2018 Mar 4
The villagers of Chipping Cleghorn, including Jane Marple, are agog with curiosity over an advertisement in the local gazette which reads: ‘A murder is announced and will take place on Friday October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6.30 p.m.’ A childish practical joke? Or a hoax intended to scare poor Letitia Blacklock? Unable to resist the mysterious invitation, a crowd begins to gather at Little Paddocks at the appointed time when, without warning, the lights go out…
The fifth Miss Marple book penned by Agatha Christie, A Murder is Announced is considered a staple of crime fiction and one of her best books to date. Indeed, it takes a talented writer with great imagination to craft the plot of such a novel to perfection. Rather than the usual beginnings to crime stories, A Murder is Announced takes on a different path and grabs hold of a reader’s attention from the very beginning, which is a rare feat.
Keeping track of the connections within the plot itself may take more effort than one is used to in crime novels, yet it is certainly worth it! Christie’s novel endings always pack a punch, and are filled with surprises, twists, and turns, that we would never see coming! The brilliance of Miss Marple’s character really shines through in this particular novel, and if you’re a first-time Agatha Christie reader, this is the perfect place to start!
Rating: 4.5/5
