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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I have been really enjoying reading the Miss Marple series but this book was a complete disappointment. We are following our narrator Jerry Barton who has moved to the country with his sister to recuperate from an accident. His doctor told him that he needed to relax, do nothing, and immerse himself in country life. The two of them take that to heart and begin to learn the ins and outs of the small town they have moved to. Soon they are the recipients of an anonymous letter that is a very cruel. Other people in the town have also been receiving letters that claim to know a deep dark secrets of the recipients. There is a murder and we are trying to discover who is responsible for the letters. I personally did not like the narrator or his sister, connect with them, the side characters also were not interesting, and Miss Marple is barely in the story at all. I will be continuing on in the series but I sincerely hope that the other books have Miss Marple in it a lot more.
Now that I think about this this might be more of a one star book for me. I need to think on it some more
Now that I think about this this might be more of a one star book for me. I need to think on it some more
I am a sucker for a good romance and murder
Unfortunately I could figure out the ending but! It was cleverly done
Tw: murder, violence, emotional abuse
Unfortunately I could figure out the ending but! It was cleverly done
Tw: murder, violence, emotional abuse
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-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
3 Stars
Good little mystery, but Miss Marple did not show up until almost the end, solving the mystery. Humpf.
Good little mystery, but Miss Marple did not show up until almost the end, solving the mystery. Humpf.
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Another great mystery by Agatha, I didn't see the who did it, but enjoyed the read.
The unfortunate fact about Agatha Christie is that she was a product of her time. Her books often show off the now dated mindset of her era when it comes to women and POC. More often than not, it's a minor element of the story or an offhand comment from a certain character. They make you wince or roll your eyes, but you can overlook them because you're reading something written decades ago when people didn't know better.
Occasionally, though, one of her novels will use these dated ideas as a major plot point. Such was the case here and it makes it so that I don't really recommend this one. It's a decent read and I enjoyed it, but I don't think it's told in a way that most modern readers would be able to figure out what happened before the solution is given. The only way you can solve it is if you make a bunch of assumptions based on gender and I'm not a fan of that.
Also, while this is labeled a "Miss Marple" mystery, that's not strictly true. The main character of the piece is not Miss Marple, it's a young man named Jerry and Miss Marple doesn't show up until the last 30 pages or so. Even then, she's only in a handful of scenes. I don't think this was a bad thing as I liked Jerry's character, but if you're a Miss Marple fan, don't pick this up expecting a book about her.
In spite of my criticisms, I won't tell you to avoid this one. The mystery at its heart is a good one and I liked seeing everything play out, I'm just not going to recommend this to anyone and I don't see myself ever reading it again. I prefer my mysteries to be ones with new clues on every page, not one that barely gives any clues and relies on dated notions to point out the "obvious" conclusion that you've missed this whole time.
Occasionally, though, one of her novels will use these dated ideas as a major plot point. Such was the case here and it makes it so that I don't really recommend this one. It's a decent read and I enjoyed it, but I don't think it's told in a way that most modern readers would be able to figure out what happened before the solution is given. The only way you can solve it is if you make a bunch of assumptions based on gender and I'm not a fan of that.
Also, while this is labeled a "Miss Marple" mystery, that's not strictly true. The main character of the piece is not Miss Marple, it's a young man named Jerry and Miss Marple doesn't show up until the last 30 pages or so. Even then, she's only in a handful of scenes. I don't think this was a bad thing as I liked Jerry's character, but if you're a Miss Marple fan, don't pick this up expecting a book about her.
In spite of my criticisms, I won't tell you to avoid this one. The mystery at its heart is a good one and I liked seeing everything play out, I'm just not going to recommend this to anyone and I don't see myself ever reading it again. I prefer my mysteries to be ones with new clues on every page, not one that barely gives any clues and relies on dated notions to point out the "obvious" conclusion that you've missed this whole time.