Out of 5 mustachesOut of 5 mustaches
This is a case with a nasty murder. The drowning of the victim is an unusual way of murder. And, the victim was a helpless child. A child!
Good and helpful Ariadne Oliver, that famous writer of detective books we know from other Poirot novels, is visiting her friend Judith Butler in a small town forty miles from London. They have a Halloween party by a Rowena Drake for the students in town that are leaving to other schools. The party goes great until they discover poor 12-yr.-old Joyce Reynolds drowned in a tub full of bobbing apples. Mrs. Oliver loses her love for apples and goes to her dear friend, Hercule Poirot. He accompanies Oliver back to the town and starts an investigation. With the help of Oliver and newly retired Spence from Scotland Yard, Poirot finds that there is a lot of background to this crime. Once again we are taken to a past mystery (actually, 4 of them!) to help us figure why the girl died. Poirot meets several interesting characters with important clues. Poirot jots these down and thinks a lot, but nothing happens. Then, a second murder occurs and almost a third before the murderer is unmasked. Who should Poirot and Oliver keep an eye on? The other kids in town? Is one of them capable of killing?
The problem with this book is it's too long for something pretty simple. (Murder really is simple when you think about it). The great part is the murder weapon: water. There is a lot of reference to water in this book. That, and a lot to do with apples. The plot is a good one, but the book seems to be put "out of order"--some stuff later in the book should have been revealed early, and in little tidbits. Another good thing is that Mrs. Oliver is in this one, and she's great! Another problem: the ending. To fast and neat, the ending should have been something different. It didn't fit the "mood" of the rest of the book. I actually guessed right at who the murderer was, but there was a little twist on that part that took me by surprise. That "part" was ridiculous and totally moronic.