Miss Marple, you say?! I have been planning to do this particular book tag for a long while now, but…well, things got busy. But here I am at last, and better late than never. I just had to do it − again, I say, it’s Miss Marple!

 

The original tag was created by James Holder, on his Youtube channel, which you can find here. I’m picking up the broad “consider yourself tagged” by Rosie Cockshutt, whose Booktube channel can be found here. Also, I’m considering myself tagged from Jeremy Fee’s video, which you can find here

 

For the fun of it, I’m going to answer all of these without using other Agatha Christie novels for my answers!

 

  1. The Murder at the Vicarage: A book about, or set in, a small town or village?

I will choose Rilla of Ingleside by L. M. Montgomery, because it is a really interesting case for this prompt. The story takes place during World War I and closely follows along with the major events of the war, from the perspective of the Canadian women and the people left behind. Yet the story never leaves its small town setting, never travels outside of Four Winds, P.E.I. It’s fascinating to focus on the impact upon these people who are so far away from the war itself, and yet so intimately connected to it at the same time.

 

  1. The Body in the Library: A book with a pivotal scene set in a library?

It took me an embarrassingly long time to find a good answer for this prompt, especially since I made the executive decision not to promote Harry Potter just now. Instead, I settled on Thimble Summer, by Elizabeth Enright. This book is about Garnet Linden, a young farmer girl who gets into a series of wacky scrapes in the American Midwest, during the 1930s. In one such adventure, Garnet and her friend Citronella accidentally get locked into the library at closing time, and have to spend the night there. (Which kind of sounds like the dream, amiright??)

 

  1. The Moving Finger: A book in which the protagonist is trolled, harassed, subject to a rumo[u]r campaign, or falsely accused?

There are actually quite a few stories I could use here, but I will go with Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston, which you may remember seeing all over the Internet in 2020. The main characters are the son of the American President, and the grandson of the British Queen, and are thus subject to all kinds of harassment, rumour campaigns, and tabloid stories. Without going into spoilers, the final act of the book focuses heavily on rumour campaigns and tabloid harassment.

 

  1. A Murder is Announced: A book in which there is a sympathetic depiction of a Marxist, or equivalent?

I will go with the Will Darling adventures by K. J. Charles, the first book of which is Slippery Creatures. One of the main characters, Kim Secretan, is an aristocrat with strong Bolshevik leanings for which he gets into some legal trouble. Although Kim later distances himself from the political views of the actual Bolshevik leaders, he more or less keeps his belief in the importance of a more egalitarian society.

 

  1. They Do It With Mirrors: A book in which performance plays a major role?

I really have a nice array of choices from Noel Streatfeild’s books, but I will select Ballet Shoes as one book where the reader actually gets to see a lot of the performances. The three young girls are enrolled in a prestigious ballet school, and as the book progresses, each girl must decide what she wants to make of her future.

 

  1. A Pocket Full of Rye: A book based upon or inspired by a nursery rhyme, fairy tale, myth, or other work of fiction?

Wow, we really went broad with that last addition on the list! I’ll go with Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik, which is a beautiful retelling of the Rumplestiltskin fairytale. It also draws upon Russian folklore about Chernybog and Balbog, as well as Jewish religious traditions.

 

  1. 4.50 From Paddington: A book in which more than two suitors pursue the main protagonist?

That’s the main takeaway we’re getting from this book?? Okay, then! I will recommend the novel Arabella, by Georgette Heyer. It has a fantastic, screwball-type premise: our intrepid heroine pretends that she has a massive fortune, just to teach an arrogant jerk a lesson…and then, of course, the lie gets out. Poor Arabella finds herself being pursued by half the fortune-hunters of Regency-era London! It is a very funny, and wild, madcap ride.

 

  1. The Mirror Crack’d From Side to Side: A book about a changing world?

My choice is The Lions of Al-Rassan, by Guy Gavriel Kay. While the book takes place in a parallel universe, it closely follows the Reconquista in which Christian Spain invaded and took over Al-Andalus, aka Muslim Spain. The story focuses on the major players as they make choices and take actions that drastically alter the shape of their world.

