September is almost here and along with it the much awaited release of the first continuation novel to Agatha’s Christie famous work. Being the well-established author that Christie was, with detective crime novels that conquered the literary stage of the whole world, some strong responses from the Queen of Crime's dedicated fans was inevitable. The announcement of appointing a successor to Agatha’s legacy – Sophie Hannah - caused much stir in the social circles of Poirot’s enthusiasts. As a result, with September the 8th being the date of release revealed to the public, the fast approaching reception of the release of ‘The Brand New Hercule Poirot Mystery’ remains uncertain.
Some of the fans seem to believe that, literally, Poirot would have been better off left ‘dead’. They refer to the 1975 novel Curtain: Poirot's Last Case in which Poirot features his final appearance in Christie's works as the character dies. Other fans defend the concept by explaining that “Christie's books ramble all across Poirot's lifetime. They're not in any order whatsoever. Curtain wasn't written last, just published last.” (by P.G. ,13 June at, http://shortlist.com/).
Some fans openly fire their rage in a call for justice.
“There is NO SUCH THING as an official "Agatha Christie" that was not written by Agatha Christie herself. I don't like this at ALL.” (by B.W., 12 June at http://shortlist.com/), says a dedicated fan. The statement made by Sophie Hannah, who claimed that she did not want to try to dethrone the Queen of Crime, and did not even think it was possible, seems to have failed to convince some of Agatha’s fans. Why should anyone doubt the intentions steering the project when Matthew Pritchard himself, Christie's grandson, stated that it is not really about making more money from the whole of the estate, but about reigniting the debate about Poirot and Christie’s books? “It’s all about books, it’s really all about crime mystery and trying to encourage interest […]”, he assures. It appears that the book is going to be written for all the right reasons.
There's no shortage of fans who are ready to support the project and feel particularly happy that their favourite series might be brought back. They seem to look forward to checking what the new instalment in the Poirot series by Sophie Hannah is really worth and understand the value of this gift.