Did you know that Agatha Christie is the best selling novelist of all time? The Queen of Mystery! I’ve read more by her than by any other author, including a 10-book streak when in high school, but still to this day I’ve never been able to guess whodunnit before the reveal. Her plots have influenced shows like Criminal Minds and The Blacklist, as well as films such as Clue and Knives Out. 

Since she wrote 66 novels, along with numerous plays and short story collections, it can feel a little daunting deciding what to read first.

Here are 10 novels to start with.

Agatha Christie

Ten guests gather at a secluded island mansion, invited by the mysterious Ulick Norman Owen and Una Nancy Owen, who never appear. An unsettling rhyme is framed in each room, and ten figurines ominously stand on the dinner table.

After dinner, a chilling recording accuses every visitor of murder, leaving the guests stunned. Realization dawns that the hosts’ names, “U N Owen,” are a clever play on “Unknown,” and none of the guests actually know their hosts.

Guests begin to die in a manner matching the verses of the rhyme. The survivors are gripped by terror as they are trapped on the island, and the ten figurines on the dining table disappear one by one…

And Then There Were None is the fifth best-selling book of all time and has inspired countless thrillers, from Clue to episodes of the Blacklist and Criminal Minds.

Agatha Christie

When a wealthy American passenger is found murdered in his locked compartment aboard the luxurious Orient Express, Hercule Poirot finds himself in the middle of a baffling case. A snowstorm halts the train, trapping everyone on board – and ensuring the killer is still among them. As Poirot interviews each passenger, he uncovers a tangle of alibis, hidden connections, and long-buried secrets.

Murder On The Orient Express has been adapted into multiple films and shows, most recently with the 2017 film that grossed over $352 million at the box office.

Agatha Christie

In the quiet village of Chipping Cleghorn, a peculiar advertisement in the local paper stirs curiosity and disbelief among the villagers, including Mrs. Marple, who is staying nearby. The cryptic message boldly declares a murder will take place at Little Paddocks that very evening. Is it a prank, a childish jest, or something more sinister? Unable to resist the allure of the mysterious invitation, a crowd gathers at the appointed hour when suddenly, the lights go out…

Agatha Christie

Retired to the village of King’s Abbot, Hercule Poirot’s tranquility is shattered when a prominent widow takes her own life, followed by the murder of her fiancé Roger Ackroyd. Summoned by the butler, Dr. Sheppard hurries over to try and save Mr. Ackroyd, only to find that upon arriving, the butler denies ever calling. Sure enough, the group breaks into Ackroyd’s office to find him stabbed with his own dagger. Poirot is thrust back into action, stepping out of retirement to unravel the mystery.

Agatha Christie

Hercule Poirot is thrust into a perplexing case when he receives cryptic letters signed “A.B.C.,” foretelling a series of murders in alphabetical order. As the crimes unfold precisely as described – Alice Ascher in Andover, Betty Barnard in Bexhill, and Carmichael Clarke in Churston – Poirot faces one of his most intricate challenges yet. With seemingly unrelated victims and an elusive motive, he races against time to prevent the next strike in Doncaster, delving deep into the mind of a cunning killer.

Agatha Christie

Amidst the beauty of the Nile River, Hercule Poirot finds himself entangled in tragedy. Jacqueline de Bellefort relentlessly pursues her former best friend, Linnet, after she marries Jacqueline’s ex-husband. In a series of events – from a boulder falling to a heated confrontation and the subsequent disappearance of a pistol – the idyllic vacation takes a dark turn. With the sun-drenched Egyptian landscape serving as the backdrop, Poirot delves into the complexities of a love triangle gone awry, attempting to unravel the mysterious murder of the young and beautiful Linnet Ridgeway.

Agatha Christie

Amidst Hastings’ vacation at Styles Court, his childhood friend’s country manor, the wealthy owner Emily Inglethorp is found poisoned. The mystery deepens with the presence of a much younger and unpopular husband, stepsons from a previous marriage, and a web of familial connections. Urgently seeking aid, Hastings persuades the renowned detective Hercule Poirot to accompany him back to the manor to try and solve the mystery.

The Mysterious Affair At Styles is the first Hercule Poirot novel, introducing the iconic detective and kicking off one of the most enduring series in literary history.

Agatha Christie

Colonel Protheroe, local magistrate and overbearing land-owner, is the most detested man in the village of St. Mary Mead. Everyone wishes he were dead – and very soon he is – shot in the head in the clergy’s own study. With the entire village harboring ill will towards the victim, suspicions abound, leaving the community in turmoil. In this tense atmosphere, the astute Miss Marple emerges as the village’s only hope of deciphering the labyrinth of secrets and lies.

Agatha Christie

Mr. Shaitana, an eccentric collector, boasts to Hercule Poirot that he considers murder an art form – and that his “collection” consists not of objects, but killers who’ve escaped justice. He invites Poirot, along with a secret service agent, a crime novelist, and a Scotland Yard superintendent, to witness this unsettling exhibit.

At dinner, four seemingly ordinary guests arrive – the very suspects Shaitana hints are murderers. When the host is later found stabbed with his own stiletto, Poirot must rely entirely on psychology – not evidence – to uncover which guest used the quiet evening as cover for murder.

Agatha Christie

During a short flight from Paris to London, Hercule Poirot awakens to chaos as a wasp causes commotion among the passengers. Amidst the confusion, Madame Giselle is discovered dead, supposedly from a wasp sting. However, Poirot’s keen eye spots a poisoned dart, dispelling doubts and plunging the ten passengers into a high-stakes mystery, trapped with a murderer thousands of feet in the air, where he must unravel the truth from the confines of the plane.