Curtain (novel)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Curtain: Poirot's Last Case'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the
Collins Crime Club Collins Crime Club was an imprint of British book publishers William Collins, Sons and ran from 6 May 1930 to April 1994. Throughout its 64 years the club issued a total of 2,012in "The Hooded Gunman -- An Illustrated History of Collins Crim ...
in September 1975 and in the US by
Dodd, Mead and Company Dodd, Mead and Company was one of the pioneer publishing houses of the United States, based in New York City. Under several names, the firm operated from 1839 until 1990. History Origins In 1839, Moses Woodruff Dodd (1813–1899) and John S. Ta ...
later in the same year, selling for $7.95. The novel features
Hercule Poirot Hercule Poirot (, ) is a fictional Belgian detective created by British writer Agatha Christie. Poirot is one of Christie's most famous and long-running characters, appearing in 33 novels, two plays ('' Black Coffee'' and ''Alibi''), and more ...
and
Arthur Hastings Captain Arthur J. M. Hastings, OBE, is a fictional character created by Agatha Christie as the companion-chronicler and best friend of the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. He is first introduced in Christie's 1920 novel '' The Mysterious Af ...
in their final appearances in Christie's works. It is a country house novel, with all the characters and the murder set in one house. Not only does the novel return the characters to the setting of her first, ''
The Mysterious Affair at Styles ''The Mysterious Affair at Styles'' is a detective novel by British writer Agatha Christie. It was written in the middle of the First World War, in 1916, and first published by John Lane in the United States in October 1920 and in the United ...
'', but it reunites Poirot and Hastings, who last appeared together in ''
Dumb Witness ''Dumb Witness'' is a detective fiction novel by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 5 July 1937 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year under the title of ''Poirot Lose ...
'' in 1937. The fictional detective dies at the end. It was adapted for television in 2013. It is the last novel published by Christie before her death. ''
Sleeping Murder ''Sleeping Murder: Miss Marple's Last Case'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie and first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in October 1976 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year. The UK edit ...
,'' published posthumously, is her final novel.


