The three taps : $b A detective story without a moral

"The Three Taps: A Detective Story without a Moral" by Ronald Arbuthnott Knox is a fictional detective novel written in the early 20th century. The story revolves around a character named Miles Bredon, who becomes embroiled in a perplexing case following the death of a wealthy man named Mr. Mottram, allegedly caused by gas poisoning. As he investigates, Bredon grapples with the implications of Mottram’s peculiar Euthanasia insurance policy, which complicates the circumstances surrounding the man's death. At the start of the book, we are introduced to the unusual setting of an insurance company, the Indescribable, known for its Euthanasia policy that promises financial benefits to heirs if the insured dies before a certain age. Mr. Mottram, a wealthy client, visits the company, expressing concerns over his health after being told he has only two years to live. Shortly thereafter, he is found dead under mysterious circumstances at a local inn called the Load of Mischief. The story sets the stage for Bredon’s investigation into the locked room, the open window, and the peculiar behavior surrounding the case, which hints at underlying motives and potential foul play, all woven with a layer of dark humor and intrigue. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Ronald Arbuthnott Knox was an English Catholic priest, theologian, author, and radio broadcaster. Educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, where he earned a high reputation as a classicist, Knox was ordained as a priest of the Church of England in 1912. He was a fellow and chaplain of Trinity College, Oxford until he resigned from those positions following his conversion to Catholicism in 1917. Knox became a Catholic priest in 1918, continuing in that capacity his scholarly and literary work.