Saturday, October 30, 2021

A Caribbean Mystery - Classic Mystery Review

Goodreads:  A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

My Rating: Loved It!
Source:   Purchased


Description: There is no rest or relaxation for Miss Marple. Agatha Christie's most appealing sleuth returns in this classic baffler of a vacation-turned-deadly.

Nephew Raymond West has given his favourite aunt a vacation at a beautiful resort in the Caribbean. While there she encounters an old wind-bag. One of his stories is about meeting a murderer. He has a snapshot. Suddenly he hesitates, and gets flustered. By the next morning he is dead, seemingly of natural causes. Miss Marple has doubts.

And well she should.

Genre: Mystery - Classic

Why I Picked This Book:  I'm reading all the Miss Marple books this year and this was the next one on my list.  

My Impression: While we follow Hercule Poirot around the globe Miss Marple pretty much stays put.  If she's not staying at her home in St. Mary Mead she is visiting a friend at their house in a small village.  She is never out of England.  Until this book.  Not only is Miss Marple not in England but she is completely on her own at a resort in the Caribbean.  Though she is recovering from a bout of poor health she is fine form and immediately tumbles into a murder investigation.

This one is a bit unusual as Miss Marple is completely on her own here.  Here usual friends and resources aren't around to lend a hand or an ear and she is very much aware that she is very much a fluttery old lady who no one will take seriously.  And this leads to the very best part of the story - the friendship that forms between Miss Marple and a very unlikely ally.  Those interactions made this book very much a delight and I so enjoyed this read.

The mystery is a solid one and even though we are coming into a period of time where I find Christie's books somewhat unreliable this is a solid and entertaining read.  

Would I Read More of this Series/Author?  Of course!  I only have 3 Miss Marple books left and I will be sorry to take a break from her for a bit.

Would I Recommend this Book?  Definitely!  Because Miss Marple is very much out of her element here this would also be a good one to start with if you have not met her before.

4 comments:

  1. You have such good experiences with Agatha Christie; wish I did.

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  2. This is one of my favorite Christie books! Have read it several times. There is another appearance of a character from this story in Christie's book Nemesis. Did you know? If not, have fun when you get to that one. :-)

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  3. Miss Marple is my favorite!

    Anne - Books of My Heart

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  4. Oh I love that she got out into the Caribbean and that she makes an interesting friendship.

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