The short story Tuesday Night Club introduced the world to Miss Jane Marple in1926. An elderly spinster, prim and fragile looking, Miss Marple was supposedly Agatha Christie’s favourite creation. The last novel featuring Miss Marple is Sleeping Murder which was published after Christie’s death. Miss Marple’s Final Cases is a collection of nine short stories, seven of which feature Miss Marple. The name of this book is a bit misleading, firstly because these cases actually occur somewhere in the middle of Marple’s detective career and secondly because two of the short stories in the book do not feature Miss Marple at all.
I’m a staunch fan of Miss Marple and all things Christie, but I must confess that the stories in this collection are not my favourites. Not that they’re bad, but some of them do seem a little rushed. In fact, I find this to be the case with all Marple short stories that I’ve read so far. There is something about the character that seems to warrant the more leisurely pace of a novel. Having said that, I did quite like Greenshaw’s Folly and The Case of The Caretaker. The later is faintly reminiscent of Endless Night, Christie’s suspense novel that did not feature any of her detectives.
As I mentioned, there are two stories in this collection that don’t feature Miss Marple. In fact, they are not detective/crime stories at all. I suppose they could be called supernatural stories. Robert Barnard, a crime writer and critic, said”... Christie did not have the stylistic resources to bring off [the supernatural stories] successfully." I disagree. Granted the outcome of the stories were somewhat predictable but Christie does create tension and foreboding in her own unique style.
If you’ve never read a Miss Marple before, I wouldn’t recommend starting with this book. It really doesn’t introduce the lady detective and her methods well enough. If however, you are a Miss Marple/Agatha Christie fan like me, definitely read Final Cases. It’s not Christie’s best work, but it’s still pretty darn good.
Aww, that's a shame. Still it least there were some good stories in there. I must admit I prefer Poirot over Miss Marple.
ReplyDeleteI've only read on Christie book - when I was in 7th grade. I didn't like it at the time. I wonder if I'd like her better now. Where would you start?
ReplyDeleteKaren Poirot is my favorite too.
ReplyDeleteAlison I would start with 'Mysterious Affair at Styles', the first Poirot book. Give it a go, I think you might like it better now.
I've always wanted to read Agatha Christie!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely the Mysterious Affair at Styles. Loved that book.
ReplyDeleteAnne do try. She's addictive.
ReplyDeleteKaren It was my first Christie book and it really got me hooked on her work.
It almost seems as if Miss Marple was just a character Christie wrote about which happened to become bigger than she intended.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.ManOfLaBook.com
Man of La Book it does seem that way. The first Miss Marple book reads like a collection featuring armchair detection rather than the character herself.
ReplyDeleteHello, che! Thank you for stopping by my blog. And it looks like I've found another blog I'd love to follow!:)
ReplyDeleteI've read a few Miss Marple stories, though I cannot remember if they were novels or short stories. It was so long ago, and I never was a Christie fan. I guess, it's mainly because I always preferred a lot of action in my crime stories. However, And Then There Were Non has always stood out in my mind as a brilliant mystery/thriller novel.
Thanks Risa. And Then There Were None is one of her most edge-of-the-seat thrillers.
ReplyDeleteI have also just read all of the Miss Marple short stories and really enjoyed them. Some are better than others, but ut us a fairly good place to start in dicsovering the tenacity of Marple and the way her brain works!
ReplyDeleteMiss Marple is a tenacious one, isn't she? I have her first book of shorts which I intend to read soon. Looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this. I definitely want to read everything by AC even the less than excellent works.
ReplyDeleteI love the Tuesday Night book, sorry you didn't feel the same. My fav characters are Tommy and Tuppence.
ReplyDeleteNan I feel the same. Even her less than excellent books are pretty good.
ReplyDeleteIrene I wouldn't say I didn't like Tuesday Night, I guess I just love the miss marple novels better. I loved the Tommy and Tuppence series, I wish she had written more of them.