Death in the Clouds

A Hercule Poirot Mystery: The Official Authorized Edition

By: Agatha Christie

Narrated by: Hugh Fraser

Hercule Poirot must solve a perplexing case of midair murder in Death in the Clouds when he discovers that the woman in seat two of the airborne aeroplane he’s traveling on is quite unexpectedly—and unnaturally—deceased.

From seat No. 9, Hercule Poirot was ideally placed to observe his fellow air passengers on the short flight from Paris to London. Over to his right sat a pretty young woman, clearly infatuated with the man opposite; ahead, in seat No. 13, sat a countess with a poorly concealed cocaine habit; across the gangway in seat No. 8, a writer of detective fiction was being troubled by an aggressive wasp.

Yes, Poirot is almost ideally placed to take it all in, except what he did not yet realize was that behind him, in seat No. 2, sat the slumped, lifeless body of a woman. Murdered, and likely by someone in Poirot’s immediate proximity.

solution elegantly simple

What made the experience of listening to Death in the Clouds the most enjoyable?

The story was straightforward enough. A person dies on a plane, one of the passengers must have done it. There were many complicated motives and possible solutions, but in the end Poirot manages to ignore all the distractions and focuses on what really matters.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Death in the Clouds?

The revelation of the murderer's identity. Forgive me I cannot further elaborate

What does Hugh Fraser bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The voice of Poirot. I used to read Christie's novels until recently I started to listen to them. Hugh Fraser brings Poirot's French/Belgian side of the character to life. As I have limited exposure to French, I cannot but imagine Poirot as the typical English gentlemen. Hugh Fraser gives me a more complete illustration of Poirot's character

Any additional comments?

Listen carefully. I listened to this story while my sister read the book. Poirot at early stages of the book finds out who the murder is by looking at a list of items carried by the passengers. If you really want to try to solve the murder yourself it may be worth searching for the list online - after all, listening to a list of items may not be the most enjoyable experience.

A delight

I’ve been rereading(listening) to these books after reading them in my teenage years, remembering how much I loved Agatha Christie's books.

A classic Christie

Lots of suspects, a series of clues and misdirections, plus a couple of love affairs and still Poirot is triumphant. Hugh Fraser's renditions of the Poirot stories are the absolute best.

Poirot plays matchmaker while solving a murder

I love these Christie mysteries read by Hugh Fraser - he is wonderful. This outing has Poirot on an airplane trip from France to England when a fellow passenger is murdered on board. Like an isolated house mystery, those present are all suspects, and they are the only suspects. With the company of a British and French police inspector and the help of some fellow passengers, Poirot manages to sniff out the murderer. Oh, and along the way he plays matchmaker to two lonely passengers -- so in the end, all is well.

Well Done!

loved it! loved it! loved it! Well done, well reas, well done well done