Hardcover, 191 pages
English language
Published Nov. 19, 2006 by Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, Distributed by Workman Pub. Co..
Cheap satin and peroxide blondes were a rare sight in St. Mary Mead, at least before film-man Basil Blake bought a cottage and invited down the London crowd. Then a girl in a garish get-up is found strangled in Colonel Bantry's library, and it appears Basil is involved.
This was a good mystery, and there were enough clues, hints, and red herrings to keep you guessing the whole time.
However, the actual happenings feel a little contrived and made up, that it was a little hard to believe what the actual solution to the 'whodunnit' was.
It's still a great read though, so I do recommend it, but definitely one of Christie's weaker works.
This was a good mystery, and there were enough clues, hints, and red herrings to keep you guessing the whole time.
However, the actual happenings feel a little contrived and made up, that it was a little hard to believe what the actual solution to the 'whodunnit' was.
It's still a great read though, so I do recommend it, but definitely one of Christie's weaker works.
Despite reading a fair bit of Christie, this is my first Miss Marple. I can't say I'm impressed. The plot feels overly contrived, especially the lengths Christie goes to in order to manufacture the titular aspect (i.e. the body in the library). The fact that she needs to add a foreword explaining it says that there are problems with the concept.
For me, the biggest problem is that Miss Marple is barely in it. I'm not sure if this is typical or not for Miss Marple mysteries, but I found it annoying, especially in comparison to the Hercule Poirot stories. Poirot is central to the plot, leading the reader through the various discoveries and twists, and then POW, at the end, the grand reveal. In this, Miss Marple sits on the sidelines sipping tea with a smug look on her face because she solved the mystery half-way through the book, …
Despite reading a fair bit of Christie, this is my first Miss Marple. I can't say I'm impressed. The plot feels overly contrived, especially the lengths Christie goes to in order to manufacture the titular aspect (i.e. the body in the library). The fact that she needs to add a foreword explaining it says that there are problems with the concept.
For me, the biggest problem is that Miss Marple is barely in it. I'm not sure if this is typical or not for Miss Marple mysteries, but I found it annoying, especially in comparison to the Hercule Poirot stories. Poirot is central to the plot, leading the reader through the various discoveries and twists, and then POW, at the end, the grand reveal. In this, Miss Marple sits on the sidelines sipping tea with a smug look on her face because she solved the mystery half-way through the book, and she's waiting for you to catch up. As I said, annoying.
