Novel 4:50 from Paddington
A Miss Marple Mystery
A Miss Marple Mystery
by : Agatha Christie
Book Name: 4:50 from Paddington
Series: Miss Marple
Author: Agatha Christie
Characters: Miss Jane Marple, Lucy Eyelesbarrow, Mrs Elspeth McGillicuddy, Luther Crackenthorpe, Emma, Alfred, Cedric and Harold Crackenthorpe
Overview
(If you don’t know the book version or are in need of a refresher, here’s what happens.)
On her way to visit her friend Miss Marple, Elspeth McGillicuddy sees a murder through the window of the train running parallel to her own. A woman is being brutally strangled by a man. When the police are unable to find any evidence of the missing woman, Miss Marple decides to investigate on her own. She deduces that, in order to have evaded discovery for so long, the body must have been thrown from the train on a particular curve of track behind a large, run-down estate called Rutherford Hall.
Rutherford Hall is owned by Luther Crackenthorpe, the curmudgeonly and miserly heir to the Crackenthorpe biscuit, confectionery and canapés fortune, who lives with his daughter Emma. His sons – Harold the banker, Cedric the artist and Alfred the spiv – visit every Christmas. Two other children – Edmund and Edith – have died, but Edith was survived by her husband Bryan and son Alexander. Luther is also regularly attended by Dr Quimper, who is rather fond of Emma.
Too frail to snoop about on her own, Miss Marple hires freelance domestic goddess Lucy Eyelesbarrow, who installs herself at the hall and quickly finds the body concealed in a sarcophagus in a dilapidated barn. Judging from her underwear, the police decide the dead woman was a foreigner, and Emma quickly makes the connection with a letter she received, purportedly from her dead brother Edmund’s French wife, Martine.
Lucy, along with Bryan’s son Alexander and Alexander’s visiting friend James Stoddart-West, continues to search for clues while the police, led by Inspector Craddock, try to find out more about the missing woman. Craddock eventually learns of a missing dancer called Anna Stravinska, who left her troupe at about the time of the murder. But he’s unable to find any definite information, and the investigation stalls.
Then one evening the whole Crackenthorpe family is taken ill. Doctor Quimper attends and the symptoms only seem to be mild, but Alfred dies in the night. A few days later, a package of pills arrives for Harold in London, allegedly from Dr Quimper. But these are poisoned and Harold also dies.
On the missing woman front, the police track down a postcard sent from Jamaica and signed ‘Anna Stravinska’, and James Stoddart-West’s mother reveals that she is Martine, although the letter Emma received was a fake. The investigation stalls again.
But Miss Marple has figured everything out. She calls on her friend Mrs McGillicuddy to return from Ceylon and stages an elaborate ploy. While having tea at the hall she pretends to choke on a fish-bone. When Dr Quimper comes to help her, Mrs McGillicuddy recognises him as the woman from the train. It turns out that the woman was Anna Stravinska. She was also Quimper’s wife. He murdered her so that he could marry Emma and inherit the Crackenthorpe fortune. Later, he got greedy, and murdered Alfred and Harold in order to increase his potential share.
So that’s it. There’s also a few romantic subplots involving Lucy Eyelesbarrow: almost everyone, including creepy Luther Crackenthorpe, seems to want to marry her. At the end she seems to have made up her mind between Bryan and Cedric, but the reader isn’t told which she’s chosen. Miss Marple claims to know, however…
------------
One of my favourite things about Agatha Christie mysteries, other than the actual mystery, of course, is the characterization. So many Christie mysteries are also comedies of manner, and the Crackenthorpe drama in 4:50 from Paddington totally drew me in. I love seeing Miss Marple play matchmaker — despite never having married, she is clearly a romantic at heart, and her knowing little smiles give her prediction the weight of years of observation. As Lucy exclaims after Miss Marple guesses some men in love with her, at a different time, Miss Marple would have been considered a witch for all the things she knew.
Long-time Christie fans, definitely pick up 4:50 from Paddington, and Christie newbies, this is a great novel to get you into the Marple series. You can check out the beginning of the story here — I hope it hooks you like it did me! Finally, I’d like to end with this fun little passage that, to me, reveals so much about Miss Marple:
Summary book 4:50 from Paddington A Miss Marple Mystery
Part 1: Chapters 1–7
When Mrs McGillicuddy takes the 4.50 train from Paddington
to visit her friend Miss Marple, she sees a man strangling a
woman on another train running parallel to hers. She doesn’t
see the man’s face, but he is dark-haired and wearing a heavy
coat.
The strangled woman is wearing a fur coat. The police don’t
find any trace of a murdered woman thrown out of a train.
