Sophie Hannah to write new Agatha Christie novel

Crime writer Sophie, the cover star of WM's March issue, is to be the author of a new Hercule Poirot book
The new book, the first-ever Christie 'continuation novel' to be written,  is fully authorised by Agatha Christie's estate, and will be published in September 2014 by HarperColllins. It is currently untitled.
Sophie Hannah describes herself as an 'obsessively devoted' Christie fan.
She said: 'It was Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple who, between them, made me want to devote my working life to crime fiction, and it was Christie's brilliant plotting and deep understanding of the human psyche that shaped my identity as a crime writer.'
The new book was a matter of 'serendipity,' said Christie's grandson Mathew Prichard, who is the chairman of Agatha Christie Ltd. 'Sophie Hannah's agent happened to approach HarperCollins in exactly the same week that my colleagues and I had started discussing a new Christie book. Her idea for a plotline was so compelling and her passion for my grandmother's work so strong, we felt that the time was right for a new Christie to be written.'

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