ŷ������

In a Nutshell: Sorry, Christie fans. But maybe this isn’t the right work to know Miss Marple better. I just don’t feel like continuing with this anthology. 😢


Miss Marple had long been on my agenda as many of my friends who are Christie fans were sure that I would love her. I began my Marple journey with this anthology because the first story, “The Tuesday Night Club��, is known for having the very first print appearance of the legendary Miss Marple. I always love to see how an author introduces a staple character the very first time.

The author's note reveals that Agatha Christie considered Marple at her best in short stories, unlike Poirot, who "insists on a full-length book to display his talents." As I have now read two full-length Marple novels, 2 full-length Poirot novels, and a part of this Marple anthology, I strongly disagree; Miss Marple also needs a full-length novel to reveal her talents. These short stories start and end before anything of value happens.

I realised one crucial difference between Marple and Poirot. Both are intelligent, but Poirot claims it proudly while Marple keeps pushing herself down. This is annoying after a point. I also got tired of Miss Marple always saying, “Well, of course, I recall a similar case in my village,�� and then showing how this clue or the other clue confirmed her suspicions. How many murders and crimes can happen in a small village!??! If there was a variety in the crimes, it would have been more believable.

There are a few quotable quotes in this collection, which isn’t what I can usually say for anthologies.

The premise is simple. A few people come together in a room �� the first six stories had the ‘Tuesday Night Club��, the next five that I read had a dinner party where the guests entertained each other with mysteries. In both the scenarios, one of the gathered persons reveals a mystery, the answer to which is known only to that person. The remaining try to solve it individually. Every single story has Miss Marple guessing the right answer. I understand why this is done but it gets boring after a while.

I have posted the reviews to the initial stories on their respective ŷ������ pages. Here’s a recap and an update on the other ones I read.

1. The Tuesday Night Club - 3.5 stars.

2. The Idol House of Astarte - 2 stars.

3. Ingots of Gold - 2.5 stars.

4. The Bloodstained Pavement�� 3.75 stars.

5. Motive v. Opportunity �� 3.5 stars.

6. The Thumb Mark of St Peter �� 2.5 stars.

7. The Blue Geranium: A Miss Marple Short Story
Things move beyond the Tuesday Night Club. There’s a dinner party to which Miss Marple is invited at the behest of Sir Henry Clithering. Thus, only the scene changes; the rest of the events are the same.
This could have been an interesting story but too convoluted and too many characters for a short. Interesting resolution that again makes use of Christie's know-how of science and toxicology, but doesn't fit in with Miss Marple's persona. There is a titbit that she was a nurse earlier. I suppose that goes some way to explain her knowledge
2.5 stars

8. The Companion: A Miss Marple Short Story
Guess the dinner party mentioned in the previous story now serves as the new setting for these narrated mysteries.
This tale is interesting but muddling. The resolution is farfetched. Once again, Marple/Christie seems to be relying on the assumption that people remember clothes but not faces, which isn’t always true.
2 stars.

9. The Four Suspects: A Miss Marple Short Story
Continues at the same dinner party.
Somewhat gripping but again, a bit convoluted. It mentions who did it, but not the how or the why. So some things still remain a mystery. Despite this, it is one of the better tales in this collection.
3 stars

10. A Christmas Tragedy: A Miss Marple Short Story
A writing tragedy. Boring.
1 star.

11. The Herb of Death: A Miss Marple Short Story
Sheesh!
1 star.


And here’s where my journey stopped.

As I have read only eleven out of the twenty stories in the collection, I am just a little above the halfway mark. But I will still leave this title without a rating as I don’t think it was the right book for me. Marple/Christie aficionados might enjoy it better. I am neither.





—�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ�Ĕ���
Connect with me through:
| | |