The Body in the Library

The Body in the Library. (Miss Marple) Agatha Christie. 1941/2006. Black Dog & Leventhal. 192 pages.


Mrs. Bantry was dreaming. 

The Bantrys are about to get a great shock when this novel opens. They're awakened by their maid, Mary, proclaiming that she's found a dead body in their library! The body is that of a young, beautiful woman--a blond. At first Colonel Bantry doesn't believe it could be true. But Mrs. Bantry handles the situation surprisingly well: with a quick phone call to Miss Marple. She is more than happy to 'help' the police detectives solve another case. Who is this dead woman? How did she come to be in their library? Who killed her and why?

I enjoyed this mystery very much. I am enjoying my time with Miss Marple. She's such a wonderful character! So many of the characters in these Agatha Christie novels are well done. I'm enjoying the descriptions and dialogue very much! There's just something so cozy, so charming about these stories.

"I like your friend," said Adelaide Jefferson to Mrs. Bantry. The two women were sitting on the terrace.
"Jane Marple's a very remarkable woman," said Mrs. Bantry.
"She's nice too," said Addie, smiling.
"People call her a scandalmonger," said Mrs. Bantry, "but she isn't really."
"Just a low opinion of human nature?"
"You could call it that." (124)

 "As I've told you, I've got a very suspicious mind. My nephew Raymond tells me, in fun, of course--that I have a mind like a sink. He says that most Victorians have. All I can say is that the Victorians knew a good deal about human nature." (184)

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews