Search results for ""Author Sophie Hannah""

A special reissue from Head of Zeus's bestselling anthology collection of the 100 best crime stories written by women, selected and introduced by award-winning author Sophie Hannah. From Agatha Christie and Daphne du Maurier, to Val McDermid and Margaret Atwood, women writers have long been drawn to criminal acts. Here, award-winning author Sophie Hannah brings together 100 of her favourite examples. Deadlier includes prize-winners, bestsellers and rising stars, so whether you take your crime cosy or hard-boiled, this big, beautiful anthology will keep you reading long into the night.

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One of the Sunday Times 100 Best Crime Novels and Thrillers Since 1945The first extraordinary psychological suspense thriller from internationally bestselling author Sophie Hannah. Not to be missed for readers of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins'Terrifying' Scotsman'Ingenious' Sunday TimesIt's every mother's nightmare . . .She's only been gone two hours.Her husband David was meant to be looking after their two-week-old daughter. But when Alice Fancourt walks into the nursery, her terrifying ordeal begins, for Alice insists the baby in the cot is a stranger she's never seen before.With an increasingly hostile and menacing David swearing she must either be mad or lying, how can Alice make the police believe her before it's too late?

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The new Hercule Poirot novel – another brilliant murder mystery that can only be solved by the eponymous Belgian detective and his ‘little grey cells’. Since the publication of her first book in 1920, Agatha Christie wrote 33 novels, two plays and more than 50 short stories featuring Hercule Poirot. Now, for the first time ever, the guardians of her legacy have approved a brand new novel featuring Dame Agatha's most beloved creation. Hercule Poirot's quiet supper in a London coffee house is interrupted when a young woman confides to him that she is about to be murdered. She is terrified, but begs Poirot not to find and punish her killer. Once she is dead, she insists, justice will have been done. Later that night, Poirot learns that three guests at the fashionable Bloxham Hotel have been murdered, a cufflink placed in each one’s mouth. Could there be a connection with the frightened woman? While Poirot struggles to put together the bizarre pieces of the puzzle, the murderer prepares another hotel bedroom for a fourth victim… In the hands of internationally bestselling author Sophie Hannah, Poirot plunges into a mystery set in 1920s London – a diabolically clever puzzle that can only be solved by the talented Belgian detective and his ‘little grey cells’.

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Sally is watching the news with her husband when she hears a name she ought not to recognise: Mark Bretherick. Last year, a business trip Sally had planned was cancelled at the last minute. Desperate for a break from her busy life juggling her career and a young family, Sally didn't tell her husband that the trip had fallen through. Instead, she booked a week off and treated herself to a secret holiday. All she wanted was a bit of peace - some time to herself - but it didn't work out that way. Because Sally met a man - Mark Bretherick. All the details are the same: where he lives, his job, his wife Geraldine and daughter Lucy. Except that the man on the news is a man Sally has never seen before. And Geraldine and Lucy Bretherick are both dead . . .

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The virtuosity and high spirits of Sophie Hannah's poems are unusual at any time of day. She handles rhymed metrical forms with wily insouciance and passes the 'memorability test' with flying colors. What seems simple or simply achieved more often than not on closer inspection yields subtleties of feeling and form. A surrealising impulse unsettles even the most tidy of her stanzas with a shrewd imaginative wantonness. Her experiments with subject-matter produce something more satisfying than 'social verse'. An urban person who prefers shopping, eating and romance to hopping over cowpats on a country walk, she writes with generous rather than reductive wit.

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Make-up for You It’s time to let go of outdated beauty rules and expectations, and to discover empowering and exciting ways to express yourself. Welcome to the new beauty bible. Sophie Hannah is the queen of creative self-expression, whether it’s everyday hair and make-up looks or incredible festival, Halloween, party and holiday styles. She doesn’t shy away from showing her true selves and having fun with her beauty and style – and neither should you! This book has absolutely everything you need to know, from how to put together your beauty kit, take care of your skin and master basic techniques, to ideas for experimenting with hair colour and styles, and finding sustainable ways to develop your look. Including step-by-step illustrated tutorials and aspirational ideas, it is packed full of information to teach, inspire and give you the confidence to develop your own unique style. Life is short – so let yourself feel good being you!

