“What I feel is that if one has got to have a murder actually happening in one’s house, one might as well enjoy it, if you know what I mean.”

Agatha Christie sure had fun writing about this trope, giving a light humorous tone all throughout the story despite the visceral nature of the deaths present.

Miss Marple's deduction skills (often dismissed by male peers as "women's intuition") are so interesting to see in action as she draws from her "village parallels" accurately. A twitch in the nose, a sigh of relief, and everything in between are translated into a clue.

Christie had such a productive year as she wrote this together with N or M? Miss Marple actually represents the "surplus women" during the war, as women grapple between adopting labor traditionally carried by men (as there was a shortage since men are off as soldiers) and the disproportionate population of men and women furthering spinsterhood.

But Miss Marple's domestic sleuthing isn't a fluke; she's extremely competent. And so her presence during this time was important for a lot of readers.

However, while this was entertaining and quite the parody, I found the obvious slut shaming a little distasteful. Most people think that crime fiction is purely meant to be enjoyed, but for most avid murder mystery readers, there should always be a sense of humanity in these deaths. These dead bodies are not just mere plot points, but humans.

In the same way, I despise cult leaders being adored by the general public, I don't like minimizing dead people (even if they're fictional) into vessels for sleuthing.