 

I have a second recommendation for this category as well: The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline. We actually read this book for one of our monthly buddy reads, and you can find our review here. For the purposes of this prompt, I’ll just say that the book is set in a dystopian near-future in which the Indigenous protagonists are on the run from the Canadian government.

 

  1. A Caribbean Mystery: A book about, or set in, the Caribbean?

Honestly, I haven’t read a ton of books set in the Caribbean, and I really wouldn’t recommend some of the ones I have read. I’m going to rectify that at some point, but meanwhile, I will go with Rafael Sabatini’s Captain Blood. The story is set mainly in Jamaica and on the Caribbean seas. It follows a group of morally righteous pirates who revolt from a plantation owner, commandeer a ship, and proceed to prowl and loot all over the high seas.

 

  1. At Bertram’s Hotel: A book about artifice?

The Ivy Tree, by Mary Stewart. On a visit to England, Mary Grey is hired by a stranger to impersonate Annabel Winslow, a woman who had mysteriously disappeared several years ago. Their plan is for Mary to manipulate Annabel’s grandfather into leaving his estate to Annabel’s cousin. But Mary also has secrets and an agenda of her own, as does every other person around her. I’m not going any further into it, because spoilers! I’ll just say that the mystery plot was full of some great twists and turns.

 

  1. Nemesis: A book featuring a quest?

Really, any of the Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander would qualify, but it would be best to start at the beginning. The first of the series is The Book of Three, in which the protagonist Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper, is on a quest to find his oracular pig Hen Wen, before the latter is captured by the dreaded Horned King. (Have I piqued your interest? It is a tremendously fun story!)

 

  1. Sleeping Murder: A book in which the past haunts the present?

For this, the final published Marple novel, I will recommend Bellewether by Susanna Kearsley. The story follows dual timelines, one contemporary and one during the Seven-Years-War between British Canada and French Canada. It is particularly well suited for this prompt: in each of the dual timelines, the characters are deeply affected by the events of their pasts. Oh, and did I mention the ghost? There is a literal ghost too.

 

Herein lies the end of official list of questions for the book tag.

 

HOLD ON, THOUGH. How can you have a Miss Marple book tag, and not have a thirteenth question based upon The Thirteen Problems? It was right there! Well, I’ll just have to rectify that.

 

  1. The Thirteen Problems: A book in which an overlooked elderly character kicks metaphorical butt?

I’ll use this opportunity to shout out my beloved Terry Pratchett and his Witches’ series, the first book of which is Wyrd Sisters. In said first book, the evil, Macbethian king underestimates Granny Weatherwax and her headology, which is a grave error on his part! And by the way, I’m sure Miss Marple would have loved to share a cup of tea and a cozy chat with Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg.

Title page for Rilla of Ingleside by L M Montgomery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Title page for Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright

 

Cover page of Red, White & Royal Blue, by Casey McQuiston

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover page of Slippery Creatures, by K. J. Charles

 

Title page for Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover for Spinning Silver, by Naomi Novik

 

Cover for Arabella by Georgette Heyer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover page for The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay

 

An Indigenous Canadian boy with a streak of white paint on his cheek against a dark blue background

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover page for The Ivy Tree, by Mary Stewart

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover page for The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

 

Cover page for Bellewether by Susanna Kearsley

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cover page for Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett

 

 

 

 

And there it is, my answers for the Miss Marple Book Tag! I can’t believe it took me so long; this was tremendously fun. I actually didn’t make any changes to the questions, for once, so I guess they were well-drafted for my subconscious’s sake.

 

Lastly, I have some recommendations for anyone who is new to the awesomeness that is Miss Marple. To be clear, these are not necessarily my favourite Marple books, though there is definitely some overlap. Rather, these are my suggestions for good entry points to the wonderful world of Marple:

 

  • The Thirteen Problems: (aka The Tuesday Club Murders) Starting at the start is always a good idea! Also, since this is a collection of short stories, it might be easier to get into.
  • Murder at the Vicarage: Since this was Miss Marple’s first full-length novel, Agatha Christie kind of reintroduces the character for the masses.
  • The Body in the Library: A classic for a reason! It’s also a more active Marple story, and one in which we finally get to see our beloved Miss Marple’s thoughts.
  • A Murder is Announced: This one is a great showcase for Miss Marple. She gets to draw comparisons to village life, have poignant conversations, get snubbed by snobby police officers, and practice her ventriloquism.