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A TIME must-read book of 2019'Hannah is excellent on how to embrace our grudges, nurture them and use them to become a better person' GraziaWhat if grudges are not just good for us but great?How often have you held a grudge and felt guilty about it? 'Forgive and move on' is the received wisdom, and that's what many of us try to do. Positive thinking is essential for a happy life, but how we get to that positive is even more crucial. What if grudges can ward off danger, and help us live better lives?What if they can act as stepping stones, pointing us in the right direction? This ultimate guide will give you all the tools you need to analyse, process and embrace your grudges in order to be your best possible self.** How to Hold a Grudge - The Podcast now available for download! Check out Grudge of the Week, and discover the latest Grudge Music **

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Poet Sophie Hannah returns with a collection of poems that explore and celebrate strong feelings: love, hate, anger, hope - and which strip away the veils of hypocrisy and pretence from all aspects of everyday life.

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'Outstandingly brilliant' Clare MackintoshDid she really see Melody?The stunning new pageturner from the Queen of Psychological Suspense. Pushed to breaking point, Cara Burrows abandons her home and family and escapes to a five-star spa resort she can't afford. Late at night, exhausted and desperate, she lets herself into her hotel room and is shocked to find it already occupied - by a man and a teenage girl.A simple mistake on the part of the hotel receptionist - but Cara's fear intensifies when she works out that the girl she saw alive and well in the hotel room is someone she can't possibly have seen: the most famous murder victim in the country, Melody Chapa, whose parents are serving life sentences for her murder.Cara doesn't know what to trust: everything she's read and heard about the case, or the evidence of her own eyes. Did she really see Melody? And is she prepared to ask herself that question and answer it honestly if it means risking her own life?******What people are saying about DID YOU SEE MELODY?'I was hooked!...there was a cracking ending!' GoodReads reviewer'Really good reading that moved at a fast pace and kept me engaged throughout. Highly recommended.' GoodReads reviewer'Oh superb. Excellent. All the other expletives. Ms Hannah still showing us how twisting a plot is done properly.' GoodReads reviewer

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Would you trust a complete stranger?After Chloe and her daughter Freya are rescued from disaster by a man who seems too good to be true, Chloe decides she must find him again to thank him. But instead of meeting her knight in shining armour, she comes across a woman called Nadine Caspian who warns her to stay well away from him. The man is dangerous, Nadine claims, and a compulsive liar. Alarmed, Chloe asks her what she means, but Nadine will say no more. Chloe knows that the sensible choice would be to walk away - after all, she doesn't know anything about this man. But she is too curious. What could Nadine have meant? And can Chloe find out the truth without putting herself and her daughter in danger?

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***WINNER OF THE SPECSAVERS NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FOR CRIME THRILLER OF THE YEAR 2013***He swore he was a killer. The truth was worse.An overnight plane delay is bad.Having to share your hotel room with a stranger is worse.But that is only the beginning of Gaby Struthers' problems.Gaby has never met Lauren Cookson before. So how does Lauren know so much about her? How does she know that the love of Gaby's life has been accused of murder? Why is she telling her that he is innocent? And why is she so terrified of Gaby?If you loved Gone Girl, you'll find this chilling domestic thriller impossible to put down.

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The unnervingly good sixth psychological thriller from bestselling crime writer Sophie Hannah, not to be missed for readers of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Jaw-droppingly assured' Daily Express'A first-class whodunnit' Scotsman Don't go into the other woman's house . . . It's 1.15 a.m. Connie Bowskill should be asleep. Instead, she's logging on to a property website in search of a particular house: 11 Bentley Grove, Cambridge. She knows it's for sale; she saw the estate agent's board in the front garden less than six hours ago.Soon Connie is clicking on the 'Virtual Tour' button, keen to see the inside of 11 Bentley Grove and put her mind at rest once and for all. She finds herself looking at a scene from a nightmare: in the living room, in the middle of the carpet, there's a woman lying face down in a huge pool of blood. In shock, Connie wakes her husband Kit. But when Kit sits down at the computer to take a look, he sees no dead body, only a pristine beige carpet in a perfectly ordinary room . . .

