The Murder at the Vicarage: The First Miss Marple Mystery

"Anyone who murdered Colonel Protheroe," declared the Vicar, "would be doing the world at large a service."

It is a sentiment shared by nearly everyone in the sleepy village of St. Mary Mead. As the local magistrate and a man of insufferable self-importance, Colonel Lucius Protheroe has managed to offend everyone from his own family to the local choirboys. But when the Vicar, Leonard Clement, returns to his study to find the Colonel slumped over his desk-dead from a single gunshot-a theoretical wish becomes a grim reality.

The list of suspects is as long as the Sunday morning liturgy:

• The grieving widow and her secret lover, who seem almost too relieved by the Colonel's passing.
• The rebellious daughter, who resented her father's suffocating control.
• The mysterious newcomer, whose past is shrouded in shadows.
• The disgruntled curate, whose accounts were recently questioned by the deceased.

As the local police struggle with a timeline that doesn't add up and a village full of lies, they overlook the most observant mind in the parish: Jane Marple. A white-haired spinster with a passion for gardening and an uncanny understanding of human nature, Miss Marple knows that beneath the tranquil surface of village life lies a "stagnant pool" of wickedness.

While the authorities chase red herrings, Miss Marple quietly knits together the truth, proving that being a "nosy old lady" is the perfect cover for a brilliant detective.

• The Debut of a Legend: The historical first appearance of Jane Marple, one of the most beloved detectives in literary history.
• Classic Whodunnit: A quintessential "locked room" style mystery set in the quintessential English village.
• Narrative Voice: Unique among Marple novels, this is told through the witty and self-deprecating perspective of the village Vicar.