{"id":13264,"date":"2013-03-29T08:58:24","date_gmt":"2013-03-29T12:58:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=13264"},"modified":"2025-09-29T22:04:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T02:04:28","slug":"a-caribbean-mystery-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/13264","title":{"rendered":"A Caribbean Mystery"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Caribbean Mystery<\/a><\/em> (1964) Agatha Christie<\/a> (Miss Marple)<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>This was my first Miss Marple, and remains on of my favorites.<\/p>\n

This is Miss Marple at her fluffiest and most dithering, yet still able to cause action to be taken.<\/p>\n

And still a product of her time.<\/p>\n

\u201cSex\u201d as a word had not been mentioned in Miss Marple\u2019s young days; but there had been plenty of it\u2014 not talked about so much\u2014 but enjoyed far more than nowadays, or so it seemed to her.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And there was this bit I’d forgotten about.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019ll look after the house all right. He\u2019s very house proud. He\u2019s a queer. I mean\u2014\u201d He had paused, slightly embarrassed\u2014 but surely even dear old Aunt Jane must have heard of queers.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I admit it’s difficult to read the way the native Jamaicans are discussed, but I also think that’s how the world unfortunately was at that time. And the one direct passage where we see Miss Marple’s thoughts:<\/p>\n

The black West Indian girl smiled and said Good Morning as she placed the tray on Miss Marple\u2019s knees. Such lovely white teeth and so happy and smiling. Nice natures, all these girls, and a pity they were so averse to getting married. It worried Canon Prescott a good deal. Plenty of christenings, he said, trying to console himself, but no weddings.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To be that read as how someone her age would see things–her Victorian way of seeing things. <\/p>\n

Is it possible I am giving this story a pass because I read it as a kid and it holds such a prominent place in my memory? Quite possibly.<\/p>\n

And it’s not like her views aren’t seen elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat Lucky? She is with some man.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2014 you think so?\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is certain,\u201d said Se\u00f1ora de Caspearo. \u201cShe is that type. But she is not so young any longer\u2014 Her husband\u2014 already his eyes go elsewhere\u2014 He makes passes\u2014 here, there, all the time. I know.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cYes,\u201d said Miss Marple. \u201cI expect you would know.\u201d <\/p>\n

Se\u00f1ora de Caspearo shot a surprised glance at her. It was clearly not what she had expected from that quarter. <\/p>\n

Miss Marple, however, was looking at the waves with an air of gentle innocence.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I do love how she gently gives just as good as she gets.<\/p>\n

\u201cI realize, too, that Mr. Rafiel is privileged, or thinks he is.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat do you mean\u2014 privileged?\u201d asked Mr. Rafiel. <\/p>\n

\u201cTo be rude if you want to be rude,\u201d said Miss Marple. <\/p>\n

\u201cHave I been rude?\u201d said Mr. Rafiel, surprised. \u201cI\u2019m sorry if I\u2019ve offended you.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cYou haven\u2019t offended me,\u201d said Miss Marple, \u201cI make allowances.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cNow, don\u2019t be nasty.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Mostly, this was the escape I needed.<\/p>\n

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
\nRating: 9\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Caribbean Mystery (1964) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) This was my first Miss Marple, and remains on of my favorites. This is Miss Marple at her fluffiest and most dithering, yet still able to cause action to be taken. And still a product of her time. \u201cSex\u201d as a word had not been mentioned in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[13,30,668,190,48,33,8,41],"tags":[732,228,229,693],"class_list":["post-13264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-9-10","category-british","category-comfort-read","category-cozy","category-female","category-historical","category-mystery","category-reread","tag-1960s","tag-agatha-christie","tag-miss-marple","tag-older-protagonist"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-3rW","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21353,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21353","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":0},"title":"A Caribbean Mystery","author":"Michelle","date":"June 29, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"A Caribbean Mystery (1964) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) The story that started my love of Miss Marple. I saw this (I was probably babysitting) and immediately went, \"It's AJ Simon! What is this?\" And then I fell in love with Helen Hayes and Miss Marple. \"As far as I can\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Caribbean Mystery","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/A-Caribbean-Mystery.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24733,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24733","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":1},"title":"A Caribbean Mystery","author":"Michelle","date":"July 12, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A Caribbean Mystery (1964) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple #10) Dancing, lights, the music of a band (even a steel band), all that surely was for youth. But where was youth? Studying, she supposed, at universities, or doing a job\u2014with a fortnight\u2019s holiday a year. ... A place like this was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"A Caribbean Mystery","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/A-Caribbean-Mystery.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3677,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/3677","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":2},"title":"A Caribbean Mystery","author":"Michelle","date":"March 29, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"A Caribbean Mystery (1964) Agatha Christie This has always been my favorite Miss Marple mystery, probably because I got to watch part of it on TV, with Jameson Parker as Tim Kendal, which is important, because I was a HUGE Simon & Simon fan. (And I just now realized that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"A-Caribbean-Mystery","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/03\/A-Caribbean-Mystery-182x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4902,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/4902","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":3},"title":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories","author":"Michelle","date":"October 24, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (2013) Agatha Christie From The Thirteen Problems (1953) The Tuesday Night Club The Idol House of Astarte Ingots of Gold The Bloodstained Pavement Motive v. Opportunity The Thumbmark of St. Peter The Blue Geranium The Companion The Four Suspects A Christmas Tragedy The Herb\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "10\/10"","block_context":{"text":"10\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/10-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Miss-Marple-The-Complete-Short-Stories","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/10\/Miss-Marple-The-Complete-Short-Stories.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3450,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/3450","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":4},"title":"The Murder at the Vicarage","author":"Michelle","date":"January 8, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"The Murder at the Vicarage (1930) Agatha Christie It's been years since I've read an Agatha Christie, but she's always been on of my favorites, and so I decided it was the perfect thing to read while I'm sick and feeling somewhat miserable. This is the first Miss Marple mystery,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Murder at the Vicarage","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/murder-at-vicarage.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12850,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12850","url_meta":{"origin":13264,"position":5},"title":"The Murder at the Vicarage","author":"Michelle","date":"May 13, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Murder at the Vicarage (1930) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) I was listening to Read or Dead and they were talking about Agatha Christie's first book, which had been published in 1920--100 years earlier, and one of them mentioned her being a comfort read, and I was immediately, \"YES. I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "7.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"7.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/7-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Murder at the Vicarage","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/The-Murder-at-the-Vicarage.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13264\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}