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The second stunning thriller from queen of psychological crime, Sophie Hannah, perfect for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Superbly creepy' Guardian 'Rivetingly original' Sunday Times Sometimes love must kill before it can die. Three years ago, something terrible happened to Naomi Jenkins - so terrible that she never told anybody.Now Naomi has another secret - the man she has fallen passionately in love with, unhappily married Robert Haworth. When Robert vanishes without trace, Naomi knows he must have come to harm. But the police are less convinced, particularly when Robert's wife insists he is not missing.In desperation, Naomi has a crazy idea. If she can't persuade the police that Robert is in danger, perhaps she can convince them that he is a danger to others. Then they will have to look for him - urgently. Naomi knows how to describe in detail the actions of a psychopath. All she needs to do is dig up her own troubled past . . .

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In this small but perfectly formed collection of supernatural short stories, Sophie Hannah takes the comforting scenes of everyday life and imbues them with a frisson of fear, then a gust of terror. Why is a young woman so unnerved by the presence of a visitors book in her boyfriend's inner-city home? And whose spidery handwriting is it that fills the pages? Who is the strangely courteous boy still lingering at a child's tenth birthday party when all the parents have gathered their children and left? And why does the presence of a perfectly ordinary woman in a post office queue leave another customer pallid and sweating with fear? Beware what you open this Christmas!

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'A pleasure ... funny and immensely readable' Guardian Happiness is one of life's greatest mysteries. But what even is happiness? Why does it mean so many different things to different people? And how can we actually be happier? Drawing on decades of experience in crime writing, self-help and intensely curious observation of other people, Sophie Hannah sets out to solve the mystery. She lines up her cast of suspects and expert witnesses from ancient philosophers to modern self-help gurus, scientists to ordinary people from all walks of life. Leaving no stone unturned, she scrutinises the clues, evidence, and even the red herrings that unexpectedly lead to happiness. And she uncovers answers - from the secrets of a fulfilling relationship to the joys of boredom, or of the bliss of a cancelled meeting. Weaving in much-loved poems and hilarious observations from Sophie's own life, this is the ultimate guide to happiness - and the clues that can lead us there.

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Everybody has their secrets, and in Sophie Hannah's fantastic stories the curtains positively twitch with them. Who, for instance, is the hooded figure hiding in the bushes outside a young man's house? Why does the same stranger keep appearing in the background of a family's holiday photographs? What makes a woman stand mesmerised by two children in a school playground, children she's never met but whose names she knows well? And which secret results in a former literary festival director sorting soiled laundry in a shabby hotel? All will be revealed...but at a cost. As Sophie Hannah uncovers the dark obsessions and strange longings behind the most ordinary relationships, life will never seem quite the same again.

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Dissects modern life and relationships with insouciant honesty and ruthless wit, and love poems that evoke feelings with. This book includes an extract from the opening chapter of the author's second psychological thriller, "Hurting Distance".

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Combining traditional forms and those associated with modernism, this collection focuses on love, loss, and the different ways in which people - for better or worse - can be significant to each other.

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Sophie Hannah is one of Britain's best-loved poets, a disarmingly witty, sharp-eyed chronicler of everyday life and its peculiarities. She is also an internationally successful author of psychological crime fiction, and has written the first new Hercule Poirot novel to be authorised by the Agatha Christie estate. This book collects all of her previous collections of verse and also includes new and uncollected poems.

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A must-read for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Sophie Hannah is genuinely Christie's heir' The Scotsman'Hugely entertaining, full of uncomfortable truths' London Evening StandardWhat if having a best friend was the most dangerous thing you could do?A killer that the police are calling 'Billy Dead Mates' is murdering pairs of best friends, one by one. Before they die, each victim is given a small white book... For months, detectives have failed to catch Billy, or work out what the white books mean. And then a woman, scared by what she's seen on the news, comes forward.Stand-up comedian Kim Tribbeck has one of Billy's peculiar little books. A stranger gave it to her at a gig she did a year ago. Was he Billy, and does he want to kill her? Kim has no friends and trusts no one, so how - and why - could she possibly be Billy Dead Mates' next target?This is the next chilling novel from the queen of psychological crime - a literary puzzle set to unlock the dark side of the mind . . .

