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''The A.B.C. Murders'' is a work of detective fiction by Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club on 6 January 1936〔''The Observer'', 29 December 1935 (p. 6)〕 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company on 14 February of the same year. The UK edition retailed at seven shillings and sixpence (7/6)〔Chris Peers, Ralph Spurrier and Jamie Sturgeon. ''Collins Crime Club – A checklist of First Editions''. Dragonby Press (Second Edition) March 1999 (p. 15)〕 and the US edition at $2.00.〔 The book features the characters of Hercule Poirot, Arthur Hastings and Chief Inspector Japp. The form of the novel is unusual, combining first- and third-person narrative. This approach was famously pioneered by Charles Dickens in ''Bleak House'', and was tried by Agatha Christie in ''The Man in the Brown Suit''. What is unusual in ''The A.B.C. Murders'' is that the third-person narrative is supposedly reconstructed by the first-person narrator, Hastings. This approach shows Christie's commitment to experimenting with point of view, famously exemplified by ''The Murder of Roger Ackroyd''. The novel was well-received in the US and the UK when it was published. One reviewer said it was "a baffler of the first water," while another remarked on Christie's ingenuity in the plot. A reviewer in 1990 said it was "A classic, still fresh story, beautifully worked out." ==Plot introduction== The novel follows the eponymous murders and their investigation as seen by Arthur Hastings, Poirot's old friend. Poirot receives typed letters signed by A.B.C.. In each is given the date and location of the next murder. A.B.C. moves alphabetically: Alice Ascher is a tobacco shop owner killed in her shop in Andover, Betty Barnard is a flirty waitress killed in Bexhill, and Sir Carmichael Clarke is a wealthy man killed at his home in Churston. A.B.C. leaves an ABC railway guide with each victim. Poirot has two doubts in his mind: a) ''Why would A.B.C. write to him instead of the Scotland Yard or any reputed newspaper?'', and b) ''Why did a meticulous man like A.B.C. misspell Poirot's address on the Churston letter?'' Each chapter narrated by Hastings is followed by a description of events in the life of Alexander Bonaparte Cust, a travelling salesman. Cust, an epileptic who had served in the war, was rendered incapable of doing many kinds of work due to a head injury which made him prone to memory blackouts and constant headaches. Meanwhile, Poirot forms a "Legion" of relatives of the deceased in hopes of uncovering new information. Inspector Crome, who doubts Poirot's detective abilities and Dr Thomson, who tries to profile this serial killer, are part of the police team. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The A.B.C. Murders」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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