Hercule Poirot, whose first adventure was published in 1920, is one of the greatest detectives in all crime fiction. But don’t take our word for it—take his: “the great Hercule Poirot, the terror of evildoers” is how he refers to himself in one of twenty-seven stories in this volume in which he brings to justice murderers, poisoners, embezzlers, thieves, and assorted other criminals. Poirot was the invention of Agatha Christie, the bestselling mystery writer of all time, and she recounted his exploits in more than thirty novels, more than fifty short stories, and numerous adaptations for television and film. In the novel that introduced the petite Belgian detective and his sidekick Arthur Hastings, Poirot must solve the mystery of a horrible poisoning at Styles Court and snag from a group of suspects the person most likely to benefit from the victim’s death. In his second novel-length adventure Poirot must get to the bottom of a stabbing murder in France that seems an open-and-shut case—that is, until he applies his formidable skills of deduction. In the twenty-five short stories assembled here, all first published in 1923, Poirot applies what he refers to as his “little grey cells” to collar a variety of crooks and criminals.