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9th out of 659 books
—
633 voters
Murder at the Vicarage (Miss Marple #1)
"Murder at the Vicarage" marks the debut of Agatha Christie's unflappable and much beloved female detective, Miss Jane Marple. With her gift for sniffing out the malevolent side of human nature, Miss Marple is led on her first case to a crime scene at the local vicarage. Colonel Protheroe, the magistrate whom everyone in town hates, has been shot through the head. No one h...more
Hardcover, 288 pages
Published
September 1st 2006
by Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers
(first published 1930)
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One of Christie’s best. It is told in the first person by Len Clement, Vicar of Saint Mary Mead. He and his much younger wife, Griselda, are a charming couple. Griselda is irritating, laughs when she should be sober, is hopeless regarding cooking and household management, and is altogether an unsuitable wife for a vicar. Yet he absolutely adores her. I wish that Christie had written more of them. (My Christie encyclopedia says that Griselda appears, much older and a widow, in What Mrs. McGillicu...more
3.5 stars
First of the Miss Marple mysteries, and I liked it a lot. The small-town setting of St. Mary Mead was very entertaining, especially since it came with a cast full of gossiping old ladies, amiable townspeople and some slightly suspicious characters with their own little secrets (served up as a side dish of smaller mysteries to the main murder mystery). With murder only the beginning of all the happenings in this village, its calm and quiet atmosphere turns out to be only appearances afte...more
First of the Miss Marple mysteries, and I liked it a lot. The small-town setting of St. Mary Mead was very entertaining, especially since it came with a cast full of gossiping old ladies, amiable townspeople and some slightly suspicious characters with their own little secrets (served up as a side dish of smaller mysteries to the main murder mystery). With murder only the beginning of all the happenings in this village, its calm and quiet atmosphere turns out to be only appearances afte...more
تعتبر عادية بالنسبة لروايات أغاثا الأخرى
مقتطفات :
ص44 : ترددت ، ثم قررت الكلام فقلت : لقد كنت أفكر بأنني عندما يأتي أجلي سيؤسفني ألا يكون لدي من عذر أبذله ساعة الحساب إلا العدالة ، لأن ذلك قد يعني أنه لن يكون لي من جزاء إلا العدالة وحدها
ص110 : و لكنها طريقة سليمة تماما في الوصول إلى الحقيقة ( أن تتذكر شيئا من شئيئ مختلف تماما ) إنها في الواقع ما يسميه الناس حدسا و يختلفون فيه كل هذا الاختلاف ، إن الحدس أشبه بقراءة كلمة دون الاضطرار إلى تهجئتها بصوت عال ، لا يمكن للطفل أن يقوم بذلك لأن خبرته قليل...more
مقتطفات :
ص44 : ترددت ، ثم قررت الكلام فقلت : لقد كنت أفكر بأنني عندما يأتي أجلي سيؤسفني ألا يكون لدي من عذر أبذله ساعة الحساب إلا العدالة ، لأن ذلك قد يعني أنه لن يكون لي من جزاء إلا العدالة وحدها
ص110 : و لكنها طريقة سليمة تماما في الوصول إلى الحقيقة ( أن تتذكر شيئا من شئيئ مختلف تماما ) إنها في الواقع ما يسميه الناس حدسا و يختلفون فيه كل هذا الاختلاف ، إن الحدس أشبه بقراءة كلمة دون الاضطرار إلى تهجئتها بصوت عال ، لا يمكن للطفل أن يقوم بذلك لأن خبرته قليل...more
This book was great. I just couldnt guess the murderer till the very end. I always thought it was some other person. This was my first Miss 'Jane' Marple book and I enjoyed it. Pretty convoluted plot.
But my biggest complaint from the book is that: most of the observations and inferences are drawn by the Vicar and there is very less involvement of Miss Marple in the case, except at the very end.
Updated: I watched the old TV series and it wasn't good. They left out lot of details and it was diffi...more
But my biggest complaint from the book is that: most of the observations and inferences are drawn by the Vicar and there is very less involvement of Miss Marple in the case, except at the very end.
Updated: I watched the old TV series and it wasn't good. They left out lot of details and it was diffi...more
I'm starting a reread of all of the Miss Marple books. It's been years ... make that decades ... since I've read them. I'm so looking forward to time with one of my very favorite arm chair detectives!
