Hercule Poirot available to solve mysteries at an English country house. At the time of Christie's writing, it was considered patriotic to express sympathy towards the Belgians, since the invasion of their country had constituted Britain's "casus belli" for entering World War I, and British wartime propaganda emphasised the "Rape of Belgium". Poirot first appeared in "The Mysterious Affair at Styles" (published in 1920) and exited in "Curtain" (published in 1975). Following the latter, Poirot was the only fictional character to receive an obituary on the front page of "The New York Times". By 1930, Agatha Christie found Poirot "insufferable", and, by
Death on the Nile characters are very similar. The book features the Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. The action takes place in Egypt, mostly on the Nile River. While on holiday in Cairo, Hercule Poirot is approached by successful socialite Linnet Doyle. She requests his help in deterring her friend Jacqueline de Bellefort from hounding and stalking her. Linnet had recently married her friend's fiancé, Simon Doyle, which has made Jacqueline bitterly resentful of her. Poirot refuses the request, but attempts unsuccessfully to dissuade Jacqueline from pursuing her plans further. Simon and Linnet secretly board the steamer "Karnak", set to tour along the Nile, to