Small Town Secrets: A Murder is Announced 2.0

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"Ye gods and little fishes," said Sir Henry, "can it be? George, it's my own particular, one and only, four-starred pussy. The super-pussy of all old pussies. And she has managed somehow to be at Medenham Wells, instead of peacefully at home in St. Mary Mead, just at the right time to be mixed up in a murder. Once more a murder is announced -- for the benefit and enjoyment of Miss Marple."
- A Murder is Announced, p. 71

The Sum of It

First of all how adorably quaint is that quote, which in these modern times COULD be read with one's mind in the gutter to much hilarity. So, exciting news in the little village of Chipping Cleghorn -- literally -- as the citizens open their morning papers over breakfast. "A murder is announced and will take place on Friday, October 29th, at Little Paddocks, at 6:30 p.m. Friends please accept this, the only intimation," reads a small announcement amid notices of available dachshund puppies and antiques for sale. The curiousity of several is stoked, and they turn up promptly at Ms. Letitia Blacklock's home, Little Paddocks, to see what the mystery is all about. Everyone is quite shocked when a sudden power outage plunges the drawing room into darkness, and then a voice yelling at everyone to put their hands up is followed by one gunshot and then another! When the room is re-lit, the hostess is covered in blood from a wound on her ear due to a near miss, and the masked intruder lies dead in the hallway #DRAMA. 

Who put the notice in the paper? Who planned this whole event? Was someone really trying to kill Miss Blacklock, and if so why? The police must sort through the curious inhabitants of Chipping Cleghorn to find the answers to these questions and more, particularly after another murder follows the death of the intruder. Fortunately for them, Miss Marple just so happens to be in town visiting the local vicar's wife, daughter of one of her old pals. It quickly turns out the shooting is only one of many mysteries as Miss Marple and the local detectives uncover multiple secret identities, money plots, hidden doorways, and old ladies on the coast of Scotland to get to the bottom of the murder announced. 

The YOA Treatment

J'adore Miss Marple, and her ability to be on the spot just as mysteries pop up around her certainly delights in this classic tale. She's at the top of her game in this book, still sprightly enough to go tramping down village lanes and hide in cupboards, and certainly not missing a beat in her analyses of human nature. This is a well-crafted mystery, one that keeps the reader guessing, but also one that does offer some good hints along the way that might allow the clever reader to figure out who-dunnit, a rarity in Agatha's books! 

One of the interesting aspects of this book among the Agatha-folk is the inclusion of the characters Miss Murgatroyd and Miss Hinchliffe, two spinster ladies who live together and take care of each other. It honestly seems quite clear that the two might even be a couple, which seems awfully open minded of 1950's Agatha, herself quite Victorian in her typical sensibilities! Another one of my favorite aspects of the book is the prominent role a goiter plays, as this malady can't help but being amusing in its randomness and drama. I really enjoyed this story, and though I was familiar with its twists from the television adaptation (which is great #MatthewGoode #HeartEyesForever), I was still eager to reach Miss Marple's reveal of the true murderer in the end. I'll certainly recommend this one to Agatha-curious pals.

- E. 

Bonus Read: Ruth Ware's The Woman in Cabin 10 | 2016

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"It was the noise of the veranda door in the next cabin sliding gentle open. I held my breath, straining to hear. And then there was a splash. Not a small splash. No, this was a big splash. The kind of splash made by a body hitting water." -The Woman in Cabin 10, p. 85

The Sum of It:
Mystery-loving friends: do yourselves a favor and find yourself a copy of Ruth Ware's The Woman in Cabin 10 just as soon as you possible can. I found this book on a list of the top-selling books of 2016, and my interest was further piqued when I saw the dust jacket touting its reminiscence of Dame Agatha's works. #sold! I ordered the book, thinking I would tuck it away for some future air travel, but then, of course, when it arrived I decided to just read the first chapter to see if I liked it. To say I couldn't put it down was an understatement! This is the kind of book you have to just devour because you just HAVE TO KNOW WHAT ON EARTH IS GOING ON!