Plot summary

A specific person is unsuspected of involvement in five murders by both the police and family of the victims. In all cases, there was a clear suspect. Four of these suspects have since died (one of them
hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging i ...
); in the case of Freda Clay, who gave her aunt an overdose of
morphine Morphine is a strong opiate that is found naturally in opium, a dark brown resin in poppies (''Papaver somniferum''). It is mainly used as a pain medication, and is also commonly used recreationally, or to make other illicit opioids. T ...
, there was too little evidence to prosecute. Poirot calls on his old friend, the recently-widowed Hastings, to join him in solving this case. Poirot alone sees the pattern of involvement. Poirot, using a wheelchair due to arthritis, and attended by his new valet Curtiss, will not share the name of the previously unsuspected person, using X instead. X is among the guests at Styles Court with them. The old house is a guest hotel under new owners, Colonel and Mrs Luttrell. The guests know each other, with this gathering initiated when Sir William Boyd-Carrington invites the Franklins to join him for a summer holiday stay. The five prior murders took place in the area, among people known to this group. Elizabeth Cole tells Hastings that she is a sister of Margaret Litchfield, who confessed to the murder of their father in one of the five cases. Margaret has died in
Broadmoor Asylum Broadmoor Hospital is a high-security psychiatric hospital in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England. It is the oldest of the three high-security psychiatric hospitals in England, the other two being Ashworth Hospital near Liverpool and Rampton Secure ...
and Elizabeth is stigmatised by the trauma. Three incidents occur in the next few days, showing the imprint of X. First, Hastings and others overhear an argument between the Luttrells. Shortly afterwards, Luttrell wounds his wife with a
rook rifle The rook rifle, originally called the rook and rabbit rifle, is an obsolete English single-shot small calibre rifle intended for shooting small game, particularly rook shooting. Design The rook rifle was designed to be light enough to be carried ...
, saying he mistook her for a rabbit. Mrs Luttrell recovers, and the incident has a good effect on their marriage. Next, Hastings is concerned that his daughter Judith spends time with Major Allerton, a married man. While Hastings and Elizabeth are out with
birdwatcher Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...
Stephen Norton, Norton sees something through his binoculars that disturbs him. Hastings assumes it has to do with Allerton. When his attempts to persuade Judith to give Allerton up merely antagonise her, the worried father plans Allerton's murder. He falls asleep while waiting to poison Allerton, relieved he took no action when he awakes the next day. Last, Barbara Franklin, wife of Judith's employer, Dr Franklin, dies the following evening. She was poisoned with physostigmine sulphate, an extract from the
Calabar bean ''Physostigma venenosum'', the Calabar bean or ordeal bean, is a leguminous plant, Endemic to tropical Africa, with a seed poisonous to humans. It derives the first part of its scientific name from a curious beak-like appendage at the end of the ...
that her husband researches. Poirot's testimony at the inquest, that Mrs Franklin had been upset and that he saw her emerge from Dr Franklin's laboratory with a small bottle, persuades the jury to return a verdict of suicide. Norton is still concerned over what he saw days earlier when out with Hastings and Cole. Hastings advises Norton to confide in Poirot. They meet in Poirot's room. That night, Hastings is awakened by a noise and sees Norton entering his bedroom. The next morning, Norton is found dead in his locked room with a bullet-hole in the centre of his forehead, the key in his dressing-gown pocket and a pistol nearby. When Hastings tells Poirot that he saw Norton return to his room the night before, Poirot says it is flimsy evidence, not having seen the face: the dressing-gown, the hair, the limp, can all be imitated. Yet, there is no man in the house who could impersonate Norton, who was not tall. Poirot dies of a heart attack within hours. He leaves Hastings three clues: a copy of ''
Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...
'', a copy of ''John Ferguson'' (a 1915 play by
St. John Greer Ervine St John Greer Ervine (28 December 1883 – 24 January 1971) was an Irish biographer, novelist, critic, dramatist, and theatre manager. He was the most prominent Ulster writer of the early twentieth century and a major Irish dramatist whose work in ...
), and a note to speak to his longtime valet, Georges. After Poirot is buried at Styles, Hastings learns that Judith has all along been in love with Dr Franklin. She will marry him, and leave to do research in Africa. When Hastings speaks to Georges, he learns that Poirot wore a wig and that Poirot's reasons for employing Curtiss were vague. Four months after Poirot's death, Hastings receives a manuscript in which Poirot explains all. X was Norton, a man who had perfected the technique of which
Iago Iago () is a fictional character in Shakespeare's ''Othello'' (c. 1601–1604). Iago is the play's main antagonist, and Othello's standard-bearer. He is the husband of Emilia, who is in turn the attendant of Othello's wife Desdemona. Iago hates ...
in ''Othello'' (and a character in Ervine's play) is master: applying just such psychological pressure as is needed to provoke someone to commit murder, without his victim realising what is happening. Norton had demonstrated this ability, with Colonel Luttrell, with Hastings, and Mrs Franklin. Poirot intervened with sleeping pills in Hastings' hot chocolate that night, to avert a disastrous rash action. Ironically, Hastings had unwittingly intervened in Mrs. Franklin's plan to poison her husband, by turning a revolving bookcase table while seeking a book to solve a crossword clue (''Othello'' again), thus swapping the cups of coffee, so Mrs Franklin poisoned herself. Poirot could not prove this. He sensed that Norton, who had been deliberately vague about whom he had seen through the binoculars, would hint that he had seen Franklin and Judith, to implicate them in the murder of Mrs Franklin, not inadvertent suicide as it was. This explains Poirot's testimony at her inquest, to ensure the police would stop their investigation. Given his very weak heart, Poirot conceives that he must end the string of murders by killing Norton. Poirot invites Norton for hot chocolate: at their meeting, he tells Norton what he suspects and his plan to execute him. Norton, arrogant and self-assured, insists on swapping cups: anticipating this move, Poirot had drugged both cups, knowing that he had a higher tolerance for a dose that would incapacitate Norton. Poirot moves the sleeping Norton back to his room using the wheelchair: Poirot could walk all along, one reason he needed a new valet who was unaware of that for this last case. Then, being the same height as Norton, he disguises himself as Norton by removing his wig and false moustache, ruffling up his grey hair, then donning Norton's dressing-gown and walking with a limp. Having Hastings establish that Norton was alive after he left Poirot's room, Poirot shoots Norton, leaves the pistol on the table and locks the room with a duplicate key. Poirot then writes his story, and ceases to take his
amyl nitrite Amyl nitrite is a chemical compound with the formula C5H11ONO. A variety of isomers are known, but they all feature an amyl group attached to the nitrite functional group. The alkyl group is unreactive and the chemical and biological propertie ...
heart medicine. He cannot say it was right to commit murder, but on balance he was sure he prevented yet more instigated by Norton. His last wish for Hastings is typical for Poirot, the matchmaker: he suggests that Hastings should pursue Elizabeth Cole.


