The Mysterious Affair at Styles

Featuring the first appearance of Hercule Poirot. In the midst of World War I, the residents of Styles wake one morning to find Emily Inglethorpe has been fatally poisoned. Captain Hastings, staying with the family, enlists the help of his old friend, Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. With the evidence mounting against one member of the family, Poirot uses his unique deductive technique to prove who really killed Emily.
The characters of Poirot and Hastings are finely drawn. Some humorous aspects when Hastings has his own unreflective self-confidence put to the test by the often enigmatic Poirot. A good character study as well as a fine, although complex, mystery.