When Simeon Lee, a mean-spirited, tyrannical patriarch of a dysfunctional family, summons his offspring to his country manor house in Kent for Christmas, he employs Poirot to attend the reunion. The detective is not given a full explanation for his assignment, but he soon observes the palpable animosity, suspicion, and resentment among the three Lee sons. Also in attendance is the beautiful Pilar Estravados, the only surviving child of Lee's daughter, who recently passed away after living in exile in Spain. The ruthless Senior Lee, who made his fortune in the South African diamond fields, sadistically treats his progeny with deliberate cruelty and obviously relishes pitting one against the other. It comes as no surprise when the old man's throat is mysteriously cut in an apparently locked room, and although he was frail and wheelchair-bound, there appears to be evidence of a great struggle. Poirot is aided in his quest for a solution to the baffling mystery by Chief Inspector Japp and... Written by duke1029

When a series of apparently minor thefts plagues a university hostelry run by Miss Lemon's sister, Poirot is recruited to investigate. Celia Austin, a pharmacological major, confesses that she is a kleptomaniac and responsible for most of the thefts but denies stealing several objects including a stethoscope, light bulbs, and a student rucksack. Furthermore, she claims to know the other thief and vows to help return the missing items. Unfortunately someone substitutes an overdose of morphine for one of her sleeping powders, and she takes the identity of the thief to the grave. Japp connects the murderer's m.o. with a cold case he had investigated ten years earlier, but the prime suspect in that crime, a powerful statesman, now lies dying in a local hospital. Despite numerous obstacles, Poirot is able to link the killing to an international diamond smuggling ring but not before the murderer claims more victims. Written by duke1029

Poirot and Hastings are in Deauville, and Poirot is approached by business-man Paul Renaud concerning threats by Chileans. The next morning the maid finds Madame Renaud bound and gagged and her husband's corpse is later found on a nearby golf course. Giraud, a pompous French police officer, dismissive of Poirot's reputation, lays a wager with him. The detective who fails to catch the killer must make a sacrifice. Giraud will relinquish his trade mark pipe. Poirot must shave off his moustache. Written by don @ minifie-1

Hastings is invited by his friend Charles Arundell to be at hand when he tries to break a water speed record on a Lake Windermere, but his boat's engine fails him. At a subsequent reception at the estate of Charles' well-to-do aunt, Poirot and the other guests witness her refusal to continue to underwrite Charles' expensive hobby, and he threatens her. Later, when she is almost killed in a freak accident involving her pet fox terrier Bob, she confides to Poirot that she suspects a family member of trying to kill her to gain part of her estate. The detective advises her to disinherit her grasping relatives and name a friend as beneficiary. Despite this precaution, she dies abruptly under questionable circumstances, but the local authorities refuse to authorize an autopsy. Suspecting foul play, Poirot looks to his wits as well as the Arundell dog, who remains a silent witness to murder. Written by G. Taverney ([email protected])