Series: Miss Marple
Book Number: 3
Read this book for: classic Christie whodunnit, cozy crime fiction, scandal and gossip, village life
Quick Review: A Marple mystery almost completely without Marple, but still a fun little read!
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Nothing happens in Lymstock, except for a spate of anonymous hate mail that nobody bothers much about. But when one of the recipients commits suicide after reading one of the letters, some strange things come to light that prove dangerous — and even deadly — for the inhabitants.
THE MOVING FINGER is the third of Christie’s Miss Marple novels, but despite this fact, Miss Marple herself barely appears at all!
The plot is classic Christie fare – a suicide that might not be a suicide, a murder that requires broken alibis to solve, and a solution that is clever and seems obvious once you find it out. However, the majority of the action in this novel is drive by the sibling duo of Jerry and Joanna Burton.
I actually quite enjoyed the Burtons; they were fun and engaging – I actually found parts of this novel quite humorous – and they were not detectives. They did not even really try to become detectives; they just had the natural curiosity about events and were fairly clever. Marple did have to put together all the pieces at the end, but it was gratifying how much the characters had figured out on their own.
Although I have seen this particular book get mixed reviews, I found it a fun little interlude. While not one of my favorite Christie novels, it is still worth the quick read, as a light treat.
Glad you found this one fun as well! Light treat is a good way to describe it – perfect for a cozy evening with a cup of tea 🙂