Nemesis

 

Nemesis is one of my Agatha Christie favourites. Miss Marple is the sleuth so that's a winner to start with for me. But the whole story is intriguing and atmospheric with both historic murders and a new one with the potential for more. 

Miss Marple receives a letter from a firm of solicitors notifying her of the death of Mr Rafiel whom she briefly met in the Caribbean and who has a quest for justice for her. Despite minimal information, she takes up the challenge and sets off on a coach trip which leads her to key people who can help her solve the quest, including three weird sisters.

Verity Hunt who was about to married to the disreputable Michael, son of Mr Rafiel, is brutally murdered. Who did it and why? Was it Michael? Or someone else?

The characters are fascinating. The three sisters who live together in the Old Manor House provide most of the atmosphere in the book. There is a sense of danger and strangeness as well as deep sorrow about them. 

Who are Miss Cooke and Miss Barrow? Are they who they seem to be? 

And Elizabeth Temple: murdered or was it just a tragic accident?

Even the two solicitors are full of character and give a sense of the time in which the book was written.

I love this book and give it 5*.

A Caribbean Mystery

 

I love Agatha Christie's writing and ordered some of her books with my Christmas money/vouchers. This was the first to plop onto the doormat.

I prefer Miss Marple to Hercule Poirot (sorry Poirot fans!) and I like this particular story because it leads on to one of my favourites: Nemesis.

In A Caribbean Mystery, Miss Marple's nephew has treated her to a holiday in the tropics to help her recover from pneumonia. While chatting to a fellow guest, she is intrigued by his story of a murderer which is accompanied by a snapshot from his wallet. The next day, that guest is dead. 

Miss Marple does a bit of sleuthing and ends up joining forces with Mr Rafiel, a wealthy businessman who is also there for his health. Between them they prevent another murder from taking place.

I enjoy the characters in this book. Miss Marple, obviously. But also Miss Prescott and her canon brother. The accounts of the two ladies' conversations especially when the canon is around illustrate the era perfectly. Men were always to be seen as right and to be respected as such, even if the respect was more lip service than heartfelt. It amused me.

I like this easy-read book and happily give it 4*.