Here, there's a clear divide between the deep conservatism of the old guard in Britain, fighting to keep the old systems of politics and finance in place, and the younger people, some of whom have been affected by the socialist and revolutionary fervour churning through large parts of the world. Christie never gets overly political but she often works current concerns into her stories and it gives an interesting insight into the time of writing. This one has a nicely convoluted plot which touches on some of the anxieties of a country facing war. Poirot begins by talking to each of these people about what they remember of that morning. There are also a couple of young men there – one the boyfriend of Mr Morley's secretary, and the other the would-be boyfriend of Mr Blunt's niece. Mr Blunt is a banker and pillar of the Establishment – the kind of man who is seen as giving stability to the country at a time when other European countries are falling into the hands of various flavours of dictatorships. Miss Sainsbury Seale has a chequered past, having been an actress in her youth and then having shockingly married a Hindu in India (well, it was shocking in 1940 when the book was written), before deserting him and returning home to England. Mr Barnes is retired from the Secret Services. Mr Amberiotis is a Greek gentleman with a dubious reputation. There had been quite a collection of notable patients at Mr Morley's surgery that day. So the police investigation stops, but Poirot isn't convinced and continues with his own investigation.
Let's hope Poirot didn't have a doctor's appointment that afternoon! At first, Inspector Japp thinks Mr Morley, who was found shot dead with a gun beside him, has been murdered, but when one of his patients dies later that day of an overdose of the Procaine used to numb his mouth, it's assumed Mr Morley made a mistake and then in a fit of remorse killed himself. Later, one of his patients is found dead and another has gone missing. By the end of the morning, Mr Morley is dead. The thing is – if Hercule Poirot ever threatens to visit you, make an excuse and then flee to the other side of the world because no one is safe around that man! In this book he visits his dentist, Mr Morley, for a routine check-up.
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