Eight people - strangers to each other - are invited to an island off the Devon coast. On arriving there, they are welcomed not by their hosts -who have unfortunately been delayed but would be joining them the next day - but by the serving couple. Strangely enough, all of them have only a hazy idea of who has invited them (or in a couple of cases, employed them). Uneasy in mind, they make their way to their rooms, only to find a curious poem pasted on the walls/ above the fireplace:
Ten little nigger boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self and then there were Nine.
Nine little nigger boys sat up very late;
One overslept himself and then there were Eight.
Eight little nigger boys travelling in Devon;
One said he'd stay there and then there were Seven.
Seven little nigger boys chopping up sticks;
One chopped himself in halves and then there were Six.
Six little nigger boys playing with a hive;
A bumble bee stung one and then there were Five.
Five little nigger boys going in for law;
One got into Chancery and then there were Four.
Four little nigger boys going out to sea;
A red herring swallowed one and then there were Three.
Three little nigger boys walking in the Zoo;
A big bear hugged one and then there were Two.
Two little nigger boys sitting in the sun;
One got frizzled up and then there was One.
He went out and hanged himself and then there were None.
The dinner- wonderfully cooked, revives their spirits.
And then the deaths start occurring, eerily like the way described in the poem. As the body count grows, they come to the chilling conclusion that the murderer is somebody amongst them. Who amongst them is the murderer? Would the others be able to unmask the killer before nemesis overtakes them all?
*
I don't know how many times I have read this book. Every time it seems as thrilling as when I read it for the first time.
