✦ Mystery & Crime📚 66 Novels👑 Queen of Crime🌍 2 Billion+ Books Sold
About Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie was born in 1890 in Torquay, England, and died in 1976. She is the best-selling fiction writer of all time, with estimated sales exceeding two billion copies — surpassed only by the Bible and Shakespeare. She created two of literature's most beloved detectives: the fastidious Belgian Hercule Poirot and the quietly perceptive Miss Jane Marple. In 1926, Christie disappeared mysteriously for eleven days, vanishing her car and all trace — the episode was never fully explained. She also wrote romantic fiction under the pen name Mary Westmacott. Her play The Mousetrap opened in London's West End in 1952 and ran continuously until 2020, making it the longest-running stage production in history. Adaptations of her work — from David Suchet's definitive Poirot to multiple Miss Marple television series — continue to reach new audiences decades after her death.
Start Here
For newcomers to Christie: And Then There Were None is an ideal first read — a standalone masterpiece with no prior knowledge required. For Poirot fans: begin with Murder on the Orient Express, Christie's most famous novel. For Miss Marple: start with The Murder at the Vicarage.
Hercule Poirot — 33 Novels
Christie's beloved Belgian detective, famous for his "little grey cells" and immaculate appearance. 33 novels span from 1920 to 1975 — listed here are the first fifteen, covering Poirot's golden era.
Poirot Novels
Reading Order Note
Most Poirot novels work as complete standalones — you don't need to read them in order. That said, publication order gives you the satisfaction of watching Christie's craft deepen over time. Adaptations starring David Suchet (ITV, 1989–2013) covered almost every Poirot story.
Jane Marple, an elderly spinster from St. Mary Mead, solves crimes through keen observation and a sharp understanding of human nature. Adaptations include Joan Hickson, Geraldine McEwan, and Julia McKenzie in the role.
Thomas Beresford and Prudence "Tuppence" Cowley — Christie's only series featuring a married detective duo who age in real time across the five books, from young adventurers to elderly sleuths.
Christie's finest non-series novels — some of the most ingeniously plotted mysteries ever written. These work as perfect entry points for readers new to Christie.
Essential Standalones
Standalone
And Then There Were None
1939
World's best-selling mystery novel — perfect first read
What is the best Agatha Christie book to start with?
And Then There Were None (1939) is widely considered the ideal entry point — it requires no knowledge of her series detectives, features a brilliantly simple premise (ten strangers, one island, a killer among them), and delivers one of the most satisfying twists in all of crime fiction. It is also the world's best-selling mystery novel. For those who want to dive into a series, Murder on the Orient Express for Poirot or The Murder at the Vicarage for Miss Marple are perfect starting points.
Should I read Poirot books in order?
Christie's Poirot novels are almost entirely self-contained — each mystery resolves fully within its own book, and there is minimal ongoing plot between entries. You can pick up any Poirot novel without having read the others and follow the mystery completely. That said, reading in publication order lets you appreciate how Christie's writing craft evolved over five decades. One important note: Curtain, Poirot's final case (written during WWII, published in 1975), should be read last.
Is And Then There Were None part of a series?
No — And Then There Were None is a completely standalone novel with no recurring detective. It features ten strangers who are invited to an island and are killed one by one in accordance with a nursery rhyme. There is no Poirot, no Miss Marple, and no connection to any other Christie work. This is precisely what makes it such a perfect entry point — it stands entirely alone as one of the most ingeniously plotted crime novels ever written.
Which TV adaptations of Agatha Christie are most faithful to the books?
David Suchet's portrayal of Hercule Poirot in the ITV series (1989–2013) is considered one of the most faithful literary adaptations in television history — Suchet studied the character obsessively and covered virtually every Poirot story over 24 years. For Miss Marple, Joan Hickson's BBC series (1984–1992) is generally regarded as most true to Christie's original character. More recent BBC adaptations (Sarah Phelps's Christie adaptations) take considerable liberties with the source material and are better appreciated as reimaginings.
How many books did Agatha Christie write in total?
Christie wrote 66 detective novels, 14 short story collections, and several plays — including The Mousetrap, which ran continuously in London's West End from 1952 until the Covid-19 pandemic forced a temporary closure in 2020, making it the longest-running theatrical production in history. She also published six romance novels under the pen name Mary Westmacott. Her total output is estimated at over two billion copies sold globally, making her the best-selling fiction writer of all time after Shakespeare and the Bible.