Well, it finally happened. It took two whole months, but I’ve turned the last page of my first book of 2026 — and I have to say, it was absolutely worth the wait. The Last Death of the Year by Sophie Hannah was a book I chose quite intentionally around New Year’s Eve, partly because the story itself is set on New Year’s Eve, and partly because I was desperately hoping it would pull me out of a reading slump. It didn’t quite manage that — but honestly, that says nothing about the quality of the book. The reading slump is a whole other story.
A Greek Island, a Mysterious Community, and Hercule Poirot
A small island in Greece. A grand estate. A group of people with complicated, shadowy pasts. And my beloved Hercule Poirot. On paper, this sounds like the perfect cosy mystery — and in practice, it really delivers.
The story takes place on the fictional Greek island of Lamperos, in a bay called Liakada, at a grand residence known as Spitty. This unusual estate is home to a community of so-called “friends” — people with less than spotless histories who have gathered there to live by a rather extraordinary philosophy: that only through complete forgiveness — of yourself and of those who have wronged you — can you truly begin to do good and become a better person. It’s an intriguing premise that gives the story a quietly philosophical undercurrent alongside all the mystery.
Poirot arrives on the island accompanied by his trusted friend from Scotland Yard, Inspector Catchpool, to spend New Year’s Eve at Spitty. The story is narrated by Catchpool, who feels uneasy from the very beginning — not only about the peculiar community living on the island, but also about the true reason for their visit, which Poirot is in no hurry to reveal.
After a festive New Year’s Eve dinner, the guests sit down to play a game of resolutions, where each person is asked to anonymously write down their New Year’s resolution, and the group then tries to guess who wrote which. It sounds charming — until one of the notes turns out to be something far more sinister: a chilling little poem announcing that its author intends to cause both the last death of the old year and the first death of the new one, complete with the name of the intended victim. And despite every precaution that Poirot and Catchpool put in place, the murder does indeed take place.
It is only after the crime that Poirot finally reveals to Catchpool their true reason for coming to the island — that another member of the Spitty community is in grave danger. As the story unfolds, secrets and dark pasts begin to surface, and what may have seemed unsolvable at first is, of course, ultimately resolved through the razor-sharp wit and brilliant mind of Hercule Poirot.
Sophie Hannah as Christie’s Successor
Sophie Hannah is clearly walking in Agatha Christie’s footsteps — and she does it remarkably well. But she also brings something distinctly her own to the table. Inspector Catchpool adds a fresh and entertaining dynamic to the classic Poirot formula, and even Poirot himself felt ever so slightly different to me here than in the original Christie novels — a little more relaxed, perhaps, though I couldn’t quite put my finger on why. It’s a subtle shift, but an interesting one.
The plot is driven largely by dialogue and character rather than action, and for me that was absolutely fine. Not once during this book did I feel bored. This is cosy mystery at its very best — no need for car chases or bloodshed when you have sharp minds, layered characters, and a beautifully atmospheric setting. The Greek island backdrop adds a wonderful sense of place, and the enclosed community at Spitty creates exactly the kind of claustrophobic, everyone-is-a-suspect tension that makes this genre so irresistible.
Final Thoughts
The Last Death of the Year is a warm, pleasurable read — exactly the kind of book you want to curl up with under a blanket with something hot to drink. It didn’t break my reading slump, but it gave me something genuinely enjoyable to return to, page after page. And if I ever find myself craving another cosy mystery in this style, I won’t hesitate to reach for more of Sophie Hannah’s work.
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5
A cosy, character-driven mystery with charm, atmosphere, and a Poirot who feels both familiar and refreshingly new. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie looking for something in the same spirit.
Sparkle & Insight 