Yes, we have another Christie detective to meet! But is he a detective at all? Let's explore this question along with an unfortunate "stuck in its time" element we were not expecting in this, the short story that introduced Ariadne Oliver to the world. At the very least we can say that Mrs. Oliver emerged fully-formed from Christie's head, clothed in all her self-deprecating, no-nonsense glory. (Perhaps she should have been named Athena Oliver?)