tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8273911883856580200.post8388249882710193563..comments2024-03-11T00:52:06.529+10:30Comments on MYSTERIES in PARADISE: Review: THE BODY IN THE LIBRARY, Agatha ChristieKerriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13581470363339796352noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8273911883856580200.post-17208785591320998112011-10-03T10:36:05.478+10:302011-10-03T10:36:05.478+10:30I picked up my copy of The Body in the Library in ...I picked up my copy of The Body in the Library in the giftshop at Christie's home, Greenway when we visited with Norman several years ago. I selected it solely because it had the word library in the title an I'm a librarian. It was a fortunate choice because I quite enjoyed it. <br /><br />It is nicely complex with the action moving between Gosington Hall and St Mary Mead and the resort hotel, large cast of characters, subplots to bring together, misdirections, and odd occurrences. The character of Basil Blake seemed quite daring to me for a cosie of the time. And a character uses a word I did not expect to see in a Miss Marple story.<br /><br />As far as treatment of the police, I disagree somewhat. Miss Marple is going to be the one to put the pieces together but I though she did a good job with the procedural part of the investigation in this story. I thought Christie was having fun with Inspector Slack's name, playing with contrasts. As she points out in several stories, he is anything but slack. "Activity was always to Inspector Slack's taste", "In vain Inspector slack redoubled that energy that so belied his name."<br /><br />This is an excellent story even if you are not fond of the cosie genre.Mackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05555318160638307655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8273911883856580200.post-30646668139344129372011-10-02T22:55:29.572+10:302011-10-02T22:55:29.572+10:30Kerrie - A really fine review - thanks :-). You kn...Kerrie - A really fine review - thanks :-). You know, I hadn't thought about it, but you've got a point about the way Christie paints the police. In some novels she's more complimentary than in others. But there are indeed several novels where they aren't painted in the most positive light. Interesting point about the name of that Inspector, too...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com