Miss Marple Omnibus Vol 1: The Body in the Library / The Moving Finger / A Murder is Announced / 4:50 from Paddington)

Miss Marple #2-4, 7

by Agatha Christie

Alternative cover edition of ISBN 9780006499596

FOUR OF AGATHA CHRISTIE'S 12 MISS MARPLE NOVELS IN A SINGLE VOLUME

The Body in the Library
It's seven in the morning, and the body of a young woman is found in the Bantrys' library. But who is she? And what's the connection with another dead girl? Miss Marple is invited to solve the mystery - before tongues start to wag...

The Moving Finger
The quiet inhabitants of Lymstock are unsettled by a sudden outbreak of hate-mail. But when one of the recipients commits suicide, only Miss Marple questions the coroner's verdict. Is this the work of a poison pen? Or of a
poisoner?

A Murder Is Announced
An advertisement in the Chipping Cleghorn Gazette announces the time and place of a forthcoming murder. Unable to resist the mysterious invitation, a crowd begins to gather at the appointed time when, without warning, the lights go out.....

4.50 From Paddington
As two trains run together, side by side, Mrs McGillicuddy watches a murder. Then the other train draws away. With no other witnesses, not even a body, who will take her story seriously? Then she remembers her old friend, Miss Marple...

'Suspense is engendered from the very start, and maintained very skilfully until the final revelation' - Times Literary Supplement

Genres: Agatha Christie, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Detective, Classics, Cozy Mystery

718 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.

This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.

Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)

Reviews

[Nicola · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Agatha Christie was the greatest exponent of the classical detective story. Her unique literary talents have crossed every boundary of age, race, class, geography and education. While she refined the template for a fictional form, the reading of her books became an international pastime." John Curran

I started reading and collecting Agatha Christie books when I was 9 years old. I adored her books and still do. There is a great comfort, as an adult, in reading her books and acute observations of people that favours style over the penny horrors of sadism, torture, and graphic violence favoured by some authors.

[Jack Heath · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars. Five points for four of the best Marple novels. All are puzzlers in that it's hard to discern a pattern or a reason for the events before Miss Marple lays it all out for the police, the innocent and not so innocent, and the reader. 'The Body in the Library' starts with a bang; the Bantry's are awoken one morning by their maid who states that a body has been found downstairs in the library. A tackily-dressed young blond. "What did you say?" In the second, 'The Moving Finger,' poison pen letters are circulating in the village. It's a laugh, not to be taken seriously, until one letter hits home. 'A Murder is Announced' is often thought to be Agatha Christie's best Miss Marple. In the days when the daily paper was read from cover to cover, many people would have been stunned by a small advert telling of a pending murder with an exact location and time! The last is not least. In '4:50 from Paddington,' a friend of Miss Marple witnesses a woman being strangled in a train as it passes the one she's in. The police don't believe her - where's the body? It wouldn't be a great story if Miss Marple thought the same way. (Mar2021/Jul2025) PS: I do a full review under each title.

[Eleanor]

The Moving Finger is an underrated selection in the Christie pantheon. I have read it a few times, but not for many years. I am enjoying the characters immensely. I prefer Christie when she is dealing with her iconic British settings. When she veers off into international espionage territory, she loses me. Oh, I read those too (for the puzzles) but Christie is very good at portraying a certain strata of British society between the world wars and just after. Enjoy.

A Murder is Announced is also one of her best: tight and fast-paced. The BBC production, starring Joan Hickson, is exquisite.

The Body in the Library has wonderful funny touches and a ripping good mystery, and the 4:50 from Paddington (aka What Mrs McGillicuddy Saw!) is another weighty contender.

[Dr.J.G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of Agatha Christie works, read circa 1977 and reread during a lonely summer 1984, and reread since in 1989 - 1997, have left memories. Some, sharper than others.

Delightful collection and looking forward to reading those I haven't yet read.
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Body in the Library

There is no explanation for the body of a young girl to be found where it was - on the floor in the library of a decent country gentleman.

But then there was another death, and nothing made sense, except it so happened Miss Marple was in the neighbourhood - and she could think.

Feb 05, 2016.
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Moving Finger

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Murder is Announced
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4:50 from Paddington

An elderly woman on the train sees a man in another train running parallel throttling a woman to death, while he is oblivious to her watching - his back is to the window. She is thouroughly traumatised, and reports it as soon as she can at a railway station. But there is no dead woman on any train or a dead body dumped near any tracks anywhere possible where a parallel running train at that time could have stopped. And yet - she is sure, she saw the murder taking place, was not mistaken, dreaming of hallucinating. Fortunately she has an intelligent friend, another elderly woman, the fraile white haired Miss Marple.

October 18, 2008.
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December 29, 2020.
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[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miss Marple Omnibus Volume I is my favourite collection of Christie novels because, whilst some of the other stories use Miss Marple's view of village life as a prism to interpret the crimes committed by the rest of society (we are outside the confines of the peaceful English village in A Caribbean Mystery and in At Bertram's Hotel, for example), here the acute observations of village life are played out in front of us and we have direct access to the quirky but believable characters.

A Murder is Announced is my favourite in the collection (and, indeed, my favourite Christie novel) because of the absurd publically-witnessed first murder and the identity of the killer: who would have thought that old ladies in an idyllic English village could be so given to greed and malice?

It's easy to dismiss this sort of crime fiction as being from a cosier age. However, Christie acutely observes the relationship between people within a closed community with great aplomb. Whilst it is possible to view some of the comments voiced by the characters as old-fashioned, and even racist and sexist in some of the Marple novels, I would suggest that the crime genre gives Christie the opportunity to represent these sort of bigoted attitudes. And by representing such attitudes, a writer does not automatically condone them: s/he offers them to a reader to respond as they wish.

I know goodreads is about books but if you are interested in tv adaptations, I recommend the BBC version with Joan Hickson from the 1980s and not the more recent ITV version with Geraldine McEwen.

[Marlies · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the book. It was very surprising, unfortunately that’s because there barely are any hints. Detective stories, most of the time, give hints. Evidence or theories, which make someone look suspicious. With those you can suspect someone yourself. Most of Agatha Christie’s books have such things.
There were also some words I could barely understand, I’d figure it out later on, but it became a little hard to read for a Dutch girl from 2015. And we don’t have a fireplace at home, so it took a while before I figured out what a hearth rug was.
But back to the point, I did like the book. It has an interesting plot, and interesting characters as well. It keeps you in the dark till the end, which also has a bright side. And the details! A discussion between Mrs. Bantry and her husband of five pages, if the message of the parlour-maid wasn’t a dream, if the parlour-maid went nuts, if it was true. A half page for Miss Marple to fill with who could possibly call her before ten o’clock, in a normal situation it would be her nephew. I really liked those pieces.
To make a long story short: I recommend this to everyone! If you don’t like it, you don’t. But I do! The plot is really complicated, nice! 150 of the 156 pages are lying, not nice, but it’s worth it. And the people, how unnecessary or unimportant they were, all had a real character. And the whole book has three other stories in it as well, so actually I’m not done yet!

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just finished reading each of these, then watching the various movies associated with them. What amazes me is the ability Agatha Christie has for crafting such interesting plots while peopling them with real people. It is a little like Jane Austen.... the conversation and the people are totally real. And you have to pay attention to what people say..... the silly old lady may be telling exactly the truth, but you have to have ears to hear her. Just wonderful to read.

[Soujanya Murali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice cozy mystery. I enjoyed the quaint setting and Marple's deliberations.

After reading quite a few Agatha's mysteries, it seems like in many of her plots, almost everyone is a suspect. Though I liked that in And Then There Were None, The Oriental Express and A Body In Library, it kind of got a little too repetitive in this book.

[Aseem Kaul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-reading these novels after more than a decade, I was struck by the astuteness of the social comedy in these early books, and found myself enjoying them more for the delight of Christie's observations of village life than for the intricate and somewhat contrived machinations of the murder mysteries themselves.

[Mervyn Whyte · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first two are excellent social dramas. Christie obviously knew a great deal about human nature. And the writing is of a higher quality than I expected. The third story has all those things, but is let down by an improbable plot. Much too contrived and overthought. The fourth story I didn't get to read because my dog peed on the book. Obviously doesn't like whodunnits.

[Jacquelyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Classic, always-surprising Christie mysteries. Somehow, she manages always to unravel the story in such a way that you don't guess who did the crime, yet the solution seems entirely plausible.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy Miss Marple books. Each book of this group is unique. Miss Marple's friends and acquaintances certainly had a high incidence of crossing paths with murder. I've read these stories more than once - and no doubt will read them again.

[Like · Rating 3 out of 5]

jus too gud..

[Ice Bear · Rating 4 out of 5]

These are my first written Agatha Christie stories. Clearly written and enjoyable humour, still entrapped by the endings, despite having seen them all on TV. Miss Marple surely AC at her finest.

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

AWESOME

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite from this collection is the 4.50 from Paddington. I do so love Miss Marple, with her knitting, her sherry and her incomparable mind!!

[Jeanine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Miss Marple, the epitome of the old lady detective. This book contains four of Agatha Christie's best stories.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never though i would like miss marple... I did

[Stefanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The body in the Libary - 3 stars

The moving finger - 3 stars

A murder is announced - 4 stars

4.50 from Paddington - 4 stars

[Chelsea Walker-Booth]

Very entertaining

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always love Miss Marple and some of my favourite of her stories are in this collection. I find it so interesting having watched the newer TV series on ITV how the stories were adapted from the originals. I would say that even though I knew the stories, was enjoying the read, it has an easily followed writing style and each story is quite short I did find that I took a lot longer to get through this book than what I usually read at.

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

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[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chilling mysteries, absorbing and thrilling

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here is a set of Agatha Christie stories, if you like Agatha Christie you can’t go wrong with these.

[Griflet · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Maria KennedyEgan]

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