Hercule Poirot’s Christmas (Poirot)

Description

The story unfolds at Gorston Hall, where the elderly, multi-millionaire tyrant Simeon Lee unexpectedly invites his four estranged sons and their wives for a Christmas reunion. Simeon is not interested in holiday cheer; he is intent on playing a sadistic game of manipulation, hinting that he will change his will to cut them off. On Christmas Eve, the house is rocked by a deafening crash and a horrific scream. Simeon is found in a locked room, his throat slashed in a scene of uncharacteristic gore. Hercule Poirot, who is staying nearby with a friend, is called in to navigate a house full of people who each had a motive to hate the old man. As Poirot notes, “the forced cheerfulness of Christmas” often creates a psychological pressure cooker that can lead to explosion.