The upside, however, is that the stories come from some of the most talented women in modern mystery and crime fiction. Marple: Twelve New Mysteries Marple: Twelve New Mysteries It appeared that the concept of never speaking ill of the dead fell into abeyance when the dead were of the servant class.

Age is cruel and crueler still to women. A woman becomes a ghost when she stops being worth looking at."The first story had the supremely clichéd line “Miss Marple let out the breath she had not realised she had been holding” and it was pretty much all downhill from there. For example; Elly Griffiths gives Jane Marple a mystery in an Italian hotel called Villa Rosa (Elly Griffiths fans will probably get the reference). Jean Kwok takes her on a cruise to Singapore, and Alyssa Cole takes her to Manhattan. Each of these trips are thanks to the generosity of the recurring nephew. Featuring stories from Naomi Alderman, Leigh Bardugo, Alyssa Cole, Lucy Foley, Elly Griffiths, Natalie Haynes, Jean Kwok, Val McDermid, Karen M. McManus, Dreda Say Mitchell, Kate Mosse and Ruth Ware. This collection of a dozen original short stories, all featuring Jane Marple, will introduce the character to a whole new generation. Each author reimagines Agatha Christie’s Marple through their own unique perspective while staying true to the hallmarks of a traditional mystery. While the 12 stories included in Marple all differ in terms of their setting, style and substance, they succeed in capturing the essence of Agatha Christie’s famous sleuth and crafting intriguing puzzles for her to unravel. Miss Marple’s determined nature and her passion for both justice and retribution remain the same, although this time round she is able to pass comment on more contemporary matters and express her belief in equality. Miss Marple has always been one of literature’s greatest amateur detectives, and it’s a real treat to follow her investigations once again.

There have been many adaptations of the Agatha Christie stories, on both the big screen and the small, but if you want to see how Ms. Christie envisioned her beloved character, tune into the BBC television series, “Miss Marple”. In 1927, the world was introduced to St. Mary Mead's most famous spinster, Miss Jane Marple, in a short story published in The Royal Magazine. It would be another three years before she appeared in a full-length novel, The Murder at the Vicarage. I'm afraid . . .' I stopped, not feeling entirely comfortable delivering my news among the gladioli and the dahlias and the talk of romance. Also enjoyed The Murdering Sort/ Karen M. Mcmanus, Murder at the Villa Rosa/Elly Griffiths, and Mystery of the Acid Soil/Kate Mosse. It feels very exciting to allow this formidable selection of authors the opportunity to come up with new adventures and mysteries for Miss Marple. It is time for readers to rediscover Marple and I personally cannot wait to read the resulting stories. When & Where Can You Get Marple: Twelve New Mysteries

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Given that she was “born” in a short story, it seems only fitting that this new collection of Miss Marple works should be comprised of short stories (though if the folks in charge of Christie's estate want to authorise some full-length novels, we'll happily read those, too). Authors & Stories Included in the Collection More recently, M.C. Beaton selected her own successor in Rod Greene. He's carried on both the Agatha Raisin series and the Hamish Macbeth novels. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Harper Collins, Harper Fiction, via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Marple: Twelve New Stories for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions. Another favorite in keeping with her traditions was “The Mystery of the Acid Soil” by Kate Mosse, which begins with a train ride to visit a childhood friend.

Review of last story--FYI, Miss Marple wouldn't be okay with murder, no matter who did it. I think the last story totally mixed up Marple with Poirot.Listening to this book was a real treat. My favorite of the stories were the ones where something familiar from the original stories appeared, whether it was a character or a setting, it drew me closer. My favourite story was Miss Marples Christmas by Ruth Ware. It had all the elements of the classic tales, with the added bonus of Christmas. It was always going to be difficult to sum up a book with many individual authors, some of which are firm favourites. I am happy to say that I enjoyed most of them, 'The Second Murder At The Vicarage' by Val McDermid, 'The Mystery of the Acid Soil' by Kate Mosse and 'The Disappearance' by Leigh Bardugo in particular...these were all lifted by superb narration too. There were always going to be a few I didn't enjoy.