Clues

"Hiding Place."

The pilot of the captured spaceship must be:

strong, long-armed and large-handed - like a giant;

 

able not only to read very small display panels but also to turn a key at the bottom of a small, narrow hole - like a dwarf.

 

Clues to the pilot's nature accumulate. 

 

Van Rijn practices detective skills like Poirot. Van Rijn and Poirot are Catholics, are not native English/Anglic speakers and are first seen late in their careers. However, their differences are more numerous than their similarities. Poirot is known through cinema and TV. Van Rijn should be.

 

I prefer sf to detective fiction. In particular, I dislike the crossword puzzle aspect of detective fiction, having to reread passages in earlier chapters in search of the clues that are supposed to be there.

 

Addendum: After I published this post, Poirot was on TV in the episode where he walks out of our local Midland Hotel in Morecambe.