"Really Miss Marple is rather a dear..." That about sums it up for me. I so enjoyed reading this again and it has been so very many years that the mystery was really a mystery again. I believe The Body In The Library is next.
"Really Miss Marple is rather a dear..." That about sums it up for me. I so enjoyed reading this again and it has been so very many years that the mystery was really a mystery again. I believe The Body In The Library is next.
Nov 24, 2008
Phayvanh
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Everyone
Recommended to Phayvanh by:
library book sale
After reading a couple Miss Marple mysteries, and suffering all those hints as to her background, I decided the first introduction to the lady would be most appropriate.
But this book doesn't offer much more than any of the other stories, to Miss Marple's backstory. The genius of this novel is our narrator, the Vicar of St. Mary Mead. He is as transparent and honest a storyteller as one ever wants (what more could you expect from a parson?), in rendering the townsfolk in true color, in reflecting...more
But this book doesn't offer much more than any of the other stories, to Miss Marple's backstory. The genius of this novel is our narrator, the Vicar of St. Mary Mead. He is as transparent and honest a storyteller as one ever wants (what more could you expect from a parson?), in rendering the townsfolk in true color, in reflecting...more
This was my first Miss Marple mystery and indeed my first Christie novel in a long while. Narrated by Vicar Len Clement in St Mary Mead, the mystery surrounds the murder of Colonel Protheroe in the vicar's study. Lots of people are found to dislike the colonel, and many have motives for killing him. Every suspect seems to have something to hide, but not every secret has anything to do with the murder.
I enjoyed Miss Marple's character. She is one of several gossiping ladies in the village, yet sh...more
I enjoyed Miss Marple's character. She is one of several gossiping ladies in the village, yet sh...more
The Queen Of Crime never fails me.
While reading a crime novel, I always yearn for some points,
1. Numerous characters.
2. Abundance of suspects.
3. Plenty of clues.
4. An ending with a delicious twist.
And there are points which I absolutely loathe, one of them being page long descriptions of objects and events which are not remotely related to the crime.
So, when it comes to Agatha Christie I am always presented with a novel which has plenty of characters, numerous suspects and a memorable twist to e...more
While reading a crime novel, I always yearn for some points,
1. Numerous characters.
2. Abundance of suspects.
3. Plenty of clues.
4. An ending with a delicious twist.
And there are points which I absolutely loathe, one of them being page long descriptions of objects and events which are not remotely related to the crime.
So, when it comes to Agatha Christie I am always presented with a novel which has plenty of characters, numerous suspects and a memorable twist to e...more
Wahrhaft ein Glück, dass der Tote im Arbeitszimmer von Pfarrer Clement gefunden wurde, denn der angesehene Kirchenmann wird vom geschwätzigen Dorf selbstverständlich von jeder möglichen Schuld freigesprochen. Aber an Verdächtigen mangelt es ansonsten nicht. Und so wird Clement zur Anlaufstelle für Polizei, Hobbydetektive, Schwatznasen und Tratschtanten des Dorfs; als Pfarrer ist er ohnehin ständig bei seinen Schäfchen und durch den tragischen Fall direkt in seinem Haus hat er quasi ein natürlich...more
I had never read anything by Agatha Christie until this book. I had heard of the “Miss Marple” mysteries, and I assumed that these stories would be narrated by Miss Marple herself. I surprised to find that the story is narrated instead by the vicar of St. Mary Mead. I felt the same way reading this book as I feel watching reruns of “Keeping up Appearances” or “Are You Being Served Again?” on BBC America. There is so much of the charm of the British village where everyone goes to the same church,...more
Segundo libro leído de Agatha Christie y de Miss Marple.
El libro anterior dejo tan buena impresión en mí, que lo que quise es continuar con el mismo personaje, un personaje tan querido por mi madre.
En este primer libro de la serie nos encontramos con una Miss Marple de probablemente 40 o 50 años. Sus facultades físicas todavía no están tan mermadas y se puede decir que saca partido de ellas con bastante brío.
Me encantó verla en estos momentos tan cuidadosa de su jardín y con sus binoculares para...more
El libro anterior dejo tan buena impresión en mí, que lo que quise es continuar con el mismo personaje, un personaje tan querido por mi madre.
En este primer libro de la serie nos encontramos con una Miss Marple de probablemente 40 o 50 años. Sus facultades físicas todavía no están tan mermadas y se puede decir que saca partido de ellas con bastante brío.
