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The large-scale plot (wide-ranging crime spree masterminded by ... well, a mastermind of course!) is a bit of a non-starter, but the atmosphere of Bertram's Hotel more than makes up for it. The small-scale plot involving the heiress is rather well done.

Although... the doddering elderly clergyman with a shock of white hair, who finds himself adrift in the modern world and gets into trouble by forgetting what day it is and missing his flight to Lucerne... is 63. Sixty-three! About 20 years younger than I expected. I haven't met a doddering 63 year old ever. What changed since 1965? Has NHS done a great job of maintaining the health of its citizens into their later decades, or what? ( )

While Miss Marple is present through most of the book, she doesn't really contribute to the solution in the way I expected. This reread has made me reconsider my rating. In particular, I didn't care for the ending. ( )

This is one of the Miss Marple books, and it feels like three different short stories awkwardly jammed together (via the connective tissue of a London hotel): you've got a missing-clergyman story, you've got an international-smuggling-ring story, and you've got a murder-because-of-a-threatened-inheritance story. I guess this novel is nominally interesting for the exceptionally serene POV of the murderer (and is maybe interesting to Miss Marple fans because it takes place in exotic London), but the actual "mystery" is pretty thin gruel. ( )

This was DCI Davy with help from Miss Marple, rather than a straight Miss Marple, but was well-plotted and had endearing characters like Canon Pennyfather and his housekeeper. It made me want to stay at a hotel in London. ( )

Made me want seed cake and English breakfast.

Not the best of Christie's work. The plots are a bit too tangled. Ms. Marple was not even that important to the main plot. I like Father but the whole crime ring plot is a bit messy. It probably would be better if she just focus on the mother/daughter part. ( )

I was very disappointed in this one. Miss Marple is barely present (though observant--and yes, snoopy--as ever), and the context of the robbery ring and classic hotel is bizarrely and unnecessarily complicated. Why on earth did the robbers need to have a doppelganger of a hotel guest present at every robbery? Why involve the hotel at all? The actual murder and its solution seems sort of an afterthought although the predisposing circumstances were threaded throughout the book. Clearly a product of Dame Agatha's declining years. ( )

Quando Miss Marple deixa o pacato vilarejo de St. Mary Mead para passar uma temporada em Londres, não hesita em se hospedar no tradicional Hotel Bertram. Mas, para além de tudo o que procurava para aproveitar as merecidas férias – requinte, serviço impecável e agradáveis memórias de infância –, acaba se deparando com uma inconfundível atmosfera de perigo. Nem mesmo sua sagacidade pode prever a cadeia de eventos violentos que se inicia quando um dos hóspedes desaparece repentinamente. Em O caso do Hotel Bertram, publicado em 1965, Miss Marple é uma peça fundamental para ajudar a Scotland Yard a desvendar os mistérios que se escondem por detrás dessas sofisticadas paredes, antes que seja tarde demais...

Quando mr. Hastings encontra seu velho conhecido John Cavendish casualmente e aceita seu convite para passar uma temporada na enorme e isolada casa de campo de Styles, não imagina a misteriosa trama que o espera. Mrs. Emily Inglethorp, madrasta de John e Laurence Cavendish, herdou a propriedade de seu marido e tem todo o controle sobre patrimônio da família. Seu segundo marido é Alfred Inglethorp, vinte anos mais novo, cujo passado é nebuloso, o que causa enorme apreensão nos filhos de mrs. Emily e nos demais moradores de Styles. A tensão na propriedade chega ao limite quando mrs. Emily é encontrada trancada em seu quarto nos últimos estertores e morre com o nome de seu marido nos lábios.

Morte natural ou envenenamento? Quem além de seu marido teria interesse em sua morte? Como ela pode ter sido envenenada? Para responder a todas essas perguntas, mr. Hastings, velho amigo de Hercule Poirot, pede autorização à família para chamar o excêntrico detetive belga. O astuto e simpático detetive analisa as evidências, entrevista testemunhas e o leitor vai seguindo seus passos a partir da envolvente narração de mr. Hastings. E a ele fica o desafio: diante de provas desconexas, testemunhos duvidosos e inúmeras reviravoltas, como o sagaz Poirot irá desvendar esta imbricada trama onde ninguém é exatamente o que parece?

At Bertram’s Hotel is a later Miss Marple mystery written and set in 1960’s London. It’s a bit different than other Marple books, but it’s got an extraordinary sense of time and place. The setting just pulls you in. And some interesting characters. Though I wouldn’t say it’s anywhere near her best works, there are so many elements to enjoy that it makes for a good read.

