“Life can be very terrible,” he said. “One needs much courage… Also to live,” said Poirot, “one needs courage.”
Within the confines of a commercial passenger plane, a woman is found dead just prior to landing. It is clear that the death did not occur naturally, and a poisoned dart is quickly discovered pointing to a murder by unusual means. How did someone manage to shoot a poisoned dart without anyone noticing? Seated in seat No. 9 is none other than Hercule Poirot who made many observations during the flight, noticing the passengers and their movements, but completely unaware of the dead body of the woman seated behind him. There is a plane full of suspects, a bizarre method of murder, and an unlikelihood of any of the passengers being able to execute it. But there must be an explanation, and there is no one more equipped to find it than the great Hercule Poirot.
“There’s nothing for anyone to be afraid of if they’re only telling the truth,” said the Scotland Yard man austerely. Poirot looked at him pityingly. “In verity, I believe that you yourself honestly believe that.”
Death in the Clouds is another solid mystery in the Hercule Poirot series, and one I particularly enjoyed. Having a murder mystery focus on the events that occurred on a passenger plane during flight was intriguing and the course of events was well explained. This included the cast of characters/suspects along with their actions leading up to the discovery of the body. The story held my attention and piqued my curiosity, never feeling confusing or convoluted in its execution. There is a fatherly side to Poirot in this novel, and as it turns out he has a romantic soul, which is a nice element of his character. He also comes across as wise and astute in his evaluation of criminal justice. An enjoyable novel with a compelling mystery that provides greater depth to the famous detective.
“All of them are friends. One of them is a killer.”
“A cloth covers the jar that Bridie took from the bookcase in the nursery, and Ruby is thankful for this. For the contents have the ability to rearrange even a dead man’s sense of reality. As with all terrible, wondrous sights, there is a jolt of shock, then a hypnotic fascination, then the uneasy queasiness, then the whole thing starts again; the desire to look and the desire never to have looked in the first place.”
“Events come to people, not people to events. Why do some people have exciting lives and other people dull ones? Because of their surroundings? Not at all. One man may travel to the ends of the earth and nothing will happen to him. There will be a massacre a week before he arrives, and an earthquake the day after he leaves, and the boat that he nearly took will be shipwrecked. And another man may live at Balham and travel to the City every day, and things will happen to him. He will be mixed up with blackmailing gangs and beautiful girls and motor bandits. There are people with a tendency to shipwrecks–even if they go on a boat on an ornamental lake, something will happen to it.”
“I’ve been waiting for you a long time, Alina” He said. “You and I are going to change the world.”
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