The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Book Ratings, Stats & Summary.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Book Ratings (as of Jan 2024) a book by Agatha Christie.
Goodreads Ratings
4.9 Stars (216 ratings)
Everand Ratings
4.5 Stars ( 2535 ratings)
Amazon Book Ratings and Statistics: Agatha Christie’s “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd”
Australia
Paperback: 4.5 Stars (24,640 ratings)
Audible: 4.8 (195 ratings)
United Kingdom
Paperback: 4.5 stars (24,177 ratings)
Audible: 4.7 stars, 1,525 votes
Summary of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Book
In the village of King’s Abbott, Mrs. Ferrars, a wealthy widow who is secretly engaged to Roger Ackroyd, commits suicide over the guilt of murdering her husband.
Before her death, she had opened to Roger Ackroyd about the murder, and indicated that somebody was blackmailing her for it.
A day after, however, Roger Ackroyd is found dead in his study, murdered. Prior to his death, he had dinner with Dr. Sheppard, a respected village doctor, and had told circumstances surrounding Mrs. Ferras’s death.
Sheppard’s sister, Carolie, an avid gossiper, had guessed the cause of Ferreras’s suicide accurately upon receiving the news of her death.
When police are called in to investigate, they establish time of death based on the state of the body and a witness stating he overhead Ackroyd talking to someone in his study at 9:30.
Inspector Raglan believes the murderer is Ralph Paton, who happens to be engaged to Flora Ackroyd, the victim’s niece. Flora Ackroyd does not believe that. Unlike most villagers, Flora Ackroyd knows that a certain Hercule Poirot is not just a vegetable marrow, but an ex-police man. So, she asks for his help in clearing Ralph’s name.
Hercule Poirot, a former Belgian police detective and now retired private detective, uncovers a web of secrets from some villagers.
But the time of death established by police frustrated his investigations.
He was also bothered by many unanswered questions that arose from the evidence and some inconsistancies from police findings.
Hercule sets up a decoy, claiming that chief suspect Ralph Paton was arrested in Liverpool. The case becomes wide open with Ursula Bourne, Ackroyd’s parlor maid, coming forth to explain her secret marriage to Ralph.
Hercules ties the final pieces together
Hercule Poitot’s own search at the murder scene had identified further evidence, a scrap of a white material, a small quill, and a woman’s wedding ring with the inscription “From R., March 13th”.
Armed with the additional discoveries and paying attention to the phone call, he examines the presence of motive and opportunity for all his suspects and their secrets. He also secretly advises Ralph to go into hiding while he continues his investigations.
Heavy dept, financial gain from inheritance, private love affairs, and blackmailing are all potential motives from a list of 5 suspects with many secrets to hide.
Finally, Poirot assembles Mrs. Ackroyd, Flora, Major Blunt, Raymond, and Dr. Sheppard and tells them he knows each one is hiding something.
As the 5 guests leave, Poirot asks one of them to stay behind, and explains some facts and discrepancies he had noted right from the beginning. He points out that the guest is the murderer.
Genres/Themes of the book The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Book Ratings by Agatha Christie.
Crime fiction, detective story, British detective books, Private Investigator Mysteries, historical thrillers, murder mystery.
Suicide, Blackmail, and Murder
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