House on a Cliff

“To detect a crime before it is committed – that is, indeed, a task of the utmost difficulty…” Captain Hastings, alongside his eccentric but brilliant friend Hercule Poirot – already in retirement at this point – is enjoying the warm sunrays in the seaside town of St. Loo in the south of England. The usual pleasant banter between the gentlemen on the terrace of the Majestic Hotel is interrupted by a small mishap on Poirot’s part, which leads to an introduction to Miss Nick Buckley – a girl with a well-fitting brown felt hat, who is the owner of an imposing old house right at the tip of the headland. Nick confides in them that she must be born under a lucky star, as she has already narrowly escaped death three times! At that moment, she jerks her head and complains about a pesky wasp. However, after she leaves, Poirot notices a round hole in the forgotten cloche hat she had left on the table, whereupon he discovers a spent bullet. And that awakens the sleeping dog within him. Just a moment ago, he had claimed that nothing would ever persuade him to return to his former profession, but when someone is so brazen as to dare shoot at the charming Miss Nick just a few metres from Hercule Poirot, the unique investigator simply must get to the bottom of it! The inspiration for the Majestic Hotel was the Imperial in the author's hometown of Torquay, and for the house itself, the nearby Rock End House. “This crime stumps Hercule Poirot! He makes lists, formulates questions, and spends a sleepless night, but in the end, of course, he triumphs. Oh, Christie is so much fun!” – CoffeeBooksandCake.com