Uncovering the Deadly Toxins of Agatha Christie: A Look at Arsenic and Other Poisons

JanieD: Fascinating. Loved it. Agatha Christie certainly knew her stuff where poisons were concerned. Very readable even though sometimes quite technical.

United Kingdom on Oct 02, 2023

Amrutha: Great read!
A book of great knowlegde!
Must read for anyone interested in the field of forensics… especially in Poisons/Chemicals .. 🔥

India on Aug 27, 2023

Bronwyn McAuley: As someone who has barely read any of her books...I will. I love how the chapters are set up and her knowledge on poisons is breathtaking (no pun intended). This is a good read for anyone curious about the subject.

United States on Mar 04, 2023

Leah: I truly enjoyed this book, which I read as a
lifelong fan of Agatha Christie and immediately after finishing Poirot and Me by David Suchet. Her explanations of the science are highly readable. Her insights into how Christie selected her poisons makes a lot of sense (e.g., Christie's dispensary training, contemporary accounts of crimes).

United States on Jul 29, 2022

Whinbrook: Interesting read looking at selected poisons (in alphabetical order) Agatha Christie used to dispatch some of her characters in mainly Poirot stories. Preface gave a good insight into Christie's background training and knowledge of poisons which was often applauded by experts in this field. It was interesting to note however that Christie sanitised the effects of the poisons so as not to offend the sensibilities of her readers. These poisons cause very messy and unpleasant manifestations when ingested.

The author takes each poison and without spoilers puts it into context in a Christie story. The history of the poison, real life cases of poisonings, how it manifests itself when taken and antidotes are really interesting sections in the book. The scientific parts are rather dry and well, scientific though and it is easy to loose interest when tackling these sections. I admit I skipped over many of those paragraphs but it did not spoil anything in the book.

United Kingdom on Jul 10, 2021

Veronica: If you're looking for an intriguing, fact filled book giving an overview of the poisons used in Agatha Christie's mystery tales, this is the book for you. Author Harkup does a brilliant job of giving the reader an overview of the poisons, including chemical make-up, uses, history, bodily effects--and then segues into examples of Dame Christie's tales utilizing the poison, coupled with real life instances as well.

I was particularly struck by the range of detail in the book. The use of scientific data mixed with literary examples gives the reader a unique view into the 'behind the scenes thinking and knowledge' Dame Christie may have in fact utilized as she developed her storylines and plans for a character's demise.

As a cozy mystery writer and reader, I found the information to be extremely helpful and enlightening. I will definitely be reading more of Author Harkup's 'science meets literary' works. A fascinating read, highly recommended!

United States on Jun 24, 2021

William W.: I'm a professor of literature who reads a ridiculous number of critical volumes, and this is one of the finest books I've read in a long, long time. As a study of Christie it's sophisticated, illuminating, and delightful, leading the reader through her background, her cultural moment, and her sophisticated use of poisons efficiently and deftly. It's chock full of fascinating tidbits as well, so much so that I felt obliged to put the book down the first time I leafed through it to make sure I'd have a notebook beside me for jotting details down. All the chapters are neatly sectioned, so those readers who are primarily interested in examining Christie's methods or the play of poisons in her short stories and novels can sort and sift as they like. Doing so would be a mistake, however, for the examination of poisons--their history, the way they work on the body, and their remedies--are eminently readable, fascinating, and fun (in a macabre sort of way). Harkup is a brilliant communicator, translating esoteric biochemistry into clear, vivid analogies. This book ticks off all the boxes for me--it's an absolute delight.

United States on May 02, 2019

Cleopatra: This book was an absolute delight to read combining my love of Agatha Christie’s novels with a wealth of information about the poisons she chose to dispose of her victims. For any of my potential dinner guests who may be wary, do not fear, the author warns us off using the poisons she carefully and concisely explains at various points throughout the book!

Any present-day poisoner wishing to use some of the methods suggested by Christie will be disappointed to discover that even these underhand methods are unlikely to be successful, as increased checks and balances have since been put in place.

A is for Arsenic features the fourteen poisons deployed by the Queen of Crime in her various books, some of course were used more than once! She starts the book off by talking about Agatha Christie’s time as a working in the dispensary in her local Torquay hospital during World War I and her training to become as an apothecary’s assistant. It was here that she her interest in poison began and coupled with some inspiration of real-life cases many of her books featured some hapless person falling victim to one or other of her chosen poisons.

Each chapter starts off...

United Kingdom on Apr 02, 2017

Damaskcat: This is a well written and very informative book about poisons and how Agatha Christie used them in her novels and short stories. You don't need to have read the books to find this book interesting as it will be of interest to anyone who reads crime novels. Christie did have professional knowledge of poisons before she started writing full time so it is perhaps not surprising that the details in her books are accurate.

Each poison has a section to itself and the author relates the history of the substance and its uses, if any, in medicine as well as a poison. How easy or difficult it would have been to obtain the poison at the time Christie's books or stories were written is also detailed together with the ways the law has changed since then. Real life poisoning cases are also detailed. How the poison works and its chemical make up are also covered and I have to confess to skipping some of the more technical passages as I found my O level chemistry was not really up to the task.

But the chemical details make up a very small part of the text and not always being able to understand these small sections did not spoil my enjoyment of the whole book which is a mine of...

United Kingdom on Sep 27, 2015

J. Lesley: I was amazed at all the information in this book. Concentrating on the types of poisons used by Agatha Christie in her novels had to be pretty much a labor of love for British chemist Kathryn Harkup because you can tell immediately that she is also a fan of this great icon of crime fiction. The book is written from the British point of view with changes in book titles noted for the American market. I really had my doubts that this subject matter could be presented in such a way that it held my attention for the time it took to read the book, but by the end I found myself wishing there was just one more chapter. But then I would have wanted another and another.

The book is very stylishly presented with artwork which is wonderfully evocative of the 1930s art deco style that I somehow assign to the Christie novels even though they were not all written during, or for, that time period. Maybe the really good television series has something to do with that. Each chapter deals with one specific poison beginning with arsenic, then belladonna, cyanide, digitalis, eserine, hemlock, monkshood, nicotine, opium, phosphorus, ricin, strychnine, thallium, and veronal. Each chapter leads...

United States on Aug 05, 2015