Agatha Christie Reviews
Friday, April 06, 2007
A Caribbean Mystery
Miss Jane Marple - who traveled a lot in her "later" years - finds herself at the Caribbean resort of Saint Honore, courtesy of her nephew Raymond West. She loves the beautiful climate, the wonderful warmth, the attentive service. But she's bored.
She thinks it's the sameness of the weather and scenery, but we know better. She misses her coterie of gossipers, the "tea and scandal at four-thirty", the discussions of interesting events in and around St. Mary Mead. With Agatha Christie directing matters, though, "Aunt Jane" won't be bored much longer.
It begins with Major Palgrave, a fellow guest, asking if Miss Marple would like to see the photograph of a murderer. Just as he's about to hand it over, the Major's face changes, he hurriedly shoves the snapshot back into his wallet, and begins to talk loudly of something else.
A little too late for the good Major, however. Next day, he's found dead, apparently of natural causes. Miss Marple isn't quite sure about that, and begins a little investigation of her own.
As far as the plot goes, it's average Christie. Not top form, not bad, just somewhere inbetween. The real meat of the book is watching Miss Marple, cut off from her usual helpmeets, poking around and getting to the truth of the matter.
She is amazingly spry here, and quite different from the Miss Marple of The Mirror Cracked five years earlier. There is no mention of frailty. She lives self-sufficiently in her own bungalow, no attendant needed.
Further, she tells blatant lies, performs stealth missions, and bullies an irascible millionaire, Jason Rafiel, into becoming her assistant. Indeed, she so gains his respect that he will later call on her services in Nemesis.
Overall, this is a great book for Miss Marple fans (and I am very much one of those). She's in top form, and it's a joy to watch her in action. For all who love "Aunt Jane", this one is not to be missed.
She thinks it's the sameness of the weather and scenery, but we know better. She misses her coterie of gossipers, the "tea and scandal at four-thirty", the discussions of interesting events in and around St. Mary Mead. With Agatha Christie directing matters, though, "Aunt Jane" won't be bored much longer.
It begins with Major Palgrave, a fellow guest, asking if Miss Marple would like to see the photograph of a murderer. Just as he's about to hand it over, the Major's face changes, he hurriedly shoves the snapshot back into his wallet, and begins to talk loudly of something else.
A little too late for the good Major, however. Next day, he's found dead, apparently of natural causes. Miss Marple isn't quite sure about that, and begins a little investigation of her own.
As far as the plot goes, it's average Christie. Not top form, not bad, just somewhere inbetween. The real meat of the book is watching Miss Marple, cut off from her usual helpmeets, poking around and getting to the truth of the matter.
She is amazingly spry here, and quite different from the Miss Marple of The Mirror Cracked five years earlier. There is no mention of frailty. She lives self-sufficiently in her own bungalow, no attendant needed.
Further, she tells blatant lies, performs stealth missions, and bullies an irascible millionaire, Jason Rafiel, into becoming her assistant. Indeed, she so gains his respect that he will later call on her services in Nemesis.
Overall, this is a great book for Miss Marple fans (and I am very much one of those). She's in top form, and it's a joy to watch her in action. For all who love "Aunt Jane", this one is not to be missed.
posted by Nightowl, 7:20 PM
