Preparing for retirement, Poirot decides to undertake twelve final cases whose circumstances echo the mythological labours of his namesake. The investigations involve a missing Pekinese, a dangerous cult, criminal gangs, political scandal, art theft and people attempting to escape identities imposed upon them.
The collection ranges across Britain and continental Europe while retaining the social atmosphere of the later interwar years. Its classical framework is playful, but the cases repeatedly contrast physical heroism with Poirot’s preferred weapons of patience, psychological insight and controlled theatricality.