the unique nature of the mystery make it excellent in every way. A great, great mystery.
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Summary: Five Little Pigs is a well-written, suspenseful novel
Review: Paul Spera Five Little Pigs Book Review The novel Five Little Pigs, by Agatha Christie, is an extremely well written work. Not only is it suspenseful, it is sly and deceptive, and is a page-turner. Christie presents the reader with a descriptive cast of characters, giving each one a side which, if studied closely by the reader can give clues hinting at the conclusion. The plot unfolds elegantly as the well-known detective Hercule Poirot gathers information from people, as he attempts to perform the seemingly impossible task of recreating the past. The plot development will make the reader change his or her mind constantly about which person could be the murderer, as each character tells their version of what happened giving subtle but important clues. Five Little Pigs was the first Agatha Christie novel I read, but it has inspired me to read more novels by this detective fiction writer. I would recommend this novel to not only fans of Agatha Christie, but all readers who have a passion for detective fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: A o.k. book
Review: Somewhat boring in the descriptive writing the story is still exciting. Espicilly at the end of the book you can't put it down. Christies characters perfect and have a great personality. Despite some of the bore the book is still fun to read.
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Summary: Terrible
Review: THE worst Agatha Christie Book ever. I don't know where her mind was when she wrote it.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing and unputdownable
Review: This book unlike others by the author has this quality of suspense which makes the motive so obvious yet unique. The format is excellent and for all Christie fans a treat.
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Summary: Poirot Solves a Murder in Retrospect
Review: This classic Christie was published in Britain as "Five Little Pigs" and in the US as "Murder in Retrospect" because Poirot must solve a crime that took place 16 years before the story opens. Dame Agatha wrote this during the 1940's, a period that critics agree was when she did her best work. The crime in this book is the murder of the brilliant painter Amyas Crayle. His wife is convicted of the crime and sent to prison. However, their young daughter is now of age and receives a letter from her mother professing her innocence. The daughter turns to the famous Hercule Poirot for help. If the wife is innocent, Poirot must look a the five people who were present at the time of the crime---hence, the "five little pigs." In true nursery rhyme fashion, one little pig went to market (financial counsellor), one little pig stayed home (thanks to an inheritance), one little pig had roast beef (had made a good marriage), one little pig had none (retired teacher with limited income), and one little pig cried all the way home (a woman with a disfiguring facial scar). One of the most interesting aspects of this book is that Poirot will get an account of the murder from each of the five characters. At the end of these five accounts, you will have all the information that Poirot has and can try your hand at out-detecting the master. This is a great detective story and, in my opinion, one of the best by Agatha Christie.
Rating:
Summary: Poirot Solves a Murder in Retrospect
Review: This classic Christie was published in Britain as "Five Little Pigs" and in the US as "Murder in Retrospect" because Poirot must solve a crime that took place 16 years before the story opens. Dame Agatha wrote this during the 1940's, a period that critics agree was when she did her best work. The crime in this book is the murder of the brilliant painter Amyas Crayle. His wife is convicted of the crime and sent to prison. However, their young daughter is now of age and receives a letter from her mother professing her innocence. The daughter turns to the famous Hercule Poirot for help. If the wife is innocent, Poirot must look a the five people who were present at the time of the crime---hence, the "five little pigs." In true nursery rhyme fashion, one little pig went to market (financial counsellor), one little pig stayed home (thanks to an inheritance), one little pig had roast beef (had made a good marriage), one little pig had none (retired teacher with limited income), and one little pig cried all the way home (a woman with a disfiguring facial scar). One of the most interesting aspects of this book is that Poirot will get an account of the murder from each of the five characters. At the end of these five accounts, you will have all the information that Poirot has and can try your hand at out-detecting the master. This is a great detective story and, in my opinion, one of the best by Agatha Christie.
Rating:
Summary: Poirot Solves the case of the Five Little Pigs
Review: This classic Christie was published in Britain as "Five Little Pigs" and in the US as "Murder in Retrospect" because Poirot must solve a crime that took place 16 years before the story opens. Dame Agatha wrote this during the 1940's, a period that critics agree was when she did her best work. The crime in this book is the murder of the brilliant painter Amyas Crayle. His wife is convicted of the crime and sent to prison. However, their daughter is now of age and receives a letter from her mother professing her innocence. The daughter turns to Hercule Poirot for help. If the wife is innocent, Poirot must look at the five people who were present at the time of the crime---hence, the five little pigs. And in true nursery rhyme fashion one little pig went to market (finanacial counsellor), one little pig stayed home (thanks to an inheritance), one little pig had roast beef (had made a good marriage), one little pig had none (retired teacher with limited income), and one little pig cried all the way home (the woman with a disfiguring facial scar). One of the most interesting aspects of this book is that Poirot will get an account of the murder from each of the five characters. At the end of these five accounts, you will have all the information that Poirot has and can try your hand at out-detecting the master. This is a great detective story and one of the best by Agatha Christie.
Rating:
Summary: Incredibly effective
Review: This is a simple story. A bit like Cards on the Table, there is a relatively small scope of suspects. (In Cards... there were fourl. this one there are five.) All of them are interesting and well developed, and all of them COULD have done it. But did any of them have a motive? This is one of Christie's best Poirot stories...Poirot goes back into the past to investigate a sixteen year old murder. the culprit was caught, and died soon after in prison. But years later, someone is determined to prove that they were innoncent...Which means, someone else is still guilty. Poirot has to learn about all the events which went on 16 years ago through a distorted lens. Time has muddied the waters, and people's reccolections are sometimes very acute...but some are also very hazy. Having been convinced of the guilt of Caroline Crale, they have since shaped their view of events around that belief. He delves effectively into the past. We meet up with the characters again, and Christie develops them all very well. She uses some very original and interesting narrative devices, and the reader truly does have exactly the same opportunities as Poirot to solve the crime. The solution is suitably clever...and even though there are so few suspects, the reader is STILL surprised by the culprit!
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Summary: Fascinating and psychologically complex tale.
Review: This is definitely one of Christie's best novels; it has a psychological depth and complexity that even Christie seldom achieved. As Poirot sets himself to investigating a sixteen-year-old murder, we get the facts as described by the various characters; we see the divergence of opinion and the varying points of view as each character recalls the crime and the events surrounding it. Special attention must be paid to the dialogue; things overheard and misinterpreted play a large role. A real gem.
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