Sophie Hannah's fourth authorised continuation of Agatha Christie's acclaimed Hercule Poirot series opens in February 1931, when the private detective and Scotland Yard inspector Edward Catchpool (there's no Captain Hastings) take a luxury coach to Kingfisher Hill, the country estate of the Devonport family, to investigate the suspicious death of Sidney Devonport's son Frank. But when the eventful trip reveals its own share of unexpected developments, it's up to Poirot to exercise his "little grey cells" and get to the bottom of the mystery. Hannah, in her own unique style, devises a labyrinthine conundrum replete with social commentary that lacks the genius simplicity of Christie's works, even as it trips up with an unexciting finish that, while craftily foreshadowed, is unconvincing and doesn't produce a moment of genuine surprise. Still, the construction of the whodunnit (or rather whydunit) is dexterous as is the trail of clues Hannah leaves before assembling all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle. Also, can Hester Semley get her own series?
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