Book Club

Marple Stories

Christie never intended Miss Marple to rival Poirot in the publics affections, but this spinster sleuth soon proved a hit with the public.  Here's the place to discuss her stories - but beware spoilers!

If you can't find your favourite Miss Marple story, don't worry - more will be added shortly.

Warning: These discussions may contain spoilers!

Sleeping Murder

Moderator1 10 Nov 09 at 12:15 p.m. GMT

Newly married New Zealander Gwenda buys a house in Southern England and from the start there is something very familiar about the place - which is ridiculous as she has never been in England before.  When strange and frightening things begin to happen it is just as well Miss Marple is on hand to stop Gwenda from going mad. 

The accepted history of this book being written during WWII and put in a vault until its publication in 1976 is completely turned on its head in John Curran's book Agatha Christie's Secret Diaries in which he shows that it was probably written some considerable time later.  What do you think about this?  If the former was not the case why was it not published earlier?

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51 replies

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MissQuin 01 Jan 10 at 9:02 p.m. GMT

I think this amongst the best Miss Marple stories. I can understand Agatha Christie holding this one back. It seems its Miss M's final full length book, so it makes a brilliant end to the Marple stories.  Alot of the later AC books were set a long time in the past. But I find this one more exciting that books like Elephants can remember.

Spoilers: I found the murder an interesting one, as the motive is  complex. Its not done for money or safety. I found Sleeping Murder had quite a sinster undercurrent, I think because of the nature of the murder. I prefer the tone of this book far more than the very light and cheery Caribbean Mystery. I was disapointed with the recent TV version, as they did change the tone of the story.

I'd rate this amongst the best Marple books. I think it's my joint favourite along with Body in the library.

blexie28 10 Jan 10 at 3:52 p.m. GMT

Forgive me for being a dufus, but there's something I can't quite work out about the denouement of Sleeping Murder. We learn that Dr Kennedy interprets Lily Kimble's letter as blackmail. Miss Marple says that "When he got Lily's letter the words in it that frightened him were that Leonie had told Lily what she had seen out the window and the mention of the car outside." Rereading Lily's letter, however, I find her making no reference to what Leonie told her. Is anyone able to shed any light as to what MM means here? Many thanks!

MissQuin 11 Jan 10 at 10:08 a.m. GMT

I think Blexie, that the REAL letter was switched by the doctor. He subsituted it with one he had faked that didn't make him look guilty.

blexie28 17 Jan 10 at 12:44 p.m. GMT

Thanks very much for that, Miss Quin. Were we actually told that in the book, or is that just your clever guess?! I don't have the book with me at the moment so I'm unable to doublecheck that for myself. Thanks again for your reply.

MissQuin 17 Jan 10 at 1:43 p.m. GMT

Your welcome Blexie. Miss Marple tells us at the end the letter was forged. But its really easy to miss some points, as theres always so much to take in- The murderer, the motive, how its done etc.

christie_greece 17 Jan 10 at 3:01 p.m. GMT

It was the second christie-book I read and it was amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't think of a reason why Agatha Christie didn't publish ot earlier.

She may wanted to change things.But if she had changed something she would probably write it down on her diary.But what if not???

Anyway, sleeping murder is one of the best Miss Marple stories!

blexie28 18 Jan 10 at 6 a.m. GMT

Hi again Miss Quin, and thanks for your second reply. I'm so sorry for harping on this, but I really want to get to the bottom of it and, as I mentioned earlier, I don't have the book with me now!

So, just to be clear, Dr Kennedy: (1) wrote two letters to Lily (one we read, the other he whisked away after he knocked her off); AND (2) forged the letter that Lily wrote in response to the notice in the newspaper?

Thank you so much. As you pointed out, there is so much to take in!

go_leafs_nation 19 Jan 10 at 1:17 p.m. GMT

A simple romantic soul like mine loves stories in which the supernatural figures, only to be explained rationally, which is why I love The Pale Horse even more than AC's much-loved And Then There Were None. While the aspect in Sleeping Murder is not exactly supernatural, the creepiness of the supernatural detective story still exists; for a considerable bit of the book, we're not sure if the corpse seen by Gwenda was murdered in the past, present, or will be murdered in the future...

