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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
È l'ultimo romanzo scritto da Agatha Christie con Miss Marple come protagonista. Non sto rispettando l'ordine cronologico nella lettura e non sapevo che questa storia facesse riferimento ad un personaggio presente in "Miss Marple nei Caraibi", che non ho ancora letto. Comunque la trama è indipendente e me la sono goduta lo stesso.
Alcune delle considerazioni sulla natura umana, elaborate dalla nostra Jane Marple, sono obsolete, ma quello era il contesto.
Continuo a preferire Poirot. Però Miss Marple mi rilassa e adoro le atmosfere in cui si muove.
Alcune delle considerazioni sulla natura umana, elaborate dalla nostra Jane Marple, sono obsolete, ma quello era il contesto.
Continuo a preferire Poirot. Però Miss Marple mi rilassa e adoro le atmosfere in cui si muove.
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Agatha Christie didn’t write sequels to her novels either Miss Marple or Poirot, and this is one book I hadn’t read before so I hadn’t known what to expect with Nemesis but this is as close as Christie got to a sequel and would be the last Miss Marple book Christie would write.
Nemesis reintroduces us to a character we had encountered in A Caribbean Mystery, Jason Raffiel, a retired Army Major who had been extremely successful in business, as the way Christie describes him? He was unwilling to give up control even when he was too sick to continue and admired Jane Marple’s mind and ability to read people. Sadly, by the time of Nemesis, Jason Raffiel has passed away and Miss Marple is drawn into a perplexing mystery that feels more complicated and intricate than previous ones in the series. A letter from Jason Raffiel is given to Miss Marple when she attends a meeting with his solicitors is the first step in this adventure and after learning that he proposes to bequeath her the sum of £20,000 (£176,047.96 today *insert jaw drop) if she would spend a year solving the mystery - of which he gives no further information on? The mystery begins - and the codename is one uttered during a conversation that occurred when they had both holidayed in St Honoré.
Nemesis (the goddess who personified retribution for the sin of hubris: arrogance before the gods}.
Never has a name suited Jane Marple so well as this one does and she of course, lives up to the name because Jane Marple is always the winner in her own stories.
I found this story to be far darker than the others, and whilst I’m not sure why I haven’t previously read it - it was indeed refreshing to go into a mystery and not know the outcome as I have previously with the series.
The main storyline has us journeying along with Jane as she goes on a bus tour of various ‘Famous Houses and Gardens’ which has been arranged by the late Mr Raffiel. I love that we hear Jane’s inner monologue as she attempts to work out why she’s been told to go on this tour, and who of the many other tour attendees may be the one(s) Raffiel wanted her to investigate.
Her confusion comes to an end when an accident occurs and then things begin to unravel and the formerly normal and quite boring fellow tour members are either witnesses or perpetrators. As Jane Marple, and I believe it is a saying, normal people may surprise you - and you shouldn’t always take what they tell you at face value. The residents of the house the tour has stopped at seemed like they had stepped out of a Dickensian novel, they’re slightly strange, somewhat introverted and gave me an overwhelming feeling that they’re far too used to keeping secrets and being left to their own devices. I also like how Agatha Christie can make people seem like they have nothing in common, and you’re wondering just how they feel important to the mystery, victim etcetera. What is clever is how Jason Raffiel is never too far away from the story even after his death and Jane continues to receive letters from her acquaintance even as she travels.
The mystery itself, and murder are very complicated and I really appreciated just how complex it was in Nemesis. It is a lot darker than others, (and despite it being older than me; I’m not telling spoilers) but I didn't want to put the book down. I was held captive by the mystery and wondering just which twist would come next - I really had no idea how the story would go and had no suspects. Christie, as I have said before, was a master at storytelling and Nemesis was no exception. I did think it was interesting however, how we can see how her views of the world had clearly influenced her writing as she reached the end of her life - Christie would pass away four years after this book. For example, the gender roles are something Jane struggles with because she’s from a different era and a little bit of a fish out of water. I was also extremely infuriated with the ending of this novel, I didn’t recognise the way Jane Marple reacts to something and it seemed very out of character for her. The world-building is so good, and I could imagine the gardens she talks about as being similar to ones I visited that the National Trust protects, and I think anyone who knows these kinds of stately homes would agree when you read the book.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Miss Marple mystery - Miss Marple is sent on a trip at the request of an old friend who has recently passed away, to try to find out the truth behind the murder of a young woman. This was quite slow-paced, with a lot of repeated information, but enjoyed the ending
uuuh i hated that one.
this is where i promise i will never again read any reviews before i finish reading a novel. some of the goodreads reviews made such good points about the slut shaming in this installment, i got angry and thus went with anger into that particularly icky dialogue and then had to go google and see if there was more about it and tadaaa - i spoiled myself by accident. from that point onwards it was so unbeatable, i listened to it on 1.5 speed (which i reserve for books i hate deeply) and it was nevertheless a miracle that i got through.
oh yes, the slut shaming in this one. i don't think i have ever encountered anything that blatantly misogynist. stack the homophobia and that old trope of an older women seducing a straight young girl on top and there you have it: a novel written by a once brilliant but also very obviously bitter old woman, sho thought feminism was a menace.
also, of course the older lesbian murders three people out of her "mislead love", but how could anyone be so cruel and think that a man who has raped and assaulted several women could kill his girlfriend? who also was just such a loose girl!!!1!
gross. grossgrossgross. and this was written in 1971. i need a christie-break for sure.
this is where i promise i will never again read any reviews before i finish reading a novel. some of the goodreads reviews made such good points about the slut shaming in this installment, i got angry and thus went with anger into that particularly icky dialogue and then had to go google and see if there was more about it and tadaaa - i spoiled myself by accident. from that point onwards it was so unbeatable, i listened to it on 1.5 speed (which i reserve for books i hate deeply) and it was nevertheless a miracle that i got through.
oh yes, the slut shaming in this one. i don't think i have ever encountered anything that blatantly misogynist. stack the homophobia and that old trope of an older women seducing a straight young girl on top and there you have it: a novel written by a once brilliant but also very obviously bitter old woman, sho thought feminism was a menace.
also, of course the older lesbian murders three people out of her "mislead love", but how could anyone be so cruel and think that a man who has raped and assaulted several women could kill his girlfriend? who also was just such a loose girl!!!1!
gross. grossgrossgross. and this was written in 1971. i need a christie-break for sure.
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not as complex as some of Christie's work but an interesting little mystery. Some of the interview came from working out what mystery Miss Marple needed to solve, as much as the resolution.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Rape
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix