Hickory Dickory Dock

A Hercule Poirot Mystery

By: Agatha Christie

Narrated by: Hugh Fraser

An outbreak of kleptomania at a student hostel is not normally the sort of crime that arouses Hercule Poirot's interest. However, the warden of the hostel is his secretary, Miss Lemon's sister, and efficient Miss Lemon is less than efficient when worried. To set her mind at ease, and decrease the number of mistakes in her typing, he agrees to meet with Mrs. Hubbard.

When he sees the bizarre list of stolen and vandalized items - including a stethoscope, a box of chocolates, a slashed rucksack, and a diamond ring (which was stolen, then discovered in a bowl of soup) - he congratulates Mrs. Hubbard on a "unique and beautiful problem". But Poirot soon has more than a possible petty thief on his hands when murder enters the picture.

©1983 John Michael Mallowan; 1983 Peter Andrew Mallowan; 1955 Max Edgar Lucien Mallowan; 1955 William Edmund Cork (P)2005 HarperCollins Publishers, London

Critic reviews

"The infallibly original Agatha Christie has come up with a new and highly ingenious puzzle-construction." (The New York Times)

And now the students!

Another delightful murder mystery from the beloved Agatha! A little predictable perhaps but still very well done!

Another Great Mystery

Really enjoyed this Hercule Poroit novel! Interesting plot and characters. Narration is always good. Lots of interesting twists. Different than the normal HP novel as it involves students.

Not enough Poirot in this one, still good though

Too much of the other police/detectives. Poirot feels like an after thought. Solid story still nonetheless.

Great story told by a great narrator

I enjoyed this Hercule Poirot novel a lot. It had a little different feel and setting than most of Christie's novels, especially her earlier ones. Hugh Fraser is, as always, a delightful narrator.

Complex and Intriguing Plot

I loved this installment of Agatha Christie. Great performance by Hugh Fraiser and an engaging plot. It was hard to pay attention to at times, I felt that some parts dragged, but the action towards the end made up for any dull moments before. Overall, one of my favorites now, from her.

Exceptional Narration

The story is interesting, but somewhat slow. The plot kept you guessing till the end. I feel like a good hour or two could be shaved off this story.

love listening at my own pace.

narration superb, story plot too confusing to follow. love listening better then reading this story.

Another great Poirot novel

Lovely listen and well read by Hugh Fraser, as always. This time, Poor MIss Lemon's sister is in need of help and Poirot is off to the rescue.

Kept Me Guessing

Good story. Interesting characters. Great narration by Hugh Frazier as always. Kept me guessing til the end.

Ok but not Christie’s Best

This book was fine. There are some antiquated situations (misogyny and racism) that may be chalked up to relics of her time. The performance is of course amazing. The audio has several areas where it skips/muddles, like maybe the narrator hit the microphone with paper. But it doesn’t disturb any important details.