MissQuin 19 Jan 10 at 5:34 p.m. GMT

Hello Blexie, I've gotten hazy how many letter were written! Ive checked and it seems to be 3

1st letter -Lily didn't think the doc was the murderer, but mentioned to in he letter him about his car being outside. This was enough to make him scared, so he hatched a plan and he responded.

2nd letter- doctor meets Lily, kills her takes away the letter he wrote to her and replaces it with one faked response from himself, but with a different time mentioned to give himself an albi.

3. A fake response from Lily. He rewrote the letter to take out the bit about his car outside.

Goleafs, yes I love the creepy feel to Sleeping Murder too.

blexie28 20 Jan 10 at 7:08 a.m. GMT

Thanks so much Miss Quin! All in all, it sure is a great book!

MissQuin 10 Mar 10 at 4:12 p.m. GMT

I watched the Hickson version, which was very hit and miss. Gwenda and Giles were too perky to begin with, very annoying. I dont mind them in the book, but I dint like them in that version.

I think this the only Christie book that deals with incest.

HeiseiHolmes 18 Mar 10 at 3:26 p.m. GMT

I loved it. It was sooooo good! The only thing that is a little bit out of place for me is the lack of any sense of finality to it, if you know what I mean...

Tommy_A_Jones 18 Mar 10 at 4:05 p.m. GMT

It is one of my favourite Miss Marple Books, I have got the Audio CD GREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAT

janemarplefan 20 Mar 10 at 5:12 p.m. GMT

Sleeping Murder is my absolute FAVORITE of all of her novels.  I just found a paperback version in a 2nd hand shop, and since my hardcover version was borrowed (and never returned), I just reread it this past winter.  I go back every 5 years or so.  I love the nostalgic air by which Gwennie sees things, as a child.  I just bought a house next door to my early childhood home so I can relate to this even more.  It appeals to the country girl in me!  I went crazy (good crazy) when she intertwined By the Pricking of my Thumbs into Sleeping Murder (or vice versa) with the old lady in the nursing home questioning Giles and Gwennie about "was it your child buried behind the fireplace?"  That was GREAT!  Everything about this novel I absolutely loved.  Miss Marple is my favorite for sure, but only They Came to Baghdad runs a very close second!

Read more about this story: Sleeping Murder

Mr_west 01 May 10 at 7:37 p.m. GMT

the most amazing book in the world!!

i read it in two days!

xrysoula 30 Jun 10 at 2:38 p.m. GMT

I actually read it in one!As I usually do with AC 's novels, really.Now, I 've been told that the writer has often been accused of her victorian attitude towards morality.Could it be the incest factor that set the publication of the book back?

Utterly loved it, by the way.

MissQuin 30 Jun 10 at 3:20 p.m. GMT

Spoilers Other authors had written much grittier books by that time featuring incest.  The Duchess Of Malfi quoted in this book dealt with the subject. AC thought that if she could be killed during WW2, so she wrote the last Marple to be published after she died.

xrysoula 01 Jul 10 at 9:26 a.m. GMT

I know, but I was referring to her own views of the matter, which might not be keeping abreast of her times.Besides, she didn 't have any offspring, and being wealthy already, why would she annoy herself about what would happen after her death? Looked out for her posthumous fame, you mean?

Lone_Wolf 01 Jul 10 at 11:43 a.m. GMT

Xrysoula, I find you a bit hard to understand here. Do you mean that AC was unconventional enough to write a book with an incestual subtext, but not unconventional enough to publish it during her lifetime?

And she did have a daughter.

xrysoula 01 Jul 10 at 12:56 p.m. GMT

Oh, did she? My mistake,sorry. When I was in London I watched The Mousetrap in the theater and I heard that all the income from the play goes to a nephew of hers, that 's why I assumed...I should have looked it up first, I 'm so embarrased.

About Sleeping Murder, what I meant was that perhaps she was having second thoughts about publishing it- but that 's just an assumption, probably entirely wrong, too.