Young @ Heart Book Club Meets Poirot's New Partner in Crime

YH Nov 25

One of our Young @ Heart readers was thrilled to find an Agatha Christie book she had never seen before. Hercule Poirot’s Silent Night looked like a classic which she must have somehow overlooked…. but there was more to this mystery.

The writing style was somewhat different; Poirot was using his little grey cells to reflect on his feelings; the suspect’s motives were being explored; and the plot was twisting and turning like a moustache in strong London breeze. What mystery was afoot?

Inspecting the book for clues revealed that it had been written by another author! 

How could this be when Christie’s works are still under copyright till 2046?

In the 2000s, Christie’s original books were still popular, but the Christie Estate in London wanted to somehow revive Poirot and introduce him to a new, younger generation. To keep him in the public eye and with possibilities for TV adaptation, they needed to find a writer who could continue Christie’s voice and style, modernising Poirot without taking him out of his 1920s-30 home. The search began.

Meanwhile in Cambridge, a longtime Agatha Christie fan was already hard at work. Sophie Hannah was a best-selling psychological crime writer but decided to try her hand at ‘borrowing’ Poirot ‘for some new puzzles’. In 2013 her agent approached Christie’s publishers with the draft of The Monogram Murders. After much discussion, the Christie Estate gave formal permission for Hannah to write Poirot novels, approving each before publication.

Where is Poirot now?  The 6th ‘New Hercule Poirot Mystery’ (The Last Death of the Year) has recently been released. Hannah’s authorised novels are meticulously plotted, and readers say they have an authentic feel although Poirot does have that little bit more emotional depth than he used to. Plots are more layered, with multiple edgy twists reflecting Hannah’s background in psychological thrillers.

After copyright expires in 2046, Poirot and Miss Marple will enter the public domain, and we shall see if other writers take up the challenge to adapt and expand on their stories, as has happened with Sherlock Holmes since 2023. It’s a brave new world for these old favourite characters. Take care, mon ami.

Posted by Elizabeth

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