Written by Sophie Hannah
SUMMARY:
In 2016, HarperCollins released Sophie Hannah’s 299-page Closed Casket – it’s her sequel to 2014’s The Monogram Murders. In mid-October 1929, several long months have elapsed since the lurid events of The Monogram Murders.
Humiliated Scotland Yard detective Edward Catchpool has distanced himself from an oblivious Poirot upon suffering media ridicule for his perceived incompetence. Per an unexpected invitation, Catchpool visits the posh Irish country estate, Lillieoak, belonging to famed children’s mystery author Athelinda Playford (it’s easy to visualize actress Judi Dench). To Catchpool’s chagrin, Poirot is among the other guests, as are two of Lady Playford’s personal attorneys.
Upon meeting Lillieoak’s staff and the deplorable Playford heirs, Poirot and Catchpool wonder why they were summoned to help keep the peace. Deploying a reluctant Catchpool as his partner, Poirot senses that someone’s life is indeed threatened. At dinner, a surprise announcement modifying Lady Athelinda’s substantial will sends the egotistical household into instant turmoil.
By morning, a fatal poisoning is discovered, as the victim’s head has also been savagely bashed to a bloody pulp for good measure. While the Irish police heavy-handedly conduct the official investigation, Catchpool & Poirot discreetly analyze the Playford household. A calculated web of deception, blackmail, and murder dating back several years may be the culprit’s trump card to elude justice.
REVIEW:
It’s a far cry from Agatha Christie’s Poirot in his prime. For this English parlor mystery, author Sophie Hannah’s second Poirot is at best mediocre.
For instance, two insipid Playford heirs and their significant others are depicted as such wealthy, self-absorbed snobs that these walking clichés carry virtually zero credibility by the novel’s end. Hence, readers may be hard-pressed to find a plausible suspect in spite of Hannah’s improved take on Poirot after The Monogram Murders. Catchpool’s world-weary narrative and Playford attorney Michael Gathercole’s calm professionalism come the closest in terms of some semblance of reality.
What extinguishes any faint glimmer of a satisfying read is Hannah’s crummy excuse for a finale. Once re-assembled, Poirot, Catchpool, and their suspects discuss the ghastly murder, with a calm demeanor reminiscent of a book club meeting. The ‘big reveal’ re: an impatient killer’s motive is utterly unconvincing, much like the culprit’s fate. Even worse is a failure to adequately address the severity of the gruesome post-death clubbing, let alone hold someone accountable. Incredibly, the only regret expressed pertains to a blood-stained suspect’s ruined outfit.
To Hannah’s credit, she percolates a few good sequences (typically involving either Catchpool or Gathercole), including a well-played last few pages. The epilogue, ironically, is the novel’s best scene, if only to signal that this travesty is finally over. Sabotaged by a shallow plot and weak characterizations, Closed Casket deteriorates fast in comparison to the merely convoluted Monogram Murders.
ADDITIONAL FEATURES:
A full-page stylishly diagraming Lillieoak’s ground floor and first floor is included. Two pages are dedicated to Hannah’s acknowledgments.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 2 Stars