 

Since I was tagged via an open-ended “consider yourself tagged”, I will pass it along here. If you’ve read this blog post and you would like to do this book tag, then consider yourself tagged! And if you do end up reading any of the Marple books mentioned above, let us know what you thought of it in the comments!

 

 

 

Hello, readers!

Over the past month, Hailey and I have made a lot of additions to the Page and Prose website, and what better way to keep track of them than in our blog? Mind you, this post is not meant to be a formal, structured log of activities. Instead, consider it a kind of news report/summary of things that you might want to explore.

 

First off, we finished our first monthly buddy read on T. Kingfisher’s A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking, and our respective thoughts on the book can be found here.

 

Hailey and I also plan to complete the 52 Book Club’s 2021 reading challenge over the course of this year. You can follow our progress as we meet the various reading goals here. Feel free to join the reading challenge, and let us know of your progress!

 

Hailey set up our Instagram account, and you can check out her beautiful photography  and bookshelf compositions here. Our handle is @pageandprosereviews. We would love to chat with you on Instagram, so feel free to jump into our comments sections or send us a message!

 

June is Pride Month, and I really wanted to do something special to honour LGBTQIA+ stories and literature. As such, I have compiled a (short!) list of book recommendations across various genres, featuring LGBTQIA+ relationships and characters:

 

 

  • The Song of Achilles, by Madeline Miller: A beautiful retelling of the Trojan War cycle through the eyes of Patroclus, and centering on his love story with Achilles. (Greek mythology; YA literary fiction)

 

  • Red, White and Royal Blue, by Casey McQuiston: An own-voices new adult story about a grudging friendship that turns into something more, between the son of the American president and the grandson of the British queen. (New adult; coming-of-age)

 

  • A Memory Called Empire, by Arkady Martine: A deeply philosophical and also thrillingly adventurous story about a young woman who is sent to a foreign planet as an ambassador, only to find mysteries and intrigue at every turn. (Science fiction)

 

  • The Will Darling Adventures, by K. J. Charles: A (now completed!) trilogy set in post-WWI era England, wherein former soldier Will Darling must deal with danger, secret societies, conspiracies, and murder. (Mystery; thriller) ***Note: contains explicit content!

 

  • Banner of the Damned, by Sherwood Smith: A young scribe travels from her peaceful, art-loving home to a brusque warrior society, where she must decide whether to break her vows and interfere in political events or sit by and watch the world plunge toward destruction. (High fantasy; political intrigue)

 

  • Starless, by Jacqueline Carey: A gender-fluid young warrior, soul-bound to a differently-abled princess, navigates assassination attempts and machinations as the two seek a a way to defeat an ancient evil. (High fantasy; adventure/quest)

Cover of The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Cover page of Red, White & Royal Blue, by Casey McQuiston

Cover page of A Memory Called Empire, by Arkady Martine

Cover page of Slippery Creatures, by K. J. Charles

Cover page of Banner of the Damned, by Sherwood Smith

Cover page of Starless, by Jacqueline Carey

 

 

Have I sold you on any of them?

 

By the way, I am by no means an expert on LGBTQIA+ literature. If you want a more informed selection, I’d refer you to some curated lists by the CNN (here), CBC (here), The Guardian (here), and Penguin Random House (here).

 

I’ll end June’s post with a piece of book-related news: one of my favourite authors, Sherwood Smith is releasing a new book through her brand-new Patreon account (here). Sherwood has been through some exceptionally difficult times lately, what with perfidious agents, publication delays, and unpleasant vaccination side effects, so if you are a fan of her works, you may want to send some support her way.

 

We wish you well, in all your bookish endeavours!