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This collection provides a range of romantic ironies. Sophie Hannah's poems move beyond satire to the heart of modern matter: loves, lusts, losses, and the foibles of contemporary life.

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The fourth psychological suspense novel from the phenomenal word-of-mouth bestselling Sophie Hannah. A must-read for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins. 'Utterly gripping' The Times'Thrilling' Sunday TelegraphWhy would anyone confess to a murder that never happened?Ruth Bussey knows what it means to be in the wrong and to be wronged. She once did something she regrets, and her punishment nearly destroyed her. Now Ruth is rebuilding her life, and has found a love she doesn't believe she deserves: Aidan Seed. Aidan is also troubled by a past he hates to talk about, until one day he decides he must confide in Ruth. He tells her that years ago he killed someone: a woman called Mary Trelease.Ruth is confused. She's certain she's heard the name before, and when she realises why it sounds familiar, her fear and confusion deepen - because the Mary Trelease that Ruth knows is very much alive . . .

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**THE TOP TEN SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER**'Completely ingenious, entirely satisfying - a delight from start to finish' ALEX MICHAELIDES'BY FAR Sophie Hannah's best one yet. Relatable, funny, high concept and so satisfying I watched in awe as the pieces fell into place' GILLIAN McALLISTER'You'll love this brain-melting thriller!' FABULOUS'A wise and witty portrait of modern marriage and murder' THE TIMES'One of the best crime writers current working' THE SCOTSMANSIX COUPLES. ONE LUXURY RESORT. THE PERFECT MURDER . . .A dream honeymoon...You've madly in love, newly married and at an exclusive resort.A nightmare dinner ...You receive a note warning you to 'Beware of the couple at the table nearest to yours.' There are five other couples. Any of them might have murder in mind.A crime that seems impossible...Who tried to warn you? Who is out to get you?And will you make it home alive?SOPHIE HANNAH IS THE QUEEN OF THE UNGUESSABLE MYSTERY!

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The brilliantly chilling seventh crime thriller from the queen of psychological suspense - a must-read for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Utterly chilling' Observer'Truly hair-raising' Independent on Sunday Some secrets are so dark you keep them even from yourself . . .When Amber Hewerdine consults a hypnotherapist as a desperate last resort, she doesn't expect that anything much will change.She doesn't expect it to help with her chronic insomnia . . .She doesn't expect to hear herself, under hypnosis, saying words that mean nothing to her: 'Kind, cruel, kind of cruel' - words she has seen somewhere before, if only she could remember where . . .She doesn't expect to be arrested two hours later, as a result of having spoken those words out loud, in connection with the brutal murder of Katharine Allen, a woman she's never heard of . . .

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Critically acclaimed queen of psychological crime Sophie Hannah's fifth suspense novel - a must-read for those who love Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Beautifully written' Daily Express'Terrifying' Heat Murder begins at home . . . TV producer Fliss Benson receives an anonymous card at work. The card has sixteen numbers on it, arranged in four rows of four - numbers that mean nothing to her.On the same day, Fliss finds out she's going to be working on a documentary about miscarriages of justice involving cot-death mothers wrongly accused of murder. The documentary will focus on three women: Helen Yardley, Sarah Jaggard and Rachel Hines. All three women are now free, and the doctor who did her best to send them to prison for life, child protection zealot Dr Judith Duffy, is under investigation for misconduct. For reasons she has shared with nobody, this is the last project Fliss wants to be working on. And then Helen Yardley is found dead at her home, and in her pocket is a card with sixteen numbers on it, arranged in four rows of four . . .

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Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie's mysteries, as well as Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins, the ninth psychological thriller from Sophie Hannah is a literary mystery and a puzzle that's impossible to solve . . . 'Fiendishly clever' Sunday Express'Exceptional' Elle Knowing the secret will kill you.All she wanted to do was take her son's forgotten sports kit to school.So why does Nicki Clements drive past the home of controversial newspaper columnist Damon Blundy eight times in one day? Blundy has been murdered, and the words 'HE IS NO LESS DEAD' daubed on his wall - in red paint, not blood. And, though Blundy was killed with a knife, he was not stabbed. Why?Nicki, called in for questioning, doesn't have any of the answers police are looking for. Nor can she tell them the truth, because although she is not guilty of murder, she is far from innocent. And the words on the wall are disturbingly familiar to her, if only she could remember where she has heard them before . . .

