Having not read any of the previous books from Sophie Hannah I was unsure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised by her staying true to Christie’s style with some little twist of her own here and there. A good summer read and I’ll definitely be on the look out for the other books from Hannah in the future.

Agatha Christie was fond of setting her mysteries in exotic locations. Some of her best stories have an island backdrop - 'Evil under the Sun', 'And Then There Were None' and, of course, 'Triangle at Rhodes'.
Sophie Hannah wears her Agatha Christie hat for a sixth time and sends Poirot and his Scotland Yard friend Inspector Edward Catchpool to a fictional Greek island for a mystery set amongst a strange community of pseudo-religious misfits apparently striving to make a better world.
The usual tropes of 1930s crime fiction are all prominently worked into a supremely complex plot featuring the usual array of jealous lovers, mysterious Americans, shady Greek islanders and a whole host of red herrings.
Sophie Hannah is adept at following in the footsteps of the Queen of Crime herself and doesn't disappoint in the difficult task of keeping Hercule Poirot's little grey cells active.

I'm a sucker for a Poirot book, and this book doesn't disappoint. I love that the series is told from the perspective of Inspector Edward Catchpole as it gives a different take of the original Poirot books.
The story is set on the Greek island of Lamperos, and Poirot has been invited to stay for a holiday in a small community who believe in forgiveness, no matter the crime or sin. However, catchpole suspects that there is more to Poirot inviting him along. Of course, he is correct in his thinking, and when the first murder occurs he begins to investigate.
You can't go wrong with a book by Sophie Hannah, and I will look forward t the next one!!

A satisfying slice of Poirot, Hannah delivers a solid and enjoyable story of the little Belgian, his friend, and the cast of players on a small Greek village all awaiting death...

I have read and like this author and this was a departure from her normal offerings with a book written in the style of and featuring Hercule Poiret. It was cleverly done and the tone of the story telling well matched but I didn’t engage with any of the characters and found it overly complicated and ultimately unbelievable. Just ok for me.

The new Sophie Hannah seemed a perfect choice for a summer holiday read. I'm a big fan of Agatha Christie, and I've read a couple of Hannah's pastiches and, by and large, they work pretty well. The Last Death of The Year was a mixed bag, unfortunately. The set up is very promising - Poirot invites Catchpool, the narrator and Hastings-type sidekick (he's a detective with the Met) to a New Year's Eve party taking place on a small, remote Greek Island. There's a cast of rich oddballs, most of them members of a "religious/philosophical" community who live in a splendid villa overlooking the Aegean. (it always helps to be rich in these circumstances, so that the Toad Work doesnt get in the way of your quest for meaning). It's a classic group of suspects, all with juicy back stories, in a remote innaccessible place.There's a death and an investigation and more deaths - perfect Christie territory so far. Hannah recreates the style and atmoshere of the great Christie Poirot stories, including the strange language, manners and customs of this slice of 1930s society, but the plot and the characters verge on the ludicrous. I'm all for suspending my disbelief in the service of a good detective mystery, but there has to be some vestigial relationship with reality otherwise anything could happen. Character motivation in general, and the motives suggested for murder, don't hold up to a moment's scrutiny, and minimise the gravity of murder. It's like a librarian murdering someone who consistently returns their books late. A cause of irritation perhaps, but murder? A quick read with some pleasures along the way, but overall, this was a disappointment.

A sun soaked murder, this had me guessing throughout the plot, with all the hallmarks of a Poirot mystery. The characterisation is sharp, cleverly influenced by our narrator, with the voice of Catchpool guiding us through. My only gripe was that the ending felt a little rushed and I would have liked more of a build up to prepare us for the level of amorality that some characters seem to display.

This was my first Poirot book by Sophie Hannah and as a fan of the Agatha Christie originals I wasn't sure what to expect.
I was pleasantly surprised, there were quite a few characters to get to know at first but the twists and turns in the story felt truly Christie-esque and were unpredictable without being too over the top. However, for me the book felt a bit dialogue heavy in parts and the pacing felt slow but overall I did enjoy it.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK for the ARC.

