Case 8: Death on the Nile

Aboard the steamship Karnak on the Nile River, wealthy heiress Linnet Ridgeway is murdered in her cabin.

The confined ship setting means everyone's movements are under scrutiny. The crime involves complex relationships: a jilted lover, a financial advisor, a jewel thief and a web of intersecting motives.

Your mission: Use SQL to track movements aboard the ship, match witness accounts against alibis and uncover who orchestrated the deaths on the Nile.

About this case

Based on Death on the Nile (Agatha Christie, 1937). A wealthy heiress is murdered aboard a Nile steamship, trapped in a confined space with a handful of suspects. A jilted lover, a financial advisor, and a jewel thief all have motive—but who had opportunity?

What you'll practise

This advanced case deepens your analytical SQL skills:

Complex temporal logic — accounting for ship movements and confined space
Multi-layered WHERE conditions combining relationships, finances, and movements
ORDER BY for precise sequencing of events within tight timeframes
Untangling intersecting motives and alibis across interconnected suspects

The database

You'll query the suspect_info table, tracking each passenger's relationship to the victim, financial interests, stated movements aboard the ship, and any gaps in their alibis. Aboard the Karnak, nowhere to hide.

Difficulty

Advanced. Requires sophisticated analysis of overlapping motives and careful attention to temporal constraints. The confined setting adds complexity to alibi verification.