Her last case was 50 years ago, written by Agatha Christie just before she died. Could I really follow in the footsteps of the Queen of Crime?
When I was asked to write the first full-length Miss Marple novel since Sleeping Murder was published posthumously, 50 years ago in October, I immediately thought of my granny. My first encounter with the world of Agatha Christie was through her. Now I come to think of it, she was a rather Marple-ish figure in many ways: a keen knitter and gardener with a brilliant mind (she could complete the “big” crossword in seemingly about 15 minutes), highly perceptive about people and human nature and with a powerful moral compass. While kind and generous beyond measure, at times, like Miss Marple, she showed a steelier side.
Christie created Jane Marple in a Christmas magazine story called The Tuesday Night Club in 1927, and this “white-haired old lady” made her book debut in 1930 with The Murder at the Vicarage. Rivalling Hercule Poirot in her readers’ affections, Miss Marple eventually appeared in 12 of the author’s 66 detective novels, plus 20 of her 160 short stories. With more than 1bn Agatha Christie books sold in English, and another 1bn sold in translation, they are some of the most perpetually loved works ever written. But though Sophie Hannah was commissioned by Christie’s family to publish an authorised continuation of her Poirot novels in 2013, no one had ever been asked to write a new Miss Marple. Until now …