The following day, after tea in London, Miss Marple and
Mrs McGillicuddy travel back on the same 4.50 train from
Paddington. Miss Marple notices a long curve by a large
country house on the track just before Brackhampton.
Mean, old Luther Crackenthorpe and his daughter, Emma,
live in this house, Rutherford Hall. Miss Marple suspects that
the body is hidden there. She asks Lucy Eyelesbarrow, a
‘professional at housework,’ to work there undercover and
investigate.
Alexander Eastley, Crackenthorpe’s only grandson, and his
friend James Stoddart-West come to stay, and with Lucy they
find a woman’s body hidden in a sarcophagus.
Nobody, including the family’s doctor Dr Quimper, recognizes
the woman. Inspector Bacon thinks the dead woman may be
foreign. Cedric, Harold, Albert – Crackenthorpe’s sons – and
his son-in-law, Bryan Eastley, all attend the woman’s inquest.
Part 2: Chapters 8–14
Detective Inspector Craddock learns from Wimbourne, the
family lawyer, that Luther Crackenthorpe’s father made his
fortune producing biscuits. A will states that Crackenthorpe
mustn’t sell the house; it will be given to his eldest son
(Cedric). The capital from the fortune will be divided equally
between his four children and grandson.
Craddock talks to the family. He thinks the woman may
have been French and a dancer in Paris.
Emma confides to Cedric that the murdered woman might
be Martine, their dead brother’s widow. Martine had sent
them a letter before Christmas saying she was in England and
wanted to meet the family. Emma invited her but then she
received a message from Martine saying she had to return to
France. Dr Quimper advises Emma to tell this to the police.
Mr Crackenthorpe shows Lucy his hidden money and suggests
she should marry him as he’ll live longer than his children.
Emma explains to Craddock about Martine. Not all the
family thinks the letter is genuine. Martine’s son would be an
heir to the fortune. Miss Marple has tea at the hall and notices
Emma and Quimper seem attracted to each other. Alfred
offers Lucy a job, and marriage. Harold also offers Lucy a job
in London.
Craddock continues his investigations in Paris. The missing
dancer, Anna, isn’t the murdered woman, but he believes she
could have known Martine and written the letter.
Wimbourne explains that Martine and Edmund’s son, and not
Cedric, would inherit Rutherford Hall.
Part 3: Chapters 15–20
Alfred and Harold have money problems. Craddock interviews
them both and they explain what they were doing on Friday
20th December. On Christmas Day Mr Crackenthorpe had
been ill and Dr Quimper looked after him. Sergeant Wetherall
recognizes Alfred as being a member of a criminal gang.
Miss Marple speaks about the strong possibility of Dr Quimper
and Emma marrying. Craddock speaks to Quimper about Mr
Crackenthorpe being poisoned at Christmas, which explains
why he was ill. Quimper thinks it was arsenic.
Alexander finds the envelope addressed to Martine that
Emma had sent. Craddock continues his investigations
and Cedric admits he’d been drinking on 20th December.
Alfred came to Rutherford Hall that day and Harold was
in London. The police think Harold might have taken the
train to Brackhampton during the afternoon and
then returned to London.
Mr Crackenthorpe demands curry for dinner, then at
3 am Quimper is called as the family all have food poisoning.
Police find arsenic in the left-over curry. Alfred dies.
Part 4: Chapters 21–27
James’s mother, Lady Stoddart-West, visits Emma; she is
surprised about Martine’s letter. She confirms that she is in
fact Martine. She had married Edmund and after his death
came to England with her present husband. She did not
send the letter.
Quimper sends Harold some pills to take, presumably for
the food poisoning. Craddock tells Miss Marple Harold has
died, Quimper apparently knew nothing about the pills. The
pills were in Emma’s pill box which has her fingerprints on
it. Miss Marple reminds Craddock that Alexander found
the envelope after the police search, perhaps intentionally
dropped by the murderer. Lucy thinks Bryan could be the
murderer; he knew Martine during the war.
Miss Marple asks Mrs McGillicuddy to come and they go
for tea at Rutherford Hall. Miss Marple starts choking on a
fish bone; Quimper puts his hands on her neck and looks down
her throat. Coming into the room Mrs McGillicuddy sees this
and instantly recognizes Quimper as the man on the train.
The murdered woman was Quimper’s wife; they were
separated, but she wouldn’t divorce. He wanted to marry
Emma and get the money. He wrote the letter to try and
implicate the family and then he started poisoning the
brothers.
When Mrs McGillicuddy takes the 4.50 train from Paddington
to visit her friend Miss Marple, she sees a man strangling a
woman on another train running parallel to hers. She doesn’t
see the man’s face, but he is dark-haired and wearing a heavy
coat.
