# Ada Mason — The Mystery of the Blue Train character guide

> Ada Mason in The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Mason, XIV Ada Mason

**First appearance:** 0015-xiv-ada-mason-s-story

## Snapshot

Ruth Kettering's neat, nervous maid, whose careful account of the journey becomes the first testimony on which the entire murder inquiry rests.

## Who they are

Ada Mason has served many ladies and prides herself on giving satisfaction, and her composure is tested when she is brought before the French magistrate to describe her mistress's last hours. Dressed in black with a reddened nose, she tells her story coherently, yet the precision of her memory and the timing of her movements invite the reader to weigh every detail. Her testimony is the spine of the early case, and Poirot's gentle questioning of her sets the pattern for how he will test every witness.

## In the story

### [X: On the Blue Train](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/x-on-the-blue-train)

Ruth's maid; assists with luggage and is seen looking surprised in the corridor.

### [XIV: Ada Mason's Story](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xiv-ada-mason-s-story)

Interrogated about her mistress's actions on the train; describes the sudden change of plans and the mysterious gentleman.

### [An Aristocratic Gentleman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xvii-an-aristocratic-gentleman)

Brought in to identify the Comte but cannot do so with certainty; questioned by Poirot about the tickets.

### [A New Theory](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xxiii-a-new-theory)

Re-interviewed by Poirot; admits the man in the train could have been Derek Kettering and identifies the cigarette case as one Ruth bought for Derek.

### [XXIV: Poirot Gives Advice](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xxiv-poirot-gives-advice)

Reported by Van Aldin to have come forward, now almost certain the man at Paris was Derek Kettering.

### [The Blue Train Again](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xxxiv-the-blue-train-again)

Revealed by Poirot to be Kitty Kidd, the woman disguised as a youth who left the train at Lyons.

### [Explanations](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/chapters/xxxv-explanations)

Revealed as the accomplice (actually Kitty Kidd), who impersonated Ruth Kettering on the train.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/characters/ada_mason
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_mystery_of_the_blue_train_se/characters