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This exclusive authorized edition from the Queen of Mystery gathers together in one magnificent volume all of Agatha Christie's short stories featuring her beloved intrepid investigator, Miss Marple. It's an unparalleled compendium of murder, mayhem, mystery, and detection that represents some of the finest short form fiction in the crime fiction field and is an essential omnibus for Christie fans. Described by her friend Dolly Bantry as "the typical old maid of fiction," Miss Marple has lived almost her entire life in the sleepy hamlet of St. Mary Mead. Yet, by observing village life she has gained an unparalleled insight into human nature - and used it to devastating effect. As her friend Sir Henry Clithering, the ex-Commissioner of Scotland Yard, has been heard to say: "She's just the finest detective God ever made" - and many Agatha Christie fans would agree.… (more)
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Each story in this collection is a whodunit, usually featuring a murder. Everyone is either bewildered, or convinced that the wrong person is guilty, except, of course, for Miss Marple. Christie affords no energy to the set-up; most of these stories begin with a group telling each other stories. The solutions to these stories involve knowledge of all sorts of things with which the average reader will have little familiarity, such as the uses and results of certain poisons.
Perhaps most striking to me was just how weak the character of Miss Marple actually is. There's simply very little to her, except a conviction that young people are foolish. The introduction to the volume tries to argue otherwise, but I am not convinced.
Christie aficionados will certainly want to read this volume, but I would recommend one of Christie's novels to the uninitiated.
* The Thirteen Problems
* Miss Marple's Final Cases
* The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding
a bit patchy, and a couple of them were downright improbable. All the stories tended to suffer a bit from the need to write sparingly, to keep the plot
In the short story format, however, she is a very fun character. A bit unpredictable, very smart, very Victorian. I really enjoyed this
I highly recommend these mysteries.
I think that reading all of these in one or two sittings would be a bit much; they would seem too formulaic. And in fact I listened to some of them in audiobook format read by Joan Hickson, and then read the others on and off over a period of a couple of weeks. But taken 2 or 3 at a time, the formula can become an asset to the story-telling, particularly in the Thirteen Problems collection. You have the same set-up in each story (a group of friends telling each other stories in the evening, and trying to guess the solution), and then the fun of watching the different approach each character takes to telling his or her story for the others to try to solve. Christie has created distinctive personalities for each of her recurring characters in these stories, and uses various quirks in their personalities to present and hide clues.
They're short stories, so by their nature they can't have the depth of the novels. But each story is an engaging puzzle, with the sharp observation of human nature, wittily told, that is Christie's trademark. The quality varies from story to story, but as a whole this is a collection well worth reading.
Some of the exposition occasionally gets a little wearying, but Miss Marple has a very sly commentry that is generally delightful to read. Also of fascination are all the insights into 30s-60s life. When housemaids and servants were everyday affairs that everyone (worth knowing) had. As Miss Marple ages, it is noticable how these trends change towards the 'daily' help instead.
TBC
However, they are well-written, and read one at a time, can be fun.
The language was, of course, a bit out-dated, but I
I had a library copy copy that I couldn't renew, so I had to send it back unfinished. Well, it's been 2 years & I still haven't gone back to take it out again, to finish it. Time to remove it from my current reading list - hah - and move on. I'm glad I read some of the stories but overall they just weren't challenging enough for me.
This collection of short stories are useful to know Miss Marple and a bunch of characters that gravitate toward her. One can also grasp Miss Marple line of thought and the method used to solve the puzzles. Solving one mystery after the other, the old lady conquered the
In all I believe there were 20 stories ALL Featuring Miss Marple..... I was never fond of Jane Marple to being with, the falsely humble old
The Tuesday Club Murders bored me to tears; In the first six stories a group of six people gathered at Miss Marple's home each posing a mystery for the others to deduce the outcome.... In the second six stories everyone gathered at Gossington Hall the Bantrys' home (you remember them from "Body in the Library" & "The Mirror Crack'd"). The original six are: Raymond West (Marple's nephew); Former Yard Commissioner, Sir Henry Clithering; Raymond's friend Joyce Lempriere; clergyman Dr. Pender; solicitor Mr. Petherick; & Miss Marple. Odd (annoying) how no one could figure anything out, only Miss Marple because after all she knows "human nature" based on all the not nice (evil) people she has known in her quaint little village of St. Mary Mead.
Stories included: The Tuesday Night Club, Ingots of Gold, The Blood Stained Pavement, The Idol House of Astarte, Motive v. Opportunity, The Thumb Mark of St. Peter, The Blue Geranium, The Companion, the Four Suspects, A Christmas Tragedy, The Herb of Death, The Affair at the Bungalow, & Death by Drowning.
The Regatta Mystery was actually "Miss Marple Tells a Story" of how she solved a murder while at home sitting in her armchair.
Strange Jest, The Tape Measure Murder, Case of the Perfect Maid, The Caretaker, Greenshaw's Folly, & Sanctuary or The Man on the Chancel Steps (featuring Bunch Harmon Miss Marple's Niece) I found to be more interesting as they involved the people involved and were not stories told about others.
Only
In every story, Miss Marple solved the mystery with information not known to the reader. As a result, I felt cheated as a reader. Had Christie provided the missing information to her readers, the mystery would be obvious.
This will be the last of Christie’s writings that I read.