Book Review: Appointment With Death

Appointment
With Death

When former prison warden Mrs. Boynton is found dead while on a trip to Petra, the death is pronounced as having occurred due to myocardial infarction, but as startling facts stumble out, famous private investigator Hercule Poirot, who incidentally happens to be on a tour of Amman, is summoned by Colonel Carbury to investigate the matter. With only 24 hours available to crack the case, Poirot recalls a chance remark he overheard in Jerusalem, 'You see, don't you, that she's got to be killed?'

The plot has an altogether interesting premise, precisely a psychological angle to it, and as Poirot himself mentions, '.. to investigate a crime it is only necessary to let the guilty party or parties talk - always, in the end, they tell you what you want to know!' Which is exactly what happens in this cleverly constructed suspense drama, as he engages in revealing conversations with the parties involved, sifting through their contradictions and half-truths to arrive at the conclusion. The denouement may not be very surprising, but Poirot's approach to deducing the murderer is very convincing and stimulating. You can always depend on Agatha Christie to deliver the goods, can't you?