James Parker Pyne is a retired government employee who considers himself to be a "detective of the heart." Advertising his services in the "Personal" column of The Times, he works alongside his secretary Miss Lemon, novelist Ariadne Oliver, handsome "lounge lizard" Claude Luttrell and disguise artist Madeleine de Sara. The first six stories deal with Pyne solving cases in England, while the second six stories detail Pyne's vacation, where he hopes not to have to detective work only to end up helping others anyway.Contents1 The Case of the Middle-aged Wife2 The Case of the Discontented Soldier3 The Case of the Distressed Lady4 The Case of the Discontented Husband5 The Case of the City Clerk6 The Case of the Rich Woman7 Have You Got Everything You Want?8 The Gate of Baghdad9 The House at Shiraz10 The Pearl of Price11 Death on the Nile [unrelated to Hercule Poirot novel of same name]12 The Oracle at Delphi

Anne Beddingfeld holds the clue to a mystery. With the strange scrap of paper she discovered she can forge a link between a diamond robbery, an accidental death, a London tube station - and a murder in a remote country mansion! Anne's journey to unravel the mystery takes her as far afield as Africa and the tension mounts with every step...First published in 1924 the novel was adapted for television by CBS in 1989, and featured Edward Woodward, Tony Randall, Rue McClanahan and Ken Howard in major roles. The film updated the setting and characters to a contemporary period.Christie introduced Secret Service agent Colonel Race in this novel and he appeared in three further novels: Cards on the Table, Death on the Nile and Sparkling Cyanide. The money that Christie received for the serial rights from The Evening News paid for her first car - a Morris Cowley.

What is the connection between a failed suicide attempt, a wrongful accusation of theft against a schoolgirl, and the romantic life of a tennis player? To the casual observer, apparently nothing. When a houseparty gathers at Gull's Point, the seaside home of an elderly widow, earlier events come to a dramatic head.Robert Graves, author of I Claudius, was a neighbour of Agatha Christie's in Devon during the Second World War and the two became friends. Christie dedicated this book to Graves: "Dear Robert, Since you are kind enough to say you like my stories, I venture to dedicate this book to you. All I ask is that you sternly restrain your critical faculties (doubtless sharpened by your recent excesses in that line!) when reading it. This is a story for your pleasure and not a candidate for Mr Graves' literary pillory!" The book was dramatised by Agatha Christie and Gerald Verner. It was adapted for TV in 2007 with Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple.

Little did Anthony Cade suspect that a simple errand to deliver a manuscript on behalf of a friend would drop him right in the middle of an international conspiracy. Why were Count Stylptich's memoirs so important? And what was 'King Victor' really after? Murder, blackmail, stolen letters and a fabulous missing jewel, all threads lead to Chimneys, one of England's historic country house estates, and a startling denouement.The Secret of Chimneys marks the first appearance of Inspector Battle. He would go on to appear in four other novels.This novel was published in 1925 by Bodley Head in London, and by Dodd, Mead & Co. in New York. The Times Literary Supplement described it as "a thick fog of mystery, cross purposes, and romance, which leads up to a most unexpected and highly satisfactory ending".Chimneys was adapted by Christie as a stage play but was not performed until 2003, in Canada. It was filmed with the addition of Julia McKenzie as Miss Marple by ITV in 2009.