An elderly widow is murdered at a clifftop seaside house…
What is the connection between a failed suicide attempt, a wrongful accusation of theft against a schoolgirl, and the romantic life of a famous tennis player?
To the casual observer, apparently nothing. But when a houseparty gathers at Gull’s Point, the seaside home of an elderly widow, earlier events come to a dramatic head.
It’s all part of a carefully laid plan – for murder.
This is often thought to be one of Agatha Christie's finest stories and is the last of the five novels to feature Superintendent Battle. The story itself came together quickly and clearly, as can be seen from Christie’s notebooks. Her notes are detailed and closely resemble the published version – she even drew a map of the coastline around Gull’s Point, which plays an important part in the story. Names and motivations underwent slight changes from the first notes, and almost at the point of publication, Christie reworked the ending to the one we are familiar with now, though unfortunately nothing of her ‘first’ ending survives.
Info from: agathachristie.com/stories/towards-zero
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