The Killings at Kingfisher Hill

The New Hercule Poirot Mystery

By: Sophie Hannah

Narrated by: Julian Rhind-Tutt

Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

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.

sadly disappointing

I really loved the first three of Sophie Hannah’s Agatha Christie books, so I was very much looking forward to listening to this one. But sadly it was disappointing to say the least. The reason for the murder of Frank Davenport was beyond ridiculous. It absolutely would not happen. People don’t commit murder for something like that!

The best part of it was the narrator. Julian Rhind-Tutt’s excellent performance is the only reason I stuck with it to the end.

really good.

I really liked this book. Good characters and a strong plot. The only reason I'm not giving it five stars is because of the end. the resolution to the plot was pretty complicated. Because there were so many characters and names it was hard to keep track of it all when it was being explained.

No! Definitely NOT Agatha’s Poirot!

How do these authors think they can recreate the likes of Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle? What inflated egos are they pandering to that they consider themselves qualified to walk in their footsteps? Qualified to borrow their characters and claim to expand their plots?
This story could have been presented by the author without riding the coattails of an iconic writer. The character names could have been original and no-one would’ve known the difference. The author would at least have retained their own integrity. I personally cannot see Agatha looking favorably upon this effort.
I certainly can find no legitimate comparison between this so-called Poirot story and those created by Agatha Christie.

Not the Poirot that Agatha Christie created

There were many instances in this novel where I stopped and said to myself “This is not the way Agatha Christie would have written it. Christie’s Poirot is always charming. He is never crass or obnoxiously pushy and when he insults Hastings he quickly thereafter compliments him. This Poirot does not. Also Christie’s Poirot steps back when Scotland Yard arrives and only steps forward when asked/invited. He also gives Inspector Japp the credit for solving many of the murders. In this Novel Poirot’s friend is an Inspector at Scotland Yard and instead of taking control of a murder scene allows the residents of the house to bully him into Leaving! Not something that would be done in any Christie novel. Altogether very unrealistic. I think the author needs to brush up on Christie’s books and focus on the interplay between Poirot and his sidekicks. My last comment is that the book is too long. Christie’s books are quick reads, not novellas exactly, but not also not books that take forever to finish.

Wonderfully accurate to Poirot

Fantastic story. Wonderful performance. I couldn’t stop listening. The story starts out strange but quickly morphs into a classic Poirot tale