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Agatha Christie fans will love Queen of Crime Sophie Hannah's third stunning psychological suspense novel. Also perfect for fans of Clare Mackintosh and Paula Hawkins.'Addictive' Marie Claire'Irresistible' GuardianIt began with an affair. And ended in murder.Sally is watching the news with her husband when she hears a name she ought not to recognise: Mark Bretherick. Last year, a work trip Sally had planned was cancelled at the last minute. Desperate for a break from her busy life juggling work and a young family, Sally didn't tell her husband that the trip had fallen through. Instead, she booked a week off work and treated herself to a secret holiday. All she wanted was a bit of peace - some time to herself - but it didn't work out that way. Because Sally met a man. Mark Bretherick. All the details are the same: where he lives, his job, his wife Geraldine and daughter Lucy. Except that the man on the news is a man Sally has never seen before. And Geraldine and Lucy Bretherick are both dead . . .

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The Poetry of Sex - a raucous, highly enjoyable anthology by acclaimed poet Sophie Hannah We've been at it all summer, from the Canadian border to the edge of Mexico . . .Romance and poetry seem to go hand in hand but - implicit, explicit, nuanced or starkly frank - sex itself has long been a staple subject for poets. In fact a great deal of erotic poetry rejects the distinction. It's hard to imagine a more fruitful subject for poets than sex, in all its glorious manifestations: from desire and hope, through disappointment and confusion, to conclusion and consequence. And little has changed over the centuries, as Sophie Hannah's anthology vividly demonstrates, from Catullus pleading with Lesbos to Walt Whitman singing the body electric. Moods and attitudes may vary but the drive persists as does the desire to write about it.Sophie Hannah's selection ranges from ancient Rome to modern New York, from gay to straight, but her principle has been to go low on the sugar and high on the excitement. The result is a raucous, highly enjoyable anthology.From Shakespeare to Carol Ann Duffy, this book is essential reading for poetry lovers and romantics everywhere. It is a perfect counterpart to the The New Penguin Book of Love Poetry and a wonderful companion to Sophie Hannah's own Selected Poems.'Sophie Hannah is among the best at comprehending in rhyming verse the indignity of having a body and the nobility of having a heart' Guardian'A shrewd and accurate observer of the world around her, and of her own life, she is often very funny' The Oldie'The brightest young star in British poetry' IndependentSophie Hannah has published five collections of poetry. Her fifth Pessimism for Beginners was shortlisted for the T.S. Eliot Award in 2007. Her Selected Poems is published by Penguin (revised edition, 2013). She is also the writer of bestselling psychological crime fiction, most recently The Carrier. Her novels have been translated into 24 languages. Born in Manchester, she now lives in Cambridge with her husband and children, and is a Fellow Commoner of Lucy Cavendish College.

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New and uncollected tales of murder, mischief, magic and madness. Ruth Rendell was an acknowledged master of psychological suspense: these are ten (and a quarter) of her most chillingly compelling short stories, collected here together for the first time. In these tales, a businessman boasts about cheating on his wife, only to find the tables turned. A beautiful country rectory reverberates to the echo of a historical murder. A compulsive liar acts on impulse, only to be lead inexorably to disaster. And a wealthy man finds there is more to his wife's kidnapping than meets the eye. Atmospheric, gripping and never predictable, this is Ruth Rendell at her inimitable best. The stories are: Never Sleep in a Bed Facing a Mirror; A Spot of Folly; The Price of Joy; The Irony of Hate; Digby's Wives; The Haunting of Shawley Rectory; A Drop Too Much; The Thief; The Long Corridor of Time; In the Time of his Prosperity; and Trebuchet. Introduction from Sophie Hannah.

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"As every amateur toxicologist knows, the difference between a poison and medicine is often simply the dose."There is no weapon as insidious, as seductive or as mysterious as poison. In this terrifying account of history's silent assassin, discover the gripping tales of users, abusers and victims of these mysterious substances, from Cleopatra and Catherine de' Medici to contemporary secret service agents and terrorists.Documenting royal scandal, political upheaval and personal tragedies, Poison details a gruesome thread that runs often undetected through human history.