The strangled woman is wearing a fur coat. The police don’t
find any trace of a murdered woman thrown out of a train.
The following day, after tea in London, Miss Marple and
Mrs McGillicuddy travel back on the same 4.50 train from
Paddington. Miss Marple notices a long curve by a large
country house on the track just before Brackhampton.
Mean, old Luther Crackenthorpe and his daughter, Emma,
live in this house, Rutherford Hall. Miss Marple suspects that
the body is hidden there. She asks Lucy Eyelesbarrow, a
‘professional at housework,’ to work there undercover and
investigate.
Alexander Eastley, Crackenthorpe’s only grandson, and his
friend James Stoddart-West come to stay, and with Lucy they
find a woman’s body hidden in a sarcophagus.
Nobody, including the family’s doctor Dr Quimper, recognizes
the woman. Inspector Bacon thinks the dead woman may be
foreign. Cedric, Harold, Albert – Crackenthorpe’s sons – and
his son-in-law, Bryan Eastley, all attend the woman’s inquest.
Part 2: Chapters 8–14
Detective Inspector Craddock learns from Wimbourne, the
family lawyer, that Luther Crackenthorpe’s father made his
fortune producing biscuits. A will states that Crackenthorpe
mustn’t sell the house; it will be given to his eldest son
(Cedric). The capital from the fortune will be divided equally
between his four children and grandson.
Craddock talks to the family. He thinks the woman may
have been French and a dancer in Paris.
Emma confides to Cedric that the murdered woman might
be Martine, their dead brother’s widow. Martine had sent
them a letter before Christmas saying she was in England and
wanted to meet the family. Emma invited her but then she
received a message from Martine saying she had to return to
France. Dr Quimper advises Emma to tell this to the police.
Mr Crackenthorpe shows Lucy his hidden money and suggests
she should marry him as he’ll live longer than his children.
Emma explains to Craddock about Martine. Not all the
family thinks the letter is genuine. Martine’s son would be an
heir to the fortune. Miss Marple has tea at the hall and notices
Emma and Quimper seem attracted to each other. Alfred
offers Lucy a job, and marriage. Harold also offers Lucy a job
in London.
Craddock continues his investigations in Paris. The missing
dancer, Anna, isn’t the murdered woman, but he believes she
could have known Martine and written the letter.
Wimbourne explains that Martine and Edmund’s son, and not
Cedric, would inherit Rutherford Hall.
Part 3: Chapters 15–20
Alfred and Harold have money problems. Craddock interviews
them both and they explain what they were doing on Friday
20th December. On Christmas Day Mr Crackenthorpe had
been ill and Dr Quimper looked after him. Sergeant Wetherall
recognizes Alfred as being a member of a criminal gang.
Miss Marple speaks about the strong possibility of Dr Quimper
and Emma marrying. Craddock speaks to Quimper about Mr
Crackenthorpe being poisoned at Christmas, which explains
why he was ill. Quimper thinks it was arsenic.
Alexander finds the envelope addressed to Martine that
Emma had sent. Craddock continues his investigations
and Cedric admits he’d been drinking on 20th December.
Alfred came to Rutherford Hall that day and Harold was
in London. The police think Harold might have taken the
train to Brackhampton during the afternoon and
then returned to London.
Mr Crackenthorpe demands curry for dinner, then at
3 am Quimper is called as the family all have food poisoning.
Police find arsenic in the left-over curry. Alfred dies.
Part 4: Chapters 21–27
James’s mother, Lady Stoddart-West, visits Emma; she is
surprised about Martine’s letter. She confirms that she is in
fact Martine. She had married Edmund and after his death
came to England with her present husband. She did not
send the letter.
Quimper sends Harold some pills to take, presumably for
the food poisoning. Craddock tells Miss Marple Harold has
died, Quimper apparently knew nothing about the pills. The
pills were in Emma’s pill box which has her fingerprints on
it. Miss Marple reminds Craddock that Alexander found
the envelope after the police search, perhaps intentionally
dropped by the murderer. Lucy thinks Bryan could be the
murderer; he knew Martine during the war.
Miss Marple asks Mrs McGillicuddy to come and they go
for tea at Rutherford Hall. Miss Marple starts choking on a
fish bone; Quimper puts his hands on her neck and looks down
her throat. Coming into the room Mrs McGillicuddy sees this
and instantly recognizes Quimper as the man on the train.
The murdered woman was Quimper’s wife; they were
separated, but she wouldn’t divorce. He wanted to marry
Emma and get the money. He wrote the letter to try and
implicate the family and then he started poisoning the
brothers.
I Read: book 4:50 from Paddington A Miss Marple Mystery
or