Sad Cypress is a work of detective fiction by British writer Agatha Christie, first published in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in March 1940 and in the US by Dodd, Mead and Company later in the same year. The novel was well received at publication. One reviewer remarked, "it is economically written, the clues are placed before the reader with impeccable fairness, the red herrings are deftly laid and the solution will cause many readers to kick themselves." Another reviewer found the story to be well told but did not like that the plot "turns on a legal point" that is misconceived. A later review described it as "Elegiac, more emotionally involving than is usual in Christie, but the ingenuity and superb clueing put it among the very best of the classic titles." On the dock, Elinor Carlisle pleaded “not guilty” for poisoning Mary Gerrard with morphia. Whilst the court was proceeding, her mind wandered; flashback of events flooded in her head. She saw Roderick Welman, her ex-fiance and Hercule Poirot among the audience. Elinor had thought of getting rid of Gerrard. She had the opportunity and moreover a motive. Her engagement to Welman had broken because of the woman. As evidence pointed at Elinor, she was on the verge of being sentenced to the murder. Were jealousy and unrequited love enough to kill a childhood friend? Help was at hand from a secret admirer. The young Dr Peter Lord, having fallen head over heels to the defence, managed to persuade Poirot to take the case… Listen online to free English audiobook "Sad Cypress” on our website to experience Agatha Christie's novel.