Me encantó verla en estos momentos tan cuidadosa de su jardín y con sus binoculares para...more
4 1/2 stars.
I have to admit, I couldn't figure it out until Miss Marple solved the crime. This is my first Miss Marple book, and my second book by Agatha Christie (the other was And Then There Were None) - I enjoyed this one more). It took me a few chapters to get into, but once involved, I found myself picking this up again and again. The narrator, the Vicar, was observant and transparent for the most part. The side characters were humorous, and the setting felt authentic. My only complaint is...more
I have to admit, I couldn't figure it out until Miss Marple solved the crime. This is my first Miss Marple book, and my second book by Agatha Christie (the other was And Then There Were None) - I enjoyed this one more). It took me a few chapters to get into, but once involved, I found myself picking this up again and again. The narrator, the Vicar, was observant and transparent for the most part. The side characters were humorous, and the setting felt authentic. My only complaint is...more
Date: October 1930
Detectives: Miss Marple
Preceded by: Partners in Crime - Short Stories (1929)
Followed by: The Mysterious Mr. Quin - Short Stories (1930)
Trivia: This is Miss Marple's first mystery.
Plot Summary:
“Anyone who murdered Colonel Protheroe,” declared the parson, brandishing a carving knife above a joint of roast beef, “would be doing the world at large a favor!”
It was a careless remark for a man of the cloth. And one which was to come back and haunt the clergyman just a few hours later—...more
Detectives: Miss Marple
Preceded by: Partners in Crime - Short Stories (1929)
Followed by: The Mysterious Mr. Quin - Short Stories (1930)
Trivia: This is Miss Marple's first mystery.
Plot Summary:
“Anyone who murdered Colonel Protheroe,” declared the parson, brandishing a carving knife above a joint of roast beef, “would be doing the world at large a favor!”
It was a careless remark for a man of the cloth. And one which was to come back and haunt the clergyman just a few hours later—...more
Christie is still a master of the whodunit, but I prefer Poirot. This was my first Marple novel, discounting an earlier attempt at a different one (I forget which) that ended a few pages in. As usual, the plotting, characters, and pacing are superb, but I missed Poirot's flair. Miss Marple seemed like such a tame sleuth by comparison, sitting around waiting for others to do her detective work and piecing her theories together based on every juicy scrap of gossip she hears. Perhaps it was because...more
Audio book performed by James Saxon
3.5***
This charming cozy introduced Miss Jane Marple, unflappable, curious and observant resident of St. Mary Mead. When Colonel Lucius Protheroe is found in the vicar’s study with a bullet in his head there are plenty of suspects. Still, Inspector Slack is at a loss – there do not appear to be any clues, almost everyone has an airtight alibi, and no one heard the shot. But Miss Marple has been reading some of those American detective novels and she has a few i...more
3.5***
This charming cozy introduced Miss Jane Marple, unflappable, curious and observant resident of St. Mary Mead. When Colonel Lucius Protheroe is found in the vicar’s study with a bullet in his head there are plenty of suspects. Still, Inspector Slack is at a loss – there do not appear to be any clues, almost everyone has an airtight alibi, and no one heard the shot. But Miss Marple has been reading some of those American detective novels and she has a few i...more
With all the suppositions, concern for the souls, and gossipy renditions projected over the telephones, back gates, and parlor teas, you'd think there would be no more mysteries to be solved in St. Mary Mead, the English village home of Jane Marple!
You'd be wrong, for in the study of Vicar Leonard Clement, slumped on the desk is the dead body of Colonel Protheroe, shot through the back of the head. Two people confess, but their willing sacrifices only prove that all are suspects.
The Vicar is bot...more
You'd be wrong, for in the study of Vicar Leonard Clement, slumped on the desk is the dead body of Colonel Protheroe, shot through the back of the head. Two people confess, but their willing sacrifices only prove that all are suspects.
The Vicar is bot...more
Murder at the Vicarage is my favorite Agatha Christie book, and I am a huge Agatha Christie fan. I have read all her books and stories. Murder at the Vicarage is certainly not her most clever mystery and the reveal is not particurly surprising. However, the narrator of this book, Leonard Clement, Vicar of St Mary Mead and his much younger wife, Griselda, are so charming and funny that they make the story extremely enjoyable. One of the primary criticisms of Agatha Christie is that she does not f...more
Agatha Christie can always draw me in - even if I have a cold or am very tired. One reason is that she always tells you what's going on. Here is a tea party in the vicarage. The Vicar has a very young wife. They are gossiping about someone else.
