mystery almost to the end. This, of course, makes it more difficult for the detective to guard against attack and to carry on his investigation, and it provides most of the thrills of the story." The reviewer in The Observer of 13 February 1927 did not expect originality when reading a book dealing with the themes of The Big Four, but did admit that "When one opens a book and finds the name Li Chang Yen and is taken to subterranean chambers in the East End 'hung with rich Oriental silks', one fears the worst. Not that Mrs Christie gives us the worst; she is far too adroit and accomplished a hand for that. But the short, interpolated mysteries within the mystery are really much more interesting than the machinations of the 'Big Four' supermen." The conclusion of the book was "pretentious" and "fails to be impressive" and the reviewer summed up by saying, "the book has its thrills – in fact, too many of them; it seeks to make up in its details what it lacks in quality and consistency." The Scotsman of 17 March 1927 said, "The activities of Poirot himself cannot be taken seriously, as one takes, for example, Sherlock Holmes. The book, indeed, reads more like an exaggerated parody of popular detective fiction than a serious essay in the type. But it certainly provides plenty of fun for the reader who is prepared to be amused. If that was the intention of the authoress, she has succeeded to perfection". Robert Barnard: "This thriller was cobbled together at the lowest point in Christie's life, with the help of her brother-in-law. Charity is therefore the order of the day, and is needed, for this is pretty dreadful, and (whatever one may think of him as a creation) demeaning to Poirot." Publication history 1927, William Collins and Sons (London), 27 January 1927, Hardcover, 282 pp 1927, Dodd Mead and Company (New York), 1927, Hardcover, 276 pp 1957, Penguin Books, Paperback (Penguin number 1196), 159 pp 1961, Pan Books, Paperback (Great Pan G427), 155 pp 1964, Avon Books (New York), paperback 1965, Fontana Books (Imprint of HarperCollins), paperback, 159 pp 1965, Dell Books (New York), paperback, 173 pp 1974, Ulverscroft Large-print Edition, Hardback, 414 pp 1984, Berkley Books, Imprint of Penguin Group (USA) (New York), paperback, 198 pp 2006, Poirot Facsimile Edition (Facsimile of 1927 UK First Edition), HarperCollins, 6