Take a story's temperature by studying its tone. Is it hopeful? Cynical? Snarky? Playful?
Steady, Logical, Suspenseful
What happens next? We'd really like to know. The tone of Christie's writing is steady and even as the facts unfold and we are always given all of the particulars in a methodical and orderly manner – just as Poirot himself would have it. Details are related in an unhurried and reasonable way.