Characters

*
Hercule Poirot Hercule Poirot (, ) is a fictional Belgian detective created by British writer Agatha Christie. Poirot is one of Christie's most famous and long-running characters, appearing in 33 novels, two plays ('' Black Coffee'' and ''Alibi''), and more ...
, the Belgian detective, now withered by age, but still thinking * Captain
Arthur Hastings Captain Arthur J. M. Hastings, OBE, is a fictional character created by Agatha Christie as the companion-chronicler and best friend of the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. He is first introduced in Christie's 1920 novel '' The Mysterious Af ...
, Poirot's friend, recently a widower, father of four grown children including Judith * Curtiss, Poirot's new
valet A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...
* Dr John Franklin, a doctor and research chemist, age 35, an idealist of strong character * Barbara Franklin, his invalid/
hypochondria Hypochondriasis or hypochondria is a condition in which a person is excessively and unduly worried about having a serious illness. An old concept, the meaning of hypochondria has repeatedly changed. It has been claimed that this debilitating cond ...
c wife, age 30, an ambitious, scheming woman * Judith Hastings, Franklin's laboratory assistant and daughter of Captain Hastings, age 21, one year out of university * Nurse Craven, nurse to Barbara Franklin * Sir William Boyd Carrington, former governor of a province of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, about 15 years older than Mrs Franklin, friend to her family since she was a child, in England to live as baronet in the house he inherited, once the house is remodelled * Major Allerton, long estranged from his wife, a smooth-talking womaniser, in his early forties * Colonel Toby Luttrell, owner of Styles Court, about age 50 * Mrs Daisy Luttrell, his wife * Elizabeth Cole, age 35, one of three surviving sisters once known by the last name of Litchfield * Stephen Norton, a grey-haired man of quiet disposition, uses binoculars for bird watching * Georges, Poirot's long-time valet


Literary significance and reception

In a review titled "The last labour of Hercules", Matthew Coady in ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', on 9 October 1975, wrote that the book was both "a curiosity and a triumph". He repeated the tale of the book being written some thirty years before and then stated that "through it, Dame Agatha, whose recent work has shown a decline, is seen once more at the peak of her ingenuity." Coady called Captain Hastings the "densest of Dr Watsons ut.. never has the stupidity of the faithful companion-chronicler been so cunningly exploited as it is here." Coady summarised the absolute basics of the plot and the questions raised within it and then said,
In providing the answers, the great illusionist of crime fiction provides a model demonstration of reader manipulation. The seemingly artless, simplistic Christie prose is mined with deceits. Inside the old, absurd conventions of the Country House mystery she reworks the least likely person trick with a freshness rivalling the originality she displayed nearly 50 years ago in ''
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd ''The Murder of Roger Ackroyd'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in June 1926 in the United Kingdom by William Collins, Sons and in the United States by Dodd, Mead and Company. It is the third no ...
''. For the egotistic Poirot, hero of some 40 books… it is a dazzlingly theatrical finish. 'Goodbye, cher ami', runs his final message to the hapless Hastings. 'They were good days.' For addicts, everywhere, they were among the best.
Two months later, Coady nominated ''Curtain'' as his ''Book of the Year'' in a column of critic's choices. He said, "No crime story of 1975 has given me more undiluted pleasure. As a critic, I welcome it, as a reminder that sheer ingenuity can still amaze." Maurice Richardson in ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' of 5 October 1975 summed up: "One of her most highly contrived jobs, artificial as a mechanical birdcage, but an unputdownable swansong."
Robert Barnard Robert Barnard (23 November 1936 – 19 September 2013) was an English crime writer, critic and lecturer. In addition to over 40 books published under his own name, he also published four books under the pseudonym Bernard Bastable. Life and work ...
, in ''A Talent to Deceive'', less favourably writes:
Written in the 'forties, designed for publication after Christie's death, but in fact issued just before it. Based on an idea toyed with in ''
Peril at End House ''Peril at End House'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the US by the Dodd, Mead and Company in February 1932 and in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in March of the same year. The US editi ...
'' (chapter 9) – a clever and interesting one, but needing greater subtlety in the handling than Christie's style or characterisation will allow (the characters here are in any case quite exceptionally pallid). In fact, for a long-cherished idea, and as an exit for Poirot, this is oddly perfunctory in execution.
It was one of the bestselling books of
1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...
.


