Late one night, two teachers investigate a mysterious light in the school Sports Pavilion. Among the tennis racquets and lacrosse sticks, they find the body of the unpopular games mistress – shot through the heart. Schoolgirl Julia Upjohn knows too much, and begins to worry that she might be the next victim. Can detective Hercule Poirot find the killer before the ‘cat’ strikes again?

I gotta admit here that enjoy much more Agatha Christie’s books than the modern day mystery / thriller books I have read in my time on this website. There is something about Agatha Christie’s books that really grab my attention and not let it go until the very end of each of her books I read. Which doesn’t happen with the more modern mystery / thriller books I have read which turn out to be bad in my opinion. 

The plot in this book is very interesting and enjoyable. I was hooked on the plot from the very first page of this book and I just couldn’t stop reading this book until the very end of this book. Which explains why I have read this book in one day. 

The plot in this book has the vibe to it where the killer might strike at anytime which makes the whole book pretty tense but also very fun and enjoyable at the same time. I gotta admit that this book is so far my favorite book in the Hercule Poirot series. Which this book is the second book so far I have read in the series which I expect to continue reading and finishing this year (2026) hopefully. 

The entire story happens at an elite school for girls in England. And in a way the setting of this book really is a big part of why I liked this book as much as I did. Because there is something eerie for me about the fact that a killer is running wild at a boarding school. 

The writing style in this book is very good, it has this old timey vibe to it which I love in mystery books. Because I tend to like stories where smartphones aren’t the available and the characters aren’t constantly checking their phone for whatever. The writing style in this book was almost like the Agatha Christie knew exactly what words to use in this book to completely grab my attention and not let it go until the very end of this book which of course made me give this book extra points for doing. 

The only thing I didn’t like about this book is that Hercule Poirot doesn’t appear in this book until maybe the last 30% of this book. With each book I read in this series I find myself loving Hercule Poirot more and more. And him only being present in this book for the last 30% or so really didn’t go well with me but not enough to not love this book. 

The characters are very good and interesting in this book. All of the characters we get in this book have their own personalities and something that makes them unique and have their own quirks to make them standout from the rest of the characters in this book. I personally wouldn’t have any problems being friends with them in real life, which really says a lot about how much I liked the characters in this book. 

I Give This Book 4 / 5