'Disgusting, I call it,' continued Miss Hartnell, with her usual tactlessness. 'The man must be at least twenty-five years older than she is.'
Three female voices rose at once making disconected remarks about the Choir Boys' Outing, the regrettable inciden...more
'Disgusting, I call it,' continued Miss Hartnell, with her usual tactlessness. 'The man must be at least twenty-five years older than she is.'
Three female voices rose at once making disconected remarks about the Choir Boys' Outing, the regrettable inciden...more
Murder at the Vicarage is the first book by Agatha Christie to feature Miss Jane Marple. It is narrated by the Vicar of St. Mary Mead who finds the dead body of Colonel Protheroe in his study. Colonel Protheroe was despised by many people in the small town so there are many suspects in the case. Soon after the body is discovered two people confess to the crime and it is up to Miss Marple and the Vicar to solve the mystery of who really committed the crime.
I have not read an Agatha Christie myste...more
I have not read an Agatha Christie myste...more
I bonded with Jane Marple when I was about 9. It was summer vacation, I found the book What Mrs McGillicudy Saw, and was hooked. Its not because the book was somehow forbidden (books weren't - we read what we wanted to), but it was such a great puzzle and Miss Marple was so wonderful. I had no idea that Murder at the Vicarage was 'Miss Marple #1' (its funny when books are sequelized later), and the point of reading it this time was that it was a venture into e-books.
Christie has wonderfully comf...more
Christie has wonderfully comf...more
I've been a fan of the character of Mrs Marple since I was a kid and was introduced to Margaret Rutherford playing her in the movies. Since then I've read a couple of the actual novels and always meant to read more of them. Being that this is the first one to introduce Mrs. Marple and I think was free I could hardly not get it.
Mrs Marple reminds me of elderly Columbo. She is dismissed by most people for her age and even the ones who realize she is rather observant class her as a busy body. I lov...more
Mrs Marple reminds me of elderly Columbo. She is dismissed by most people for her age and even the ones who realize she is rather observant class her as a busy body. I lov...more
Lies. Passion. Theft. Blackmail. Murder. Just another day in a small village. Agatha Christie introduces elderly sleuth Miss Jane Marple with a tart and pessimistic novel, although presenting a breath-taking mystery and an interesting view of small-town life.
The town tyrant, Col. Protheroe, is murdered in the Vicar's study and there are not one, but two confessions in quick succession. When they are both disproved, the Vicar tries to identify which of seven suspects remaining wanted to do him in...more
The town tyrant, Col. Protheroe, is murdered in the Vicar's study and there are not one, but two confessions in quick succession. When they are both disproved, the Vicar tries to identify which of seven suspects remaining wanted to do him in...more
First a technical note: I bought this book for the Kindle and the attached illustrations came through (unlike the free version of The Mystery at Styles). So that's that questions answered. :)
Moving onto the book now... This is the very first Miss Marple novel but well into Christie's writing career. There's definitely a difference. Just in matter of scope, Christie juggles far more characters and sub-plots and blind alleys than in her first book. I also felt like there was more confidence in her...more
Moving onto the book now... This is the very first Miss Marple novel but well into Christie's writing career. There's definitely a difference. Just in matter of scope, Christie juggles far more characters and sub-plots and blind alleys than in her first book. I also felt like there was more confidence in her...more
This was the first mystery entry on the Ultimate Reading List. I haven't read Agatha Christie in years and I can only conclude it's because I used to have a lot more time on my hands
We meet the Vicar and his much younger wife, Griselda. (Really). The village is your typical cozy English village with an autocratic colonel, a fairly inept police department, and many meddling old lady. The main meddler here turns out to be Jane Marple in her first appearance in a Christie book. The autocratic colon...more
We meet the Vicar and his much younger wife, Griselda. (Really). The village is your typical cozy English village with an autocratic colonel, a fairly inept police department, and many meddling old lady. The main meddler here turns out to be Jane Marple in her first appearance in a Christie book. The autocratic colon...more
The first novel to feature Miss Jane Marple is by definition a classic! Christie introduces her cleverly camouflaged among a group of gossipy elderly ladies whom the Vicar's wife dreads having to tea. Only gradually does she emerge as far sharper than her peers, with an unerring insight into human nature. It is wonderful to see her in her native habitat, St. Mary Mead, discovering for the first time that the skills she uses to solve domestic mysteries (the missing gill of picked shrimps!) work f...more
What can I say? Another keep-you-on-your-toes mystery.
