Poirot Adventures: The Lemesurier Inheritance

Welcome back, Papa Poirot. What thrilling mysteries have you got for us today?

A supposed curse has claimed the lives of several members of the Lemesurier family. The next suspected victims: two young boys set to claim the family’s inheritance. Poirot has his doubts about the curse, but he still suspects danger. Can our Hastings and Poirot crack the case before doom befalls the children?

I really like this short! It’s a short and well-constructed mystery with a genuinely shocking yet satisfying ending. You could solve this one yourself with all the clues given to you, yet the reveal still managed to catch me off-guard! Well played, Christie!

This is one of the few stories that doesn’t treat Hastings like an absolute idiot. He and Poirot are more or less on the same page for most of the story. This would be neat, had Hastings contributed anything to the plot beyond narrating it.

Oh, but he did tackle the suspect. Let’s not forget about that.

My only real issue with it is how uneventful it feels. Poirot and Hastings chill out having tea for most of it, then bam! The suspect is caught and everything is wrapped up. It’s a good mystery, but not a particularly thrilling one.

The Lemesurier Inheritance is decent. Give it a read if you’ve got half an hour to kill. It’s one of Christie’s better shorts.