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A tale of Moomin Valley sees Toffle driven from his home by the frightening noises of the forest. Too shy, at first, to approach the many colourful Moomin characters he passes along the way, he gains confidence by discovering a scared and lonely Miffle who needs his help. Toffle's quest to save Miffle from the dreadful Groke is an inspiring tale that every child (and many adults) are sure to identify with. In Scandinavia, this story by Tove Jansson is even more popular than her Moomin books; in over 40 years since it was published it has never once been out of print.

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Finnish artist Tove Jansson's Moomin stories have been continually in print for more than half a century, in 35 languages. They are among Europe's best loved and enduring children's classics, and through the TV animation (BBC2), the warm-hearted, whimsical creatures of Moomin valley have been brought to a new younger British audience. Introducing the first Sort Of Children's Classic in a new English version by Sophie Hannah. Sort of Books proudly presents the original full colour Moomin picture book with its irresistible cut-out page designs and playful rhyming text in a new version by one of Britain's star poets.

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The world’s greatest detective, Hercule Poirot – legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile and A Haunting in Venice – puts his little grey cells to work solving a baffling Christmas mystery. CAN HERCULE POIROT SOLVE A BAFFLING MURDER MYSTERY IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS? It’s 19 December 1931. Hercule Poirot and Inspector Edward Catchpool are called to investigate the murder of a man in the apparent safe haven of a Norfolk hospital ward. Catchpool’s mother, the irrepressible Cynthia, insists that Poirot stays in a crumbling mansion by the coast, so that they can all be together for the festive period while Poirot solves the case. Cynthia’s friend Arnold is soon to be admitted to that same hospital and his wife is convinced he will be the killer’s next victim, though she refuses to explain why. Poirot has less than a week to solve the crime and prevent more murders, if he is to escape from this nightmare scenario and get home in time for Christmas. Meanwhile, someone else – someone utterly ruthless – also has ideas about what ought to happen to Hercule Poirot . . .

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The world’s most beloved detective, Hercule Poirot – the legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express and currently The Haunting in Venice – returns in a stylish, diabolically clever mystery set in 1930’s London. ‘Murder! Me? How dare you!’ Hercule Poirot’s tranquil afternoon is ruined when an angry woman accosts him outside his front door. She threatens to report the famous detective to Scotland Yard for falsely accusing her of murder. Seeking sanctuary inside, Poirot is startled to find that he has a visitor – another stranger claiming to have received a letter from Poirot accusing him of killing the same man. How many more innocent people have been sent letters? If Poirot didn’t send them, who did? And who is Barnabas Pandy, the alleged victim – is he dead or alive? Poirot has answers to find, and quickly, or more lives may be put in danger…

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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 fiendish new mystery. Hercule Poirot is travelling by luxury passenger coach from London to the exclusive Kingfisher Hill estate, where Richard Devonport has summoned him to prove that his fiancée, Helen, is innocent of the murder of his brother, Frank. But there is a strange condition attached to this request: Poirot must conceal his true reason for being there. 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?

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Hercule Poirot returns in another brilliant murder mystery that can only be solved by the eponymous Belgian detective and his ‘little grey cells’. ‘What I intend to say to you will come as a shock . . .’ Lady Athelinda Playford has planned a house party at her mansion in Clonakilty, County Cork, but it is no ordinary gathering. As guests arrive, Lady Playford summons her lawyer to make an urgent change to her will – one she intends to announce at dinner that night. She has decided to cut off her two children without a penny and leave her fortune to someone who has only weeks to live . . . Among Lady Playford’s guests are two men she has never met – the famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, and Inspector Edward Catchpool of Scotland Yard. Neither knows why he has been invited . . . until Poirot starts to wonder if Lady Playford expects a murderer to strike. But why does she seem so determined to provoke, in the presence of a possible killer? When the crime is committed in spite of Poirot’s best efforts to stop it, and the victim is not who he expected it to be, will he be able to find the culprit and solve the mystery? Following the phenomenal global success of The Monogram Murders, which was published to critical acclaim following a co-ordinated international launch in September 2014, international best-selling crime writer Sophie Hannah has been commissioned by Agatha Christie Limited to pen a second fully-authorised Poirot novel. The new book marks the centenary of the creation of Christie’s world-famous detective Hercule Poirot, introduced in her first book The Mysterious Affair at Styles.

