The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

To get hold of this Agatha Christie classic- see following links. It’s classic Christie and incidentally, uses the Agatha Christie ‘sleight of hand’ referred to elsewhere on this site! We briefly meet some characters who will re-appear in future stories, Dr Haydock and Colonel Melchett for example, and the relationship between the somewhat staid but likeable vicar and his lovely scatterbrained wife is very appealing.ĭo take a look at this novel if you haven’t already done so. ‘The Murder at the Vicarage’ is a really satisfying murder mystery read. In ‘The Murder at the Vicarage’ Miss Marple actually describes her methods ’ You see, living alone, as I do, one has to have a hobby…my hobby is-and always has been-Human Nature…One begins to class people, quite definitely, just as though they were birds or flowers.’ So like Hercule Poirot, she believes that people act according to type, and comments, ‘ You’d be surprised if you knew how very few distinct types there are.’ This knowledge of human psychology, together with he knack of recognising a clue when she sees one, is what makes this gentle old lady a force to be reckoned with. It could be his daughter Lettice who wanted to get freedom from the strict father and inherit his fortune. So when he was found shot at the vicarage, many people became murder suspects. End of story? We know better! The number of suspects mounts, there are red herrings galore but Miss Marple, demonstrating for the first time the quiet brilliance that indeed makes her ‘dangerous’ to evil-doers, makes sure that the villain is unmasked and will ultimately be punished. Agatha Christie detective 36345 1446 96 175 99 6 Colonel Protheroe was not a good man.

However, at first glance, this is an open and shut case, as before long the police receive a confession. Colonel Protheroe was universally unpopular and there are many people who might have a grudge against him.

It is the vicar who discovers the first body, that of Colonel Protheroe, in the vicarage study. The narrator of the story is The Reverend Leonard Clement, vicar of St Mary Mead and he describes Miss Marple as a ‘ white-haired old lady with a gentle, and appealing manner.’ He also calls her ‘ dangerous.’ The Murder at the Vicarage’ is where Agatha Christie first introduces us to Miss Marple.

The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie