I have just finished two Agatha Christie novels, one with Miss Marple and one with Mr. Poirot. Of course, mysteries abound when these two are around. I found these adorable Jane Marple and Hercule Poirot magnetic bookmarks on Etsy. They are perfect stocking stuffers for the Agatha Christie readers in your life. The bookmarks ship from Australia and I can’t wait to get these and some others I have ordered from BeyondThePages19’s Etsy Shop.
The Body In The Library
I have an adorable bookmark given to me by my daughter, Katie, that is perfect for reading paperbacks. It too can be found on Etsy It ships from the Ukraine. It too is another great gift idea.
The Body In The Library is Miss Marple #3. This was my first Miss Jane Marple book. I was surprised by how much work was done by police officers, and also a retired Scotland Yard investigator, with Miss Marple seeming like a secondary character at times…. but of course, only Miss Marple is able to figure out whodunnit.
The story opens when the dead body of a young girl, Ruby Keene, is found in the library of the very respectable Colonel and Mrs. Bantry. The Bantry’s have never seen the deceased before and have no idea why she would be at their home. Mrs. Bantry immediately calls her friend, Jane Marple to come to their home.
Ruby worked as a dancer at a local hotel. A wealthy widower, Jefferson Conway, who was crippled from the plane crash that killed his wife, son, and daughter, had taken a fancy to Ruby. He had announced his intention to legally adopt her, which would have a financial impact on the widower’s daughter-in-law and son-in-law, who were already beneficiaries. Soon another young girl’s body is found burned in a car. Now the question becomes is how the two murders are related.
Suspicion falls several characters: Ruby’s distant cousin, who is a dance and bridge hostess at the hotel; the handsome dance and tennis pro, a guest at the hotel who had been rebuffed by Ruby; a local resident who was a prop maker in the film industry and known for throwing and attending drunken parties; Colonel Bantry: and of course Jefferson’s son-in-law and daughter-in-law. The plot didn’t move as quickly as I would have preferred.
3.5 Stars.
Cat Among The Pigeons
Cat Among The Pigeons is Hercule Poirot novel #32. What was odd to me was that Poirot didn’t show up until the last third of the novel. Like Miss Marple, Poirot wasn’t a prominent figure in the book except, of course, he figures out whodunnit.
The novel starts at the beginning of the summer term when the students are returning to the prestigious Meadowbank girls school. The next chapter takes the reader to two months earlier when there is a coup in the fictional kingdom of Ramat. The Amir trusted his valuable jewels to his pilot. The pilot then hid the jewels in a tennis racquet belonging to his niece. A mystery person (the cat) in the next room sees the pilot putting the jewels in the racquet. The niece then takes the tennis racquet to Meadowbank school.
After the term starts, there is a murder of a teacher, then a kidnapping of a Princess, then a second teacher is murdered. One of the students sneaks out to find Hercule Poirot and asks him to help. One of the teachers then tries to blackmail the murderer and then she is murdered. Finally, when Poirot calls everyone together to reveal the plot, the murderer pulls out a gun and shoots a fourth person who dies soon thereafter.
With Poirot’s deft ability to find the cat among the pigeons, there is hope that Meadowbank will be able to overcome the poor reputation it received because of the murders and kidnapping.
5 stars.
And now for my Recipe For Readers Recommendation: Mystery Cookies
