The Mystery of Three Quarters (New Hercule Poirot Mysteries #3)

by Sophie Hannah

As he mounted the steps to his building, he muttered to himself, ‘If she is the least violently inclined person, then I do not wish to meet the most.’

Allow a person to affect your emotions and your judgement suffered, always.

He was now firmly of the view that if you wanted to see clearly how one person’s character diverged from that of another, the most efficient method was to place both in identical situations.

“There is a difference, Peter, between an unforgivable act and a person of unforgivable character. What matters is not what people have done but who they are. A chap might put not a foot wrong his entire life, and do nothing outward to which the world would vociferously object, yet he might be rotten to the core.”’

Humans, as a rule, were doggedly determined not to believe in the experiences of anyone but themselves.

‘The thing is, if you try to deny the truth, it creeps out in other ways. I don’t suppose Mummy told you about the time she gave me a fan as a present?’

‘I am no more perfect than Mummy is, M. Poirot. I think it’s important to understand that one’s nearest and dearest are not perfect. If one cannot accept that … well, that way lies madness.’

Often, the important thing to be noticed is a thing that is not there.

He realized, perhaps, that the very worst sin of all is the inability to forgive the sins of others.