The Labors of Hercules
Agatha Christie
Mass Market Paperback
(Dell, March 15, 1964)
In appearance Hercule Poirot hardly resembled an ancient Greek hero. Yet-reasoned the detective-like Hercules he had been responsible for ridding society of some of its most unpleasant monsters. So, in the period leading up to his retirement, Poirot made up his mind to accept just twelve more cases: his self-imposed 'Labors'. Each would go down in the annals of crime as a heroic feat of deduction. Hercule Poirot can't resist the lure of a seemingly unsolvable series of recent crimes--from a lost Pekinese to a man driven mad by love to a gentleman poisoned by gossip.