By Agatha Christie; Naomi Alderman; Leigh Bardugo; Alyssa Cole; Lucy Foley; Elly Griffiths; Natalie Haynes; Jean Kwok; Val McDermid; Karen M. McManus; Dreda Say Mitchell, Kate Mosse; Ruth Ware
From the moment I saw the cover of Marple: Twelve New Mysteries, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.
These are the first Miss Marple stories authorized by Agatha Christie’s estate since 1976 when Sleeping Murder was published posthumously – the year Dame Agatha died.
Readers first met Jane Marple in the 1927 short story The Tuesday Night Club followed by the novel Murder at the Vicarage in 1930. We’ve missed her.
The authors of these new short stories captured the voice and the knowing glint in the eye of the beloved spinster crime-solver bringing us back to familiar characters and settings.
In the first story, Evil in Small Places, author Lucy Foley nails it, placing St. Mary Meade’s own Miss Marple at the home of a school friend in another village, sitting by the fire knitting a jumper (sweater) for her nephew Raymond, before murder most foul occurs.
It wasn’t until the second story, Val McDermid’s The Second Murder at the Vicarage that I realized Miss Marple’s voice in my head was actually that of Geraldine McEwen, the late actor who played her in a dozen films I’ve watched countless times on PBS, Acorn and BritBox.
In The Murdering Sort by Karen M. McManus, I enjoyed meeting Jane Marple’s great-great niece Nicola and wonder if enough detecting genes run in the family for more mysteries to solve.
I’m not sure if I have a favorite of the collection but Elly Griffiths’ Murder at Villa Rosa would be in the running. It was interesting to see Jane Marple have an impact on the story set on the Amalfi Coast without her being the protagonist.
These tales also find her in the English countryside, London, New York, Cape Cod, on a cruise ship to Hong Kong, all courtesy of her novelist nephew Raymond West. She always did get around.
While new books by my favorite authors are usually devoured, this Marple edition was savored.
I highly recommend Marple: Twelve New Mysteries. In fact, it would be a perfect holiday gift for any Christie fan on your list – one story for each of the 12 days of Christmas.
I received a free egalley courtesy of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins, through NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.
These are the first Miss Marple stories authorized by Agatha Christie’s estate since 1976 when Sleeping Murder was published posthumously – the year Dame Agatha died.
Readers first met Jane Marple in the 1927 short story The Tuesday Night Club followed by the novel Murder at the Vicarage in 1930. We’ve missed her.
The authors of these new short stories captured the voice and the knowing glint in the eye of the beloved spinster crime-solver bringing us back to familiar characters and settings.
In the first story, Evil in Small Places, author Lucy Foley nails it, placing St. Mary Meade’s own Miss Marple at the home of a school friend in another village, sitting by the fire knitting a jumper (sweater) for her nephew Raymond, before murder most foul occurs.
It wasn’t until the second story, Val McDermid’s The Second Murder at the Vicarage that I realized Miss Marple’s voice in my head was actually that of Geraldine McEwen, the late actor who played her in a dozen films I’ve watched countless times on PBS, Acorn and BritBox.
In The Murdering Sort by Karen M. McManus, I enjoyed meeting Jane Marple’s great-great niece Nicola and wonder if enough detecting genes run in the family for more mysteries to solve.
I’m not sure if I have a favorite of the collection but Elly Griffiths’ Murder at Villa Rosa would be in the running. It was interesting to see Jane Marple have an impact on the story set on the Amalfi Coast without her being the protagonist.
These tales also find her in the English countryside, London, New York, Cape Cod, on a cruise ship to Hong Kong, all courtesy of her novelist nephew Raymond West. She always did get around.
While new books by my favorite authors are usually devoured, this Marple edition was savored.
I highly recommend Marple: Twelve New Mysteries. In fact, it would be a perfect holiday gift for any Christie fan on your list – one story for each of the 12 days of Christmas.
I received a free egalley courtesy of William Morrow, a division of Harper Collins, through NetGalley. This review is fair and impartial.
Order online or buy now at your favorite independent bookstore. Mine is Sellers Books and Art in Jim Thorpe, PA.