One, Two, Buckle My Shoe
first published in the United Kingdom in November 1940, and in the US
in February 1941 under the title of The Patriotic Murders. A paperback
edition in the US in 1953 changed the title again to An Overdose of
Death.
Why on earth would a successful and happy dentist commit suicide? Leave it to Hercule Poirot to drill the doctor's patients...and to assuage the numbing fear that another murder will follow. |
“No, my friend, I am not drunk. I have just been to the dentist, and need not return for another six months! Is it not the most beautiful thought?"
I had fun with this one. Hercule Poirot is like honey to my bear, or fly, or whatever (Okay, forget this sentence), so I'm always ready for more of his books. This time the usually brave detective starts the novel in a pissy mood because he has to undergo the dentist chair. While getting his teeth worked on, he listens to his regular dentist drone on and on in distraction, only to find out later he's dead. Convinced the doctor didn't commit suicide, his patient sets out to pay a final bill and prove who offed the doctor.
My interest lagged a few times when Poirot wandered around at first almost aimlessly drilling patients and suspects, but overall the story worked well. It's not her best mystery and clever whodunit, but again: Hercule Poirot. He gets brownie points with me regardless.
Similar to her nod toward the old Indian Rhyme, this one opens each chapter with a line from ‘One, Two, Buckle my shoe’, and then somehow ties in a bit with the poem.
As usual Christie does some clever maneuvers and throws in random characters, but the story ultimately makes up for it when added together as a sum. It's not suspenseful in that I'm biting my lip in tension, but it's still a mystery ideal for a relaxing, rainy day.
Book Quotes:
“In every profession and walk of life there is someone who is vulnerable to temptation."
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