Cards on the Table
Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie is available to buy here.
SYNoPSIS
Mr Shaitana is a collector - a collector of murderers. He invites Poirot to an small dinner party at which he will also invite a group of murderers who have killed and gotten away with it. Or so they think. During dinner Shaitana refers to various crimes and motives for murder making his guests appear uneasy. After dinner Shaitana sits alone by the fire while the guests are playing bridge, only, one of them must have sneaked over during play as sure enough, Mr Shaitana is dead...
poirot
The Belgium detective is on the case along side his friend Ariadne Oliver, Superintendent Battle and Colonel Race to discover who the culprit is.
when to read
This is a good read whatever the weather - no specific dates spring out to earmark it as a particular time of year.
murder mystery
A very tightly closed circle 'who done it' with just a handful of suspects to chose from.
england
Set in England however the crimes take place in other countries.
Publishing info
The third novel published in 1936 alongside 'The A.B.C. Murders' and 'Murder in Mesopotamia'.
overall rating
3/5
On Screen
Watching Agatha Christie
Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie was filmed as part of the ITV feature length episodes and is Season 10 episode 2 starring David Suchet.
Cards on the Table Character List
| Superintendent Battle | Scotland Yard detective |
| Anne Meredith | Young woman and guest of Mr Shaitana |
| Ariadne Oliver | Author of popular mystery books |
| Colonel Race | Secret Service agent |
| Dr Geoffrey Roberts | Doctor invited to Mr Shaitana’s dinner |
| Elsie Batt | Parlour maid to Mrs Craddock (patient of Dr Roberts) |
| Major Despard | Explorer and Hunter, guest of Mr Shaitana (also appears in The Pale Horse) |
| Miss Burgess | Secretary to Dr Roberts |
| Mr Lorrimer | Deceased husband of Mrs Lorrimer |
| Mr Luxmore | A biologist who was on an expedition in the Amazon when he died |
| Mr Shaitana | Wealthy collector and victim |
| Mr & Mrs Craddock | Former patients of Dr Roberts, both deceased |
| Mrs Lorrimer | Widow and guest of Mr Shaitana – Bridge player |
| Mrs Luxmore | Widowed wife of Mr Luxmore who died while out on an expedition |
| Mrs. Benson | Former employer of Anne Meredith who was her companion |
| Rhoda Dawes | Anne Meredith’s wealthy friend (also appears in The Pale Horse) |
| Sergeant O’Connor | Sergeant investigating |
SPOILERS BELOW!
Multiple! In the course of the novel Mr Shaitana and Mrs Lorrimer are both murdered but in turn prior to the novel (if you will) there were also the killings of: Mr Lorrimer, Mr Luxmore, Mrs (and Mr) Craddock and Mrs Benson
Dr Roberts kills both Shaitana and Mrs Lorrimer
All the other guests (apart from the sleuths) were directly responsible for the following:
Anne Meredith killed Mrs Benson as she discovered Anne was stealing from her.
Major Despard Killed Mr Luxmore in a shooting ‘accident’
Mrs Lorrimer killed her husband
Dr Roberts killed Mr and Mrs Craddock
Dr Roberts kills Shaitana to keep his freedom – he also kills Mrs Lorrimer.
Shaitana is stabbed and Mrs Lorrimer given a lethal dose of anesthetic.
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