Amazon.co.uk:Customer reviews: Sleeping Murder (Marple, Book 4) (Miss Marple Series 13)

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  • Sleeping Murder (Marple, Book 4) (Miss Marple Series 13)
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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
1,633 global ratings
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4 star
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Sleeping Murder (Marple, Book 4) (Miss Marple Series 13)

Sleeping Murder (Marple, Book 4) (Miss Marple Series 13)

byAgatha Christie
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Top positive review

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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsLast but Not Least
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 August 2020
Although written in the 1940s this is the last Miss Marple story and was not published until the 1970s. However, unlike 'Curtain', the last Poirot story, which also has a similar writing and publication history, it does not end with Miss Marple's demise.

It is one of the best of the Marple stories, in part because it a pre-60s story, by which time Christie's writing powers were declining and partly because we actually get to see some depth in Miss Marple's character, rather than the usual card-board cutout little old lady with her knitting and tedious references to inhabitants of her village.

Definitely worth reading.
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4 people found this helpful

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Richmonde
3.0 out of 5 starsDisappointing and rather dull
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 July 2020
Christie wrote this book during the war, to leave to her husband or daughter. It wasn't published until after her death. It seems to be set in the 30s (the war isn't happening and Miss Marple is only in her 60s), but actually happens in a kind of no-time. This means we miss her usual chronicling of the changing times, and witty takes on characters from different backgrounds.

The younger, sprightly Miss Marple spends a lot of time weeding an overgrown garden, and foils the villain in an ingenious manner. I wish Christie had used this idea in a better book!

The central character is from New Zealand, so in both TV and audiobook form we are stuck with a British actor attempting her accent.

Curtain, the other book she stashed in a bank vault, is much better. Hastings and Poirot return to Styles, now a guest house, where a succession of rather odd "accidents" ensue. The TV version was not bad, though the set designer's idea of a grand house on its uppers included rooms empty but for a piano, bare boards, and all the wallpaper scraped off and left. It looked like a fashion shoot.
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From United Kingdom

Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Last but Not Least
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 August 2020
Verified Purchase
Although written in the 1940s this is the last Miss Marple story and was not published until the 1970s. However, unlike 'Curtain', the last Poirot story, which also has a similar writing and publication history, it does not end with Miss Marple's demise.

It is one of the best of the Marple stories, in part because it a pre-60s story, by which time Christie's writing powers were declining and partly because we actually get to see some depth in Miss Marple's character, rather than the usual card-board cutout little old lady with her knitting and tedious references to inhabitants of her village.

Definitely worth reading.
4 people found this helpful
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S Riaz
HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE VOICE
4.0 out of 5 stars Sleeping Murder
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 20 March 2017
Verified Purchase
Although this is listed as the thirteenth Miss Marple novel, and was published in 1976, it was actually written during WWII and shows her as a fairly sprightly lady, compared to some books. According to the Agatha Christie website, it should sit between “The Moving Finger,” and “A Murder is Announced,” and that is where I have positioned it in my re-reading of these books.

Gwenda Reed has arrived from New Zealand, charged with buying a house for her, and her new husband, Giles; who is due to join her soon. She falls in love with a house in Dillmouth, called Hillside, and buys it. However, aside from a disconcerting feeling of fear when she stands at the top of the stairs, soon there are other familiar things that she should not know about. She senses a door should be leading from a room, and finds it has been closed up, she imagines a wallpaper and finds it in an old cupboard… Unnerved, she goes to stay with cousins of Giles, who just happen to be Raymond West, Miss Marple’s nephew, and his wife, Joan. Then an event brings back the memory of a dead body, lying at the bottom of the stairs in her house. Fearing she is going mad, she confides in Miss Marple, who not only believes her, but decides go and stay in Dillmouth to keep an eye on things.

Some years before, Gwenda discovered she had lived in the house, as a small child. Her step mother was rumoured to had run off with another man, but what if she hadn’t? Giles and Gwenda set out to investigate, but will raking up the past prove dangerous and can they really discover what happened so long ago? This is an enjoyable murder mystery, with Miss Marple heavily involved in events. There are a number of possible suspects and, although I actually guessed the correct one, it was still an interesting read, with good characters and Miss Marple really investigating the crime.
8 people found this helpful
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Richmonde
3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing and rather dull
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 July 2020
Verified Purchase
Christie wrote this book during the war, to leave to her husband or daughter. It wasn't published until after her death. It seems to be set in the 30s (the war isn't happening and Miss Marple is only in her 60s), but actually happens in a kind of no-time. This means we miss her usual chronicling of the changing times, and witty takes on characters from different backgrounds.

The younger, sprightly Miss Marple spends a lot of time weeding an overgrown garden, and foils the villain in an ingenious manner. I wish Christie had used this idea in a better book!

The central character is from New Zealand, so in both TV and audiobook form we are stuck with a British actor attempting her accent.

Curtain, the other book she stashed in a bank vault, is much better. Hastings and Poirot return to Styles, now a guest house, where a succession of rather odd "accidents" ensue. The TV version was not bad, though the set designer's idea of a grand house on its uppers included rooms empty but for a piano, bare boards, and all the wallpaper scraped off and left. It looked like a fashion shoot.
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Tahnee
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great read from Agatha Christie
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 January 2021
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The "adaptation" of Sleeping Murder featuring Geraldine McEwan as Miss Marple is my favourite dramatisation of the Marple mysteries. Therefore, I was excited to read the book it was based on. I have to admit I was taken aback to discover that 95% of the story featured in that dramatisation was never in the book! I'm not sure which I prefer, either. The dramatisation was so different it's practically impossible to compare it to the book.

Agatha Christie is on her usual fine form in this mystery. The pace is perfect, the clues hidden in plain sight, and the central two characters are likeable without being annoying. If you enjoy Agatha Christie books then I'd recommend Sleeping Murder.
One person found this helpful
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Intheamazone
TOP 500 REVIEWER
4.0 out of 5 stars The Enigmatic Marple....
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 August 2017
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A classic Miss Marple tale which was written by Agatha Christie some thirty years or so before being eventually published (originally titled Murder in Retrospect), told in inimitable style. Soon after moving into a new home, Gwenda experiences strange occurrences with alarming regularity and with no explanation. Are her fears irrational, ghostly or more of the human form? Gwenda soon confides in Miss Marple and requests her help. Miss Marple takes an eminently logical viewpoint to solve this mystery. Perhaps a far fetched tale indeed but told well - although certainly not a traditional Christie 'whodunnit'. This remains one of my least favourite tales from Agatha Christie although I can't pinpoint exactly why this is so! - perhaps because it's a little 'off the wall'! It's still a good, solid mystery with the enigmatic Miss Marple and, as such, an enjoyable and engaging read.
5 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Are childhood memories of a possible murder ,True or false ?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 3 December 2017
Verified Purchase
This is an excellent murder mystery featuring Miss Marple. The story begins with a married couple Giles and Gwenda buying a house overlooking the resort of Dilmouth. Gwenda soon experiences feelings of deja vu and a terrifying flashback of a desd women at the bottom of the stairs .When Miss Marple suggests that Gwenda may have lived as a child in the house ,the couple decide to investigate the mystery . Miss Marple warns them that the past can be a dangerous place and suggests caution .What follows is a tale of madness ,jealousy and a mysterious disappearance . A great book well worth reading.
2 people found this helpful
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David Harris
5.0 out of 5 stars A classic whodunnit in retrospect!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 June 2019
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Although the last Miss Marple book to be published (posthumously in the mid 1970’s) it was actually one of the firs to be written during the second world war when Miss Christie was at her brilliant best. Like the even more brilliant Five Little Pigs this tells the story of a Murder committed almost 20 years ago that has escaped notice and is now being investigated. However unlike Five Little Pigs the facts are very unclear and there is even doubt that it even is Murder. As the investigation evolves facts come to light and characters are introduced climaxing in a very clever, ingenious and rather creepy denounement! Like most Christie’s it’s told at an energetic pace, rich in plot and with interesting believable characters none more so than the brilliant, Miss Marple who is particularly resourceful & shrewd and is thankfully introduced early on and is a constant presence (something that doesn’t happen in many other more inferior Marple stories). As an avid Christie fan I often feel the Marple stories are sadly inferior to the Poirot ones but I am happy to say this is not the case here. Vintage Christie and one of the her very best in the Marple series. A must read for any murder mystery enthusiast.
2 people found this helpful
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Neet
4.0 out of 5 stars Good but read before"The Mirror Cracked"
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 February 2016
Verified Purchase
Although the book is of Christie's usual, excellent standard I read it as the last (13th) in her series of full Miss Marple novels, as per the recommended order.
Unfortunately, when, at the
beginning of this book, Miss Marple
engages with a character whose demise is
the reason for the appearance of the main
cast of "The Mirror Cracked", I was
distracted for the rest of the book. This was a huge shame and spoiled my enjoyment of what is it is a good read.
2 people found this helpful
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TCool
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent end to the Miss Harold series. Thoroughly enjoyed reading them again after so many years
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 August 2021
Verified Purchase
Really enjoyed re visiting these books after many years. Interesting on a social level too as they span across the decades. I thought they may appear quite dated but she had such an understanding of human nature. Looking forward to revisiting her other mysteries and Hercule Poirot.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Typical Agatha Christie - Great!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 January 2018
Verified Purchase
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even though I knew the ending thanks to the excellent Joan Hickson's portrayal of Miss Marple many years ago. Her writing draws you in and immediately you feel that you know the characters personally. I look forward to re-reading it in the future, as I've done with all her other books which I've read. Great escapist stuff.
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