References or allusions

Being their last case together, mention is made of earlier cases. Hastings became involved in the first Styles investigation in 1916, at which time he was thirty years old. He married at the end of the next Poirot novel, ''
The Murder on the Links ''The Murder on the Links'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie, first published in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company, Dodd, Mead & Co in March 1923, and in the UK by The Bodley Head in May of the same year. It is the second novel ...
'', mentioned twice in this novel, as Hastings is now a widower. Poirot mentions that once in Egypt he attempted to warn a murderer before the person committed the crime. That case is the one retold in ''
Death on the Nile ''Death on the Nile'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 1 November 1937 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company the following year. The UK edition retailed at s ...
''. He mentions that there was another case in which he had done the same thing: almost certainly that retold in "Triangle at Rhodes" (published in ''
Murder in the Mews ''Murder in the Mews and Other Stories'' is a short story collection by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by Collins Crime Club on 15 March 1937. In the US, the book was published by Dodd, Mead and Company under the tit ...
'' in 1937). In ''
The A.B.C. Murders ''The A.B.C. Murders'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, featuring her characters Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings and Chief Inspector Japp, as they contend with a series of killings by a mysterious murderer kn ...
'',
Inspector Japp Inspector James Japp (later Chief Inspector Japp) is a fictional character who appears in several of Agatha Christie's novels featuring Hercule Poirot. Creation Inspector Japp was inspired by the fictional police detective Inspector Lestrade fr ...
says to Poirot: "Shouldn't wonder if you ended by detecting your own death;" an indication that the idea of ''Curtain'' had already formed in the author's mind in 1935. On 6 August 1975, ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' published a front-page
obituary An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...
of Poirot with a photograph to mark his death. Hastings also mentions "the case of Evelyn Carlisle" as he speculates over a possible hidden financial motive for X's actions, referring to ''
Sad Cypress ''Sad Cypress'' is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in March 1940 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year. The UK edition retailed at ei ...
'' which centred on the revelation of money as a motivation for the crime.


Sequence of publication in Poirot novels

Christie wrote the novel in the early 1940s, during World War II. Partly fearing for her own survival, and wanting to have a fitting end to Poirot's series of novels, Christie had the novel locked away in a bank vault for over thirty years. The final Poirot novel that Christie wrote, '' Elephants Can Remember'', was published in 1972, followed by Christie's last novel, ''
Postern of Fate ''Postern of Fate'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie that was first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in October 1973''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of First Editions'' Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie ...
''. Christie authorised ''Curtain''s removal from the vault and subsequent publication. It was the last of her books to be published during her lifetime. Due to its early date of composition, ''Curtain'' makes no mention of Poirot's later cases, in novels published after World War II. Details are only very occasionally anachronistic (such as the mentions of
hanging Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging i ...
, which had been abolished in Great Britain in 1965). Christie could not know how long she would live nor how popular Poirot would remain. See Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple for further discussion of her views of Poirot. The fifth paragraph in ''Curtain'' ("Wounded in the war that for me would always be the war—the war that was wiped out now by a second and more desperate war" says Hastings) marks the passing of time for Hastings, and the long friendship of the two men, as well as making a link to the first Poirot novel. Though publication was in 1975, and the novel was written over 30 years earlier, the exact time period of the story is unknown, beyond it being summertime. The age of Hastings' daughter puts the story after the Second World War, as does the complete absence of wartime conditions and restrictions (e.g., no mention of rationing or bombing in London), but nothing sets a specific post-war year. The bit of arithmetic to show the story is set post-war starts from the marriage of Arthur Hastings and Dulcie (Cinderella) Duveen at the end of ''The Murder on the Links'' (published in 1923), and some years needed for the births of their four children, of whom Judith, age 21, appears to be the youngest. The story was not rewritten to add more specific markers of the years post Second World War, such as car models, clothing styles, or world events. The story clearly ends Poirot's career, as he dies in the novel, using his death for a resolution he had never before considered for a murderer: to become one himself. Poirot's death was announced in ''The New York Times'', a rare honour for a fictional character.


