Closed Casket

October 3, 2016
Hannah’s second estate-sanctioned addition to Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot finds the brilliant, amusingly self-centered Belgian sleuth in 1929, attending a house party from hell. Neither he nor Scotland Yard Insp. Edward Catchpool, the novel’s thoughtful narrator and Poirot’s friend, know why they’ve been invited by Lady Athelinda Playford to
her County Cork mansion in the Irish
Free State. Other guests include Athie’s children, their significant others, her attorneys, and her ailing secretary. When Athie announces she’s drafted a new will leaving everything to her secretary, Poirot and Catchpool realize their presence is intended to keep the peace. Someone commits murder regardless, and the detecting duo must determine whodunit. Hannah’s entertaining pastiche is brim-full of character interactions, backstories, smart chat, and diabolical twists of plot, most of which Rhind-Tutt, performing as Catchpool, delivers in the cool, measured voice of a professional Yard observer. There are moments, however, when the inspector’s almost steely British reserve gives way to self-doubt, anger, sorrow, and even petulance, and Rhind-Tutt shifts his narration accordingly. As for Poirot, Rhind-Tutt’s rendition resembles that of the sleuth’s longtime television interpreter, David Suchet. A wise man doesn’t meddle with perfection. A Morrow hardcover.

June 20, 2016
Set in October 1929, bestseller Hannah’s captivating sequel to 2014’s The Monogram Murders finds Hercule Poirot and Scotland Yard’s Insp. Edward Catchpool visiting Lady Athelinda Playford’s mansion in Clonakilty, County Cork, in the Irish Free State. Other guests include Athie’s children, their significant others, her attorneys, and her ailing secretary. At first, Poirot and Catchpool can’t figure out why they were invited, but then Athie announces she’s drafted a new will leaving everything to her secretary, and they realize their presence is intended to keep the peace. Someone commits murder regardless, and the detecting duo must determine whodunit. An intriguing setup, colorful characters, and witty dialogue elevate this classic manor house mystery. Fiendish schemes and an abundance of interpersonal conflict foster tension and drive plot, while outrageous twists and juicy red herrings confound readers. This Christie estate–sanctioned pastiche isn’t perfect—Hannah’s Poirot is too subdued and the killer’s machinations prove preposterous—but overall, this endeavor confirms that the Queen of Crime’s legacy is in capable hands.