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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 fiendish new mystery. Hercule Poirot is travelling by luxury passenger coach from London to the exclusive Kingfisher Hill estate, where Richard Devonport has summoned him to prove that his fiancée, Helen, is innocent of the murder of his brother, Frank. But there is a strange condition attached to this request: Poirot must conceal his true reason for being there. 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?

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A perfect introduction to Agatha Christie - four of the best Hercule Poirot stories, chosen for their readability and sense of adventure. A man is found shot through the head in a locked room. A wealthy banker vanishes while posting a letter. A thief disappears with a haul of rubies and emeralds. And, in the golden sands of Egypt, the men who discovered an ancient tomb are dying one by one . . . Hercule Poirot, the fussy Belgian detective with the egg-shaped head and immaculate moustache, solved some of the world’s most puzzling crimes. This book contains four of the very best stories, selected by John Curran, author of Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks, and Sophie Hannah, who wrote the brand new Hercule Poirot novel, The Monogram Murders. Includes the stories ‘The Double Clue’, ‘The Market Basing Mystery’, ‘The Disappearance of Mr Davenheim’ and ‘The Adventure of the Egyptian Tomb’.

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Includes a new introduction from Sophie Hannah, bestselling author of THE MONOGRAM MURDERS and HAVEN'T THEY GROWNAgatha Christie was not only the biggest selling writer of detective stories the world has ever known, she was also a mystery in herself, giving only the rarest interviews, declining absolutely to become any sort of public figure, and a mystery too in the manner in which she achieved her astonishing success.H R F Keating, a crime novelist and respected reviewer of crime fiction, brought together a dozen distinguished writers from both sides of the Atlantic to throw light on this double mystery. Some analyse the art itself; some explain the reasons for her success, not just the books, but also in film and theatre.The approaches are penetrating, affectionate, enthusiastic, analytical, funny - even critical. Together, they give an almost unique insight into the life and work of the First Lady of Crime.

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The world’s greatest detective, Hercule Poirot – legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile and A Haunting in Venice – puts his little grey cells to work solving a baffling Christmas mystery. CAN HERCULE POIROT SOLVE A BAFFLING MURDER MYSTERY IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS? It’s 19 December 1931. Hercule Poirot and Inspector Edward Catchpool are called to investigate the murder of a man in the apparent safe haven of a Norfolk hospital ward. Catchpool’s mother, the irrepressible Cynthia, insists that Poirot stays in a crumbling mansion by the coast, so that they can all be together for the festive period while Poirot solves the case. Cynthia’s friend Arnold is soon to be admitted to that same hospital and his wife is convinced he will be the killer’s next victim, though she refuses to explain why. Poirot has less than a week to solve the crime and prevent more murders, if he is to escape from this nightmare scenario and get home in time for Christmas. Meanwhile, someone else – someone utterly ruthless – also has ideas about what ought to happen to Hercule Poirot . . .

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Written By Sophie Hannah, BA Paris, Clare Mackintosh, and Holly Brown, this psychological thriller is perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty and Louise CandlishHOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO PROTECT YOUR DAUGHTER?Carolyn, Bronnie, Elise, and Kendall are bound together by one thing - their four daughters are best friends at the highly competitive Orla Flynn Academy for the Performing Arts.Imogen Curwood is a new girl at the Academy and her behaviour is odd from the start. On the day she arrives, bad things start to happen. As one threatening incident follows another, the four mothers begin to ask themselves: are their girls in danger? When an attempted murder rocks the school, Imogen is pleased to report that she has an alibi. If she isn't the guilty party, someone else must be.Carolyn, Bronnie, Elise and Kendall are determined to uncover the truth and protect their daughters. But are they prepared to risk their own secrets being exposed?THE UNDERSTUDY IS THE OUTSTANDING NEW NOVEL FROM FOUR MASTERS OF SUSPENSE

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