Sophie Hannah once again proves she is the perfect custodian of Agatha Christie’s beloved detective in The Last Death of the Year, the sixth book in her superb Poirot continuation series. Faithful to Christie’s style yet fresh in its own right, this outing brings Hercule Poirot and Inspector Edward Catchpool to a remote Greek island on New Year’s Eve, 1932.

They arrive to join a curious community living in a crumbling house, where forgiveness is the foundation of their unusual religious beliefs. The evening takes a sinister turn during a New Year’s Resolutions game when one note promises “the last and first death of the year.” Hours later, a resident is found dead on the terrace.

Poirot soon reveals to Catchpool that this trip had an ulterior motive – someone else’s life had already been threatened. Now, with the clock ticking and the isolated setting cloaking everyone in suspicion, the pair must uncover the truth before the killer strikes again.

Atmospheric, intricately plotted, and rich in Christie-esque misdirection, this is another triumph for Hannah – a clever and entertaining puzzle that will delight Golden Age crime fans.

Read more at The Secret Book Review.

Many thanks to netgalley, the author and the publisher for approving my request to read this book.

Being a huge Agatha Christie fan since I was 12 and becoming a big Sophie Hannah fan in later life I must admit I have been intrigued by Sophie writing Poirot books but have resisted reading them as I wondered if they would be as good as the originals. I finally decided to give one a go with this book and I'm glad I did.

It's not exactly the same as the original Poirot books as I expected but Sophie has managed to give a few nods to them whilst putting her own spin on things.

I always enjoy a good old fashioned who done it and found this story a very well written one which I really enjoyed- I won't be hesitating to pick up another!

I’m a big fan of Agatha Christie and I have read all of her Poirot novels so I guess I’m part of the target audience for this new case. Characterisation is a strength of Christie’s work and Sophie Hannah offers us a suspect list of strong characters with distinctive voices. Her portrayal of Poirot is also true to type and there are elements of humour, principally stemming from Pearl’s declarations of love for the unimpressed Inspector Catchpool. My reservations relate to the convoluted plot that relies far too heavily on verbal gymnastics posing as hypotheses and contrived tests of character. Even though I rarely guess whodunnit, Christie offers several signposts pointing towards the eventual resolution. This didn’t seem to be the case here and, by the end, I felt bamboozled and past caring.

A continuation of the Hercule Poirot series. Inspector Catchpole accompanies Poirot to a Greek island where they find themselves staying among a mixed group of people. The founder of the group has strong ideals and principles, those staying there adhere to these ideals to varying degrees. Poirot and Catchpole have to work out who is telling the truth in order to solve the murders. Catchpole is the narrator of the tale.

The Last Death of the Year is Sophie Hannah’s sixth outing with Agatha Christie’s famed detective Hercule Poirot, and once again, she absolutely nails it.

It’s December 1932, and Poirot, along with Inspector Edward Catchpool, travels to the tiny Greek island of Lamperos. Their destination: The House of Perpetual Welcome, where nine residents (plus our detectives) are gathering for New Year’s Eve.

A lighthearted game of writing New Year’s resolutions quickly turns sinister when one “resolution” is actually a poem predicting a murder, one that will be both the last death of the year and the first of the year.

The assumption is that it will take place at midnight, but when the time passes without incident, everybody thinks it was a prank and heads to bed. Mere hours later, the murder takes place.

So whodunit?

--------------------------------------------

From the start, Hannah hooks you with a clever twist: without knowing anything else about the story or the characters, all 11 resolutions are presented, and you are encouraged to spot the killer before the crime even happens.

It’s such a fun, interactive element that keeps you hooked throughout as you cross your fingers that you picked the right suspect.

What I love most is how perfectly Hannah captures Poirot’s voice, mannerisms, and meticulous thinking, without ever trying to be Agatha Christie.

The mystery is tightly woven, the suspects are wonderfully fleshed out, and the setting is atmospheric. You can jump in without reading the previous five books, but honestly, you’ll probably want to read them all once you’ve finished this.

If you love classic Golden Age puzzles with smart twists, The Last Death of the Year deserves a spot on your list. Poirot lives on, and it’s a joy to have him back in action.

With thanks to NetGalley for the early copy in return for an honest review.

