The Killings at Kingfisher Hill

The New Hercule Poirot Mystery

De: Sophie Hannah

Narrado por: Julian Rhind-Tutt

Named a New York Times Best Book to Give

The world’s greatest detective, Hercule Poirot - legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile - returns to solve a delectably twisty mystery in this “masterful and multi-layered puzzle...adding a new dimension to a much-loved series” (NPR).

“Yet again, the diminutive man with the little gray cells delivers the goods.” (Wall Street Journal)

Hercule Poirot is traveling by luxury passenger coach from London to the exclusive Kingfisher Hill estate. Richard Devonport has summoned the renowned detective to prove that his fiancée, Helen, is innocent of the murder of his brother, Frank. Poirot will have only days to investigate before Helen is hanged, but there is one strange condition attached: He must conceal his true reason for being there from the rest of the Devonport family.

The coach is forced to stop when a distressed woman demands to get off, insisting that if she stays in her seat, she will be murdered. Although the rest of the journey passes without anyone being harmed, Poirot’s curiosity is aroused, and his fears are later confirmed when a body is discovered with a macabre note attached....

Could this new murder and the peculiar incident on the coach be clues to solving the mystery of who killed Frank Devonport? And if Helen is innocent, can Poirot find the true culprit in time to save her from the gallows?

©2020 Sophie Hannah (P)2020 HarperAudio

Poroit needs a better sidekick

A good story, but Poroit's friend, the Chief Inspector, is the most timid, vague, daydreaming, slow-witted person that's ever been accused of being a policeman. Hearithe story through his eyes is often excruciating and frustrating. He's more Sgt. Schulze than Inspector Japp.

Tiresomely repetitive.

Decent story that, sadly, takes forever to unfold with too much repetition/recapitulation of the events.

Loved it

I really enjoyed this book - the storyline was good, the narration was good.... it is a classic "golden age" mystery.
Some have complained it is not as good as the original Christie books - but that is a hard standard to live up to. I thought this was very good, and really enjoyed it.

Loved it!!!

The narrator is so amazing at creating the different voices to distinguish between each character. The author did such an awesome job at setting up the three different mysteries, that I was amazed at how they all tied together. Can't wait for the next installment!

Best New Hercule Poirot Story

Sophie Hannah has outdone herself in this new Hercule Poirot book. I guarantee that most will not have an inkling as to who the murderer is and will be quite surprised when the murderer is revealed.

Another fun Poirot!

Recently discovered this author and have enjoyed each of her Poirot books. The stories are fun and the narrator is wonderful to listen to.

Clever Fun

The vocal work of the reader brought these characters to life! From male, female, French, English & American accents.
The story was well woven and detailed. I could easy see this story coming to the screen.

As good as a standard Christie

I have not read any other books by Sophie Hannah but her Poirot series. They are all pretty good.
It is easy to forget that there are a lot of mediocre Christie books in addition to her masterpieces. The Hannah books fit in among the average Christie. They are enjoyable reads, but so far none has had the brilliant solution found in Christie's best, but that is perhaps an unfair bar to expect any author to achieve.
In this book we get all of the expected scenes. The country house with an unhappy family. A death in the past and a gathering of all the suspects at the end as Poirot reveals the solution which is a satisfactory one. Inspector Catchpole is along for the ride again. I find him fairly dull and wish Hannah would resurrect one of Christie's original side kicks.
Julian Rhind-Tutt is a great reader for a Poirot story on par with the readers of the Christie Poirot books.

Sophie isn't Agatha

And I wouldn't expect a writer as fascinating as Sophie Hannah to slavishly imitate Agatha Christie's style and have her characters give us a nostalgia ride.

What I received from this Poirot novel was a puzzle that drove me crazy. I thought I had a handle on it a couple of times, but I didn't, and as it gradually resolved, it was satisfying.

I disliked Poirot quite a lot in this story. But I have never really liked the character, and I think if Poirot were a real person, he would be a lot like this humorless, conceited pain in the posterior.

This is my favorite plot in the series so far. I highly recommend it!

Jay

Both enjoyable & frustrating

Author Sophie Hannah’s only literary “crime,” is being Sophie Hannah, rather than Agatha Christie.
She’s doing a hell of a job trying, though, and the effect —while overly-complicated & frustrating at times—has charm & merit. She captures the flavor of Agatha Christie, no small writerly feat, and one for which many people will no doubt criticize her for not *being* Agatha Christie.

Of course her work is not the exact same experience as and AC novel, because they are two different people. If one approaches these novels with the attitude that they are providing entertainment with the essence of AC, rather than expecting AC publishing from the grave, I think one might have a more enjoyable experience. The narration is excellent, and all characters easily identifiable.