Adaptation for television

The novel was adapted in 2013 starring
David Suchet Sir David Courtney Suchet''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' ( ; born 2 May 1946) is an English actor known for his work on British stage and television. He portrayed Edward Teller in the television serial '' Oppenh ...
as Poirot. It was the final episode of the final series of ''
Agatha Christie's Poirot ''Poirot'' (also known as ''Agatha Christie's Poirot'') is a British mystery drama television programme that aired on ITV from 8 January 1989 to 13 November 2013. David Suchet starred as the eponymous detective, Agatha Christie's fictional Her ...
'', and the first of the final series to be filmed. Hugh Fraser again returned to the role of Hastings, following a ten-year absence; stars such as
Alice Orr-Ewing Alice Josephine Orr-Ewing (born 7 July 1989) is a British actress who starred in the 2012 British film '' The Scapegoat'', an adaptation of the 1957 novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier. Early life Orr-Ewing was born in Hammersmith, Lon ...
(Judith Hastings),
Helen Baxendale Helen Victoria Baxendale (born 7 June 1970) is an English actress of stage and television, known for her roles as Rachel Bradley in the British comedy drama '' Cold Feet'' (1997–2003), and Emily Waltham in the American sitcom '' Friends'' (19 ...
(Elizabeth Cole),
Anne Reid Anne Reid, MBE (born 28 May 1935) is a British stage, film and television actress, known for her roles as Valerie Barlow in the soap opera '' Coronation Street'' (1961–1971); Jean in the sitcom '' dinnerladies'' (1998–2000); and her role ...
(Daisy Luttrell),
Matthew McNulty Michael Anthony McNulty (born 14 December 1982), known professionally as Matthew McNulty, is a German-born British actor. Early life McNulty was born on 14 December 1982 in Hanover, Lower Saxony, West Germany, and lived in Berlin and Münster ...
(Major Allerton),
Shaun Dingwall Shaun Dingwall (born 21st February 1970) is a British actor from London. He is known for his roles as Pete Tyler in '' Doctor Who'', as Reg Trotter in ''Rock & Chips'' and as D.C. Mark Rivers in ''Touching Evil''. Early life Shaun Dingwall was ...
(Dr Franklin),
Aidan McArdle Aidan McArdle (born 1970) is an Irish actor. Early life McArdle was born in Dublin. He studied for an Arts degree at University College Dublin before going on to study at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, England. Career First r ...
(Stephen Norton) and
Philip Glenister Philip Haywood Glenister (born 10 February 1963) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC series ''Life on Mars'' (2006–2007) and its sequel '' Ashes to Ashes'' (2008–2010). He also played DCI William ...
(Sir William Boyd-Carrington) were among the other cast. The programme was aired in Britain on 13 November 2013, and later on Acorn TV on 25 August 2014. The adaptation mentions only the Litchfield, Sharples, and Etherington murders. Margaret Litchfield is hanged during the opening credits, whereas in the novel she dies in an asylum. The killer is not labelled 'X' as in the novel, the purpose of the label being achieved in other ways. Otherwise, the adaptation remains extremely faithful to the novel. With the exception of ''
The Mysterious Affair at Styles ''The Mysterious Affair at Styles'' is a detective novel by British writer Agatha Christie. It was written in the middle of the First World War, in 1916, and first published by John Lane in the United States in October 1920 and in the United ...
'', set in the First World War, the rest of the ITV Poirot series are set in the 1930s, regardless of when the novels were written, or the contemporary features in each of the novels; this last story sets the year as 1949. On 19 December 2013, Barnaby Walter of ''
The Edge David Howell Evans (born 8 August 1961), better known as the Edge or simply Edge,McCormick (2006), pp. 21, 23–24 is an English-born Irish musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead guitarist, keyboardist, and backing voca ...
'' listed the adaptation and Poirot's death scene at number 2 on the list of the Best TV Drama Moments of 2013. In 2015, ''Curtain'' was nominated for Outstanding Television Movie for its 67th
Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
s, but eventually lost to '' Bessie''.


Publication history

* 1975, Collins Crime Club (London), September 1975, Hardcover, 224 pp * 1975, Dodd Mead and Company (New York), Hardcover, 238 pp, * 1976,
Pocket Books Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books. History Pocket Books produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing in ...
(New York), Paperback, 280 pp * 1976, Ulverscroft
Large-print Large-print (also large-type or large-font) refers to the formatting of a book or other text document in which the typeface (or font) are considerably larger than usual to accommodate people who have low vision. Frequently the medium is also increa ...
Edition, Hardcover, 325 pp, * 1977, Fontana Books (Imprint of
HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...
), Paperback, 188 pp * 1992, G.K. Hall & Co. large-print edition, Hardcover, In the US the novel was serialised in ''
Ladies Home Journal ''Ladies' Home Journal'' was an American magazine last published by the Meredith Corporation. It was first published on February 16, 1883, and eventually became one of the leading women's magazines of the 20th century in the United States. In 18 ...
'' in two abridged instalments from July (Volume XCII, Number 7) to August 1975 (Volume XCII, Number 8) with an illustration by Mark English.


References


External links


''Curtain'' at the official Agatha Christie website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtain (Novel) 1975 British novels Collins Crime Club books Hercule Poirot novels British novels adapted into television shows Novels first published in serial form Novels set in the 20th century Novels set in Essex Novels set in hotels Works originally published in Ladies' Home Journal