The characters mess with the head. The clues and ‘Peculiar Things’ clarify and bewilder. And the story certainly shows the aggravations of finding oneself stuck in a small, cozy village that has just suddenly borne out its first murder in a long, long while.
Smack in the middle is the village’s highly likeable, dryly humorous, and long-suffering vicar who has the inconvenience of finding the village’s least favorite member slumped dead in hi...more
The characters mess with the head. The clues and ‘Peculiar Things’ clarify and bewilder. And the story certainly shows the aggravations of finding oneself stuck in a small, cozy village that has just suddenly borne out its first murder in a long, long while.
Smack in the middle is the village’s highly likeable, dryly humorous, and long-suffering vicar who has the inconvenience of finding the village’s least favorite member slumped dead in hi...more
This is another Miss Marple mystery, however it is beyond me why it is known after her because she is barely in the book. The story is narrated by vicar of St. Mary Mead, who is learning as the book progresses that the people are unpredictable and that they have a complex nature. I suppose its named after her because she is the one that solves the murder at the end.
Vicar, Miss Maple and the police try to solve the murder of Colonel Protheroe, a man who is disliked by everyone in the village. Wh...more
Vicar, Miss Maple and the police try to solve the murder of Colonel Protheroe, a man who is disliked by everyone in the village. Wh...more
This is another Miss Marple mystery, however it is beyond me why it is known after her because she is barely in the book. The story is narrated by vicar of St. Mary Mead, who is learning as the book progresses that the people are unpredictable and that they have a complex nature. I suppose its named after her because she is the one that solves the murder at the end.
Vicar, Miss Maple and the police try to solve the murder of Colonel Protheroe, a man who is disliked by everyone in the village. Wh...more
Vicar, Miss Maple and the police try to solve the murder of Colonel Protheroe, a man who is disliked by everyone in the village. Wh...more
Miss Marple is my favorite of all Ms. Christie's detectives. Although Miss Marple appeared in two short stories published in magazines in 1927, this is the first novel in which Miss Marple is introduced. In this book she is not necessarily well liked by everyone. She's considered a busy-body and she thinks the worst of people. Here are some of the descriptions of Miss Marple taken from Murder at the Vicarage:
*Miss Marple is a white-haired old lady with a gentle, appealing manner.
*Miss Marple alw...more
*Miss Marple is a white-haired old lady with a gentle, appealing manner.
*Miss Marple alw...more
Mais uma vez, Christie desenvolve nesta obra uma estória de mistério e suspense extremamente intrigante. Contudo, desta vez o investigador é Miss Marple, uma velhinha amorosa e aparentemente inofensiva. Porquê “aparentemente”? Porque Miss Marple é, na verdade, uma mulher perspicaz e inteligente, que dificilmente se deixa enganar. Esta é sem dúvida uma das minhas personagens favoritas no universo de Christie, pois Miss Marple consegue ser encantadora e dissimulada ao mesmo tempo.
O criminoso, ao c...more
O criminoso, ao c...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recorders? (Possible spoiler) | 6 | 20 | May 10, 2013 07:23am | |
| Agatha Christie L...: September 2011 BOM Murder at the Vicarage | 21 | 53 | Sep 29, 2011 05:32pm |
Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.
Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller was born in Torquay, Devon, England, U.K., as the youngest of three. The Millers had two other children: Margaret Frary Miller (1879–1950), called Madge, who was eleven years Agatha's senior, and Louis Montant Miller (1880...more
More about Agatha Christie...
Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller was born in Torquay, Devon, England, U.K., as the youngest of three. The Millers had two other children: Margaret Frary Miller (1879–1950), called Madge, who was eleven years Agatha's senior, and Louis Montant Miller (1880...more
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“The young people think the old people are fools -- but the old people know the young people are fools.”
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“At my time of life, one knows that the worst is usually true.”
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Nov 30, 2012 06:02pm
Really? Griselda was in What Mrs. McGillicuddy Sa...more
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