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Book Summary and Reviews of Hercule Poirot's Silent Night by Sophie Hannah

Hercule Poirot's Silent Night by Sophie Hannah

Hercule Poirot's Silent Night

The New Hercule Poirot Mystery

by Sophie Hannah

  • Critics' Consensus (7):
  • Published:
  • Oct 2023, 384 pages
  • Rate this book

About this book

Book Summary

The world's greatest detective, Hercule Poirot—legendary star of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile—puts his little grey cells to work solving a baffling Christmas mystery.

It's December 19, 1931. Hercule Poirot and Inspector Edward Catchpool are looking forward to a much-needed, restful Christmas holiday, when they are called upon to investigate the murder of a man in a Norfolk hospital ward. Cynthia Catchpool, Edward's mother, insists that Poirot stay with her in a crumbling mansion by the coast, so that they can all be together for the festive period while he solves the case.

As Poirot digs into the mystery, he discovers that the murdered man was a retired post office master, and by all accounts very well-liked. The local constabulary's investigation failed to uncover how someone could have entered a hospital room and killed him under the noses of the staff. Cynthia's friend Arnold is soon to be admitted to that same hospital, and his wife is convinced he will be the killer's next victim, though she refuses to explain why.

With no obvious motive or suspect, Poirot has less than a week to solve the crime and prevent more murders, if he is to escape from this nightmare scenario and get home in time for Christmas. Meanwhile, someone else—someone utterly ruthless—also has ideas about what ought to happen to Hercule Poirot…

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Hannah's stellar fifth whodunit featuring Agatha Christie's iconic sleuth (after 2020's The Killings at Kingfisher Hall) extends her reign as a master of mystery pastiche...Hannah does a superior job of presenting Poirot's quirky brilliance without overdoing it...Golden Age mystery fans will be hungry for more." —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A fiendishly inventive serving of humble pie, or Christmas pudding, for puzzle-solvers who think they're clever." —Kirkus Reviews

"The Christmas details are light, memorably centering on Catchpool decorating multiple trees while simultaneously interviewing suspects, but the case is heavy and offers much to consider. Fans will devour this novel, but it is also a nice place to jump into Hannah's series." —Library Journal

"Sophie Hannah does an egoless, silky job of reviving Agatha Christie's beloved Belgian detective Hercule Poirot... . Enough so to hope that Hannah turns to Miss Marple next." —USA Today

"I was thrilled to see Poirot in such very, very good hands." —Gillian Flynn, New York Times bestselling author of Gone Girl

This information about Hercule Poirot's Silent Night was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

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Author Information

Sophie Hannah Author Biography

https://sophiehannah.com/

Sophie Hannah is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous psychological thrillers, which have been published in 51 countries and adapted for television, as well as The Monogram Murders, the first Hercule Poirot novel authorized by the estate of Agatha Christie, and its sequels Closed Casket, The Mystery of Three Quarters, and The Killings at Kingfisher Hill. Sophie is also the author of a self-help book, How to Hold a Grudge, and hosts the podcast of the same name. She lives in Cambridge, UK.

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