Murder at the Vicarage was also the first Miss Marple I read and it had a big impact on me. Up until then, I had read some Tommy and Tuppence books and, many be, a couple of Poirots but I wouldn't have exactly called myself a fan.

This novel really gripped me. I had just left school, at a new college without my normal friends and was feeling lonely and out of my depth. This book was like an old friend - it immersed me in a comfortable world with beleivable characters and I so wished I was there and not hating every day in my world.

Miss Marple could not have been introduced in her first full novel in any better setting. It gives her a context and a history, even if we are not to know it. I think having the novel narrated from Mr Clements point of view adds to the story, He's very human for a vicar and, because he knows these people he is talking about, we feel we know them too.

As for the varying descriptions of Miss Marple, they are only one characters point of view. Mrs Clements refers to her as 'a cat' and I think she does that as she is relatively new to the area and lumps her in with her general opinion of the more elderly ladies in the village. After all, she is young and broader minded and, although part of her enjoys stirring these ladies up to gossip, part of her thinks it cruel and malicious. When she realises how intuative Miss Marple is and how she will keep her own counsel rather than spread words around the village she revises her view.   

Puffinjill

...was feeling lonely and out of my depth...and I so wished I was there and not hating every day in my world.

That is exactly how I feel these days. I'm thinking I'll take a break from here. Besides these days I'm really busy stalking up my library at LT and writing reviews for all the books I've read this year, reading a book with my online book group, writing up entries for a speculative fiction encyclopedia and add to that my school work and my social life, you'll see I've got too much on my plate already. I really should cut down on my book related activities anyway. BTW, nice analysis, puffinjill.

Frndorfoe

 I'm thinking I'll take a break from here.

:o(

No! I hope you don't decide to stop chatting on here, Frndorfoe. I've grown fond of our little AC group and I would hate to see anyone leave from here. I hope you change your mind and stay; your posts are always a joy to read! I don't mean to sound like a Pollyanna; it is genuinely how I feel.

Oh, please don't Frndorfoe! I can understand it must be difficult to find the time but it would be a shame to loose your point of view and opinions from this site. God, it's all I can do to squeeze a couple of minutes a day on here as I am bogged down with work and courses, but I so look forwards to these precious few minutes a day. It makes me feel part of something and that is important to me. So, please do try to keep logging on if you get a spare minute. (I should have left my house 10 minutes ago to go to a meeting, but I'm too engrossed so I will be late. AND I'm chairing it!!)

If you do feel lonely, then this site will always welcome you. I'm sure Bundle and many others would agree. Right, I'd better go..

I’m sorry. This will be my last post. Thank you for caring enough about me, you two. But recently I’ve been getting a certain negative energy from this forum and I want to surround myself with only positive energy. This negative energy is affecting my other works as well and I just don’t need that right now.

Bundle, you are one of the nicest and kindest persons I’ve ever met and I’ll really miss you. Don’t ever change. You and I disagreed about stuff but you were never pig headed about your own choices and never tried to make me like the same things. I consider you to be my friend and would have liked to have met you in person.

Some other members I’d like to mention are GKCFan and 3rdGirl.

GKC, thank you very much for being informative (without being preachy). Your posts were long but never rambling. You were always very helpful. I’d be forever grateful to you because without your help I never would have been able to read the new Capture of Cerberus. You always give the right information and set everyone on the right path without being all superior about it. You are a truly mature person. I’ll miss you.

3rdGirl, we had some really lively discussions and I always enjoyed your views. You are very sweet. I’ll miss you.

Puffinjill, I’ve not known you for a long time. But you seem like a nice person. Thank you very much for your concern.

Well, this is it. Goodbye and take care. May the good Lord bless you, my friends!

I am sorry you feel this way and hope what you say isn't true.

Also, I really hope there was nothing in my original post on this tread that has caused you to make this decision. I'm feeling terribly sad.

Please don't go Frndorfoe, The last thing I ever wanted to doi was make you want to leave, I think everybody should feel entitled to express their opinion and I am sorry if I have made you come to this decission.

NOOOOOOOO! Frndorfoe! I've been away and missed this! How sad that this forum has made you sad! Don't leave us forever. Maybe just take a little break and come back?? I personally don't get onto the discussions where some of the people are a bit cranky. I try to stick with you guys! Why don't you go and read your favourite AC whilst sipping on a nice cup of tea and forget about us for a few days. Then you'll HAVE to come back and chat to us about it! Sending you a *big hug*.

Thank you for your kind words about me, Frndorfoe.  I hope that you decide to come back to the forum soon.

Murder in the Vicarage- I saw the Hickson version before I read the book. I like the vicar narrated the story, he is as human as everyone else. His jealously towards his wife and nephew, his anger at Colonel Protheroe.

Only thing I didn't like was Lettice protheroe. Why she annoys me so much I don't know. But she could could have made a good suspect, but she's as limp as a wet lettuce.

Miss Marple feels different to the other Marple's. She feel more busy bodyish and slightly more robust. It's almost like it was a pilot episode where character's change can slightly.

I'm like a clumsy younger male version of Lettice Protheroe. I lose things, fall over things, hit myself on the head with stuff as a complete accident, and once I fell over the same person twice in one day. (I don't think any of you know what I mean when I say I'm like Hondou Eisuke?) Has Frndorfoe ever come back? Just reading that post above made me feel so sad- and I never even knew that person...

Ive had the most unbelievable accident's which I couldn't post here as no one would believe them!I'm clumsy myself but thats not why I dislike Lettice. It's that she seems to be leading Dennis on, she doesnt really care for mim. She interested in the artist instead. Then she plants her stepmother's earing and pretneds to be all innocent searching for her little yellow beret!

Oh, I would never do any of that. Honestly. Honestly! Stop making that look! Once, I slipped on a badly-placed Coke bottle that was at the top of a staircase and fell down all the way. It was in school, too. Everyone was staring at me... It was so embarrassing. I'm glad that the artist guy ditches her.

Oh, poor you. This is going to sound mad, but I injured myself making a cup of tea! I went to the cupboard and I had one of those mug trees inside.. well somehow the mug fell off and hit me on the head! I can laugh now, but at the time it hurt. I had no sympahy from anyone as they said "how can that be possible?" and made compassions to myself and Mr Bean..

I should call myself Miss Bean instead of Miss Quin but I would rather have the Mr Quin conncetion as he is mysterious and engimatic..

I sawed my thumb slightly while making a mug tree... Maybe they're cursed? It was the teacher's fault. Everyone was happily working on their mug trees when suddenly he whacked his huge fist on the desk and hollered "Everyone STOP!" The school workshops all have a serious echo problem too, and I flinched and cut my thumb with the saw. It left a big mark for ages!

I like cooking but I'd get a maid to do all the other stuff- unless she was like Mary from this book. Perhaps I should try to be less Eisuke and more Ran... again another enigmatic reference to Detective Conan. I don't know why I keep doing that. I've always wanted a balcony, they look so cool to me.

Cooking is a perilous business for me with flying mugs and pototo mashers. But somehow I carry on as usual.   Theres a mix of good and bad servants in Chrisites. There the loyal, excellent ones. Then the greedy, blackmailing or useless ones.

What ever happened with the Charlotan Archaeologist? They say how he stole all those things but does he just get away? If they said in the book I must have surpassed it on accident.

Oh and I liked how they had completely ruled out Mrs. Potheroe and Mr. Redding, and didn't second guess it. But Ms. Marple knew what happened as if she watched it in a movie. Shes good!