Hercule Poirot and his sidekick Edward Catchpool have been invited to the small island of Lamperos for New Year, 1932 by Nash, who hosts a community on the island called Very Good Friends, their ethos is it doesn't what you have done you will have complete forgiveness, and Nash hopes to spread this message across the world........

Various friends of Nash are already living on Lamperos, including old university friends, other family members and four others who are looking for a new way of life, but as always are people to be trusted!

New Year's Eve starts with a a new game that someone invented, but also includes a death threat.

Very 1920s characters, some almost appear as a caricature and become annoying, but on the whole a very readable cozy mystery.

Recommended

Hercule Poirot has been invited to spend the New Year on the Greek island of Lamperos and has invited his friend Inspector Edward Catchpool to accompany him. The invitation is from Nash Athanasiou who is leader of a quasi-religious group who live at "The House of Perpetual Welcome" on the island. Catchpool immediately feels on arrival that Poirot hasn't been truly honest with him with regards to the invitation.

During the New Year's festivities one of the group, Austin Lanyon, has devised a game for the whole group. Each person is to write a New Year's resolution, anonymously, and the other members of the group are to guess who the author is. During the game one of the "resolutions" contains the intention to commit a murder and gives the name of the victim. Eventually, a murder is committed and Poirot and Catchpool work together to try and identify the perpetrator.

This is the sixth book in the New Hercule Poirot Mysteries and the first I have read. I had some trepidation about reading a "new" Poirot mystery but I needn't have worried. I look forward to catching up with the previous books in the serious.

Thanks to Netgalley, Harper Collins and Sophie Hannah for an eARC of this book in return for an honest review.

I’m a massive Agatha Christie fan and was intrigued to read the Hercule Poirot mystery, The Last Death of the Year, by Sophie Hannah.

I haven’t read any of the other books in this series by Sophie Hannah and started reading the book with an open mind.

The story begins with Inspector Edward Catchpool grateful to have been invited by Poirot to see in the New Year on the Greek island of Lamperos. It quickly becomes evident that Poirot had in fact been invited to stay at a retreat on Lamperos by the owner of a retreat to solve a possible attempt on the life of one of the retreat’s residents. It’s not belong before the bodycount rises.

I thought the book was faithful to the spirit of Agatha Christie’s books. The group of American and British expats living at the retreat are wealthy or educated and sprinkled with an eccentric and a flibbertigibbet. The retreat is quite separate on the island and as such it feels like an island within an island with its own rules. I particularly enjoyed the relationship and rapport Poirot had with his friend Inspector Edward Catchpool, who is Hastings but a 2.0 version.

Based on this book, I will investigate the other books Hercule Poirot books written by Sophie Hannah.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, HarperCollins UK, for making the e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I've really enjoyed Sophie Hannah's additions to the Hercule Poirot series. Having read most of Agatha Christie's books, it is great to have new stories to read featuring her characters and I think Sophie Hannah does them really well - staying true to Agatha Christie's work while adding her own style to it too.
The character of Inspector Catchpole works well with Poirot, and I found that this was a book that kept me reading and kept me guessing. It was a little bit complicated but here were some interesting characters and it was an enjoyable read.

Inspector Edward Catchpole goes to the scenic island of Landeros with Poirot at the invitation of the owner of the retreat where they are staying. They have been asked to solve a problem at the premises. There’s a mixed bag of guests, meaning there are suspects galore when a murder is committed. Quite a good read but doesn’t have the flair of the original Poirot stories.

We are back again with Inspector Catchpool and Poirot, this time on a Greek island with some dubious, possibly cult-ish characters. I enjoyed this mystery, though I have to admit there were moments where I had to go back and re-read what I'd just read because just about everyone apart from Catchpool & Poirot are lying...or not lying...or might be lying...or are protecting someone...and that makes it hard to keep track of what on earth is going on. I had no hope of solving the mystery, but that's okay, that's often the way. I would have liked more Poirot, less Catchpool (which is how I normally feel) but this was an enjoyable read.

In the Last Death of the Year Poitou and Inspector Catchpole head to a tiny Greek Island for New Year’s Eve.
A great who dunnit in keeping with Christie’s style.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy to review.