So, brief summary: The Woman in Cabin 10 follows travel journalist Lo Blacklock (great name #AMurderisAnnounced) as she is invited on the maiden voyage of a super swank cruise ship to write travel updates on how awesomely luxurious it is. Sounds great, right? Alas, Lo is having a hard time enjoying her fancy surroundings because just days before she leaves she a) is pretty traumatically burgled in the middle of the night, and b) maybe breaks up with her boyfriend??? She's having a hard time sleeping because of burglar flashbacks and so is further terrified when she hears what sounds like a body being thrown into the sea from her neighbor's cabin (#CABIN10) and sees smears of blood on cabin 10's veranda. HOWEVER, after reporting the mysterious occupant of cabin 10 #MURDERED, she is shocked to find out no such woman was ever on board the ship. It's up to Lo's weary wits (I swear, this poor, frightened woman gets like 12 hours of sleep in a two week period) to find out which of her illustrious fellow passengers knows the story of the woman in cabin 10.

The YOA Treatment:
What I enjoyed so much about this book is its so classically Agatha Christie-esque setup. I was reminded of Murder on the Orient Express, Evil Under the Sun, Death on the Nile, and Murder in Mesopotamia as I read about a group of travelers with all the stereotypical characters you expect from a good whodunnit: the handsome aristocrat, the playboy photographer, the much younger model wife of a rich guy named Lars. There are evening gowns and attentive Scandinavian stewards and cocktails on cocktails. You basically expect Poirot himself to show up halfway through to help Lo put all the clues together. I will admit, as I neared the conclusion, I did have a little suspicion of how the story would work itself out (thanks for all the practice, Dame Agatha! #littlegraycells) and it does, in my opinion, get a smidge caper-y near the end for a bit longer than it should (#sorryRuth). HOWEVER, overall, I heartily recommend this book to anyone who wants a read that will keep them up all night, dying to get to the last page.

-A.

Friday Night Murder: A Murder is Announced | 1950

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He said reverently: "She's just the finest detective God ever made. Natural genius cultivated in a suitable soil." 

-Sir Henry Clithering, A Murder is Announced, p. 58

The Sum of It:
Our latest read just happens to be one of my very favorites: A Murder is Announced. Not only does it feature Miss Jane Marple (who I dare say may be my favorite Agatha detective to read! #stillalsolovepoirot #dontworry), but the premise and solution are some of my very favorites.

This postwar story takes place in the small village of Chipping Cleghorn (these town names just get better and better!) on the morning of Friday, October 29th. Everyone is casually opening up their morning papers and reading every bit of it (as one should read the paper), including the section where people are selling their furniture and whatnot, and lo and behold there is a murder announcement:

"A murder is announced and will take place on Friday, October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6:30 p.m. Friends please accept this, the only intimation"

Uh, weird, right? Friends of the mistress of Little Paddocks, one Miss Letitia Blacklock, are a little puzzled by the announcement, but are also 100% planning to show up at 6:30 to see what happens. Stranger still, Miss Blacklock and her household of "scatty" (*frequently used Agatha descriptor*) companion Dora, two cousins Julia and Patrick, lodger Philippa, and dramatic maid Mitzi, are equally puzzled after reading the newspaper, with no-one owning up to placing the announcement. Evening arrives and the neighbors start arriving, pretending like nothing is up and all nonchalantly commenting on how Miss Blacklock has turned on the central heating and has some lovely flowers on display (#chrysanthemums). But the evening turns deadly when the lights suddenly go out, a man demands everyone in the darkened to "stick em up!", shots are fired, and when the dust clears, the group's stranger attacker is found dead in the hallway, presumably having killed himself when the robbery went wrong.

Inspector Craddock appears on the scene to interview each of the bizarre evening's attendees and ends up with conflicting reports, many revealed secrets, and more questions than answers. Who was the rando who ended up dead? Was he trying to kill Miss Blacklock? If he didn't kill himself…then who did? But never fear, Miss Marple enters the mix via her old pal Sir Henry Clithering and makes quick work of this Chipping Cleghorn conundrum.

The YOA Treatment:
It's a bit difficult to talk about what exactly I LOVE about this particular Agatha Christie novel because it would require #spoilers (don't worry - I shan't really give away anything!) What I'm getting at is that the story's solution is built upon a succession of such terrifically placed clues, some of which are typographical (#hint) and therefore so delightfully clever! When I finished reading this book for the first time, I had to go back nearly page by page so search out the breadcrumbs Agatha had left me along the way that I had just completely breezed by.

This was another one of Agatha's personal favorite books, and in the same way of And Then There Were None and Orient Express you can tell the added effort she made with both the story and her characters. You still have the fairly formulaic roles (the gruff army Colonel, the sulking young people, a bumbling companion, etc.) and yet their personalities shine through more than many Agatha books.

All in all, I would highly recommend A Murder is Announced and keeping an eye on your local newspaper - you never know what kind of announcements you'll find!

-A.