Miss Marple’s observations on life are on full display in this novel. Here’s a brilliant quote.

‘Miss Marple sighed. “It seemed wonderful at first - unchanged you know - like stepping back into the past - to a part of the past that one had loved and enjoyed.”
She paused. “But of course, it wasn’t really like that, I learned (what I suppose I really knew already) that one can never go back, that one should not ever try to go back - that the essence of life is going forward. Life is really a one way street, isn’t it?”’ ( )

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Toward the end of her life, Christie really got a bee in her bonnet about crazed, amoral, sex-mad teenagers. This isn’t the worst of those books (that would be Nemesis, as far as I can remember, or maybe Postern of Fate), but you can see the theme start to emerge. Also, this is one of those Miss Marple books in which Miss Marple barely puts in an appearance. It must’ve gotten more and more difficult to shoehorn an old maid from a rural village into murder investigations.

Stephanie Cole is a stellar Miss Marple narrator. It’s too bad she didn’t perform more of them. ( )

One of the Marple-iest Marples, with the usual, quieter themes of respectability and connections front and center this time.

4/8/22

I grew up with Agatha Christie the way some people grew up with the Bible; she was a constant presence in our house. Being a contrary child, that means I'd read everything except Christie. Mild guilt about this while I was in my 20's had me picking up the Miss Marple short stories (minimal commitment, you see).

I gotta say, while I could understand the attraction, I didn't understand the devotion. Miss Marple was smart and the mysteries were great, but the abuse of village parallels was too much. Towards the end, I was just yelling "just say what you mean you old bat!"

Which is why it's now very many years later and, with few exceptions, I still haven't read most of Christie's work, even though I've been slowly accumulating them. When my current booklikes-opoly square required a book set between 1945 and 1965, At Bertram's Hotel was just about the only book I had that fit the bill.

So, here I am, finally reading my first full-length Miss Marple. I'm happy to report only one village parallel! And Miss Marple does more than just sit on a bench and knit; she's actively eavesdropping and inventing mishaps to get closer to people who are up to no good. She felt like an active participant in the mystery, even if she wasn't really sleuthing and had no idea about what exactly was going on until the end.

But the book was generally a bit odd. At 192 pages I should have had it read in a few hours; instead I kept falling asleep every time I picked it up so that it took me 3 days instead. It wasn't boring; Christie is a master at pulling you into whatever setting she's cooked up and I quite enjoyed Bertram's Hotel, but the momentum was very slow to build and ultimately, what should have been a tidal wave of a story was more of a small surge: I felt the pull, but nothing so strong as to suck me in completely.

I also got the impression that Christie was rather fed up with Miss Marple when she wrote this, or maybe just feeling wistful herself about the way the world seemed to be changing rapidly around her. I kept imagining Christie as Miss Marple; longing for a time when England, and by extension, her mysteries, were more elegant, well-mannered, and gracious. Even though there would be at least 10 more books after this one, At Bertram's Hotel feels like a nostalgic look back by an author who's feeling her age.

So, not her best, but I'm betting it's nowhere near her worst; definitely more likeable than reading the Marple short stories back-to-back. ( )

Slow starter. One of her more atmospheric novels.
But that ending... ( )

"Miss Jane Marple loved to stay at Bertram's Hotel. It was as dignified, unobtrusive, and quietly elegant as Miss Marple herself -- until murder paid an unexpected visit.
~~back cover

Even though I'd just watched this on BritBox, the book itself was so much more delightful -- exactly my favorite genre: teas and breakfast in bed, and attention to detail and chintz on the wallpaper and in the bathroom. The plot was lovely as well, with a definitely appropriate denouement. Definitely a keeper! ( )

Digital audiobook performed by Stephanie Cole.
3***

Miss Marple takes a holiday in London at the well-known Bertram’s Hotel. She always stays at this property; she enjoys the traditional décor, the attentive staff, the high tea, and people watching as the many guests flow in and out of the property. But unknown connections between various guests become apparent after an elderly, and rather forgetful, cleric goes to the airport on the wrong day.

Christie excels at creating complicated plots with many suspects and red herrings to keep the reader guessing. She has plenty of surprises in store with this one as well. I had, unfortunately for me, seen the PBS Masterpiece mystery series episode, so knew where it was heading, but I still found it fascinating to watch how Christie wove the elements together.

Stephanie Cole did a fine job of narrating the audiobook. She sets a good pace and has the skill as a voice artist to differentiate the many characters. I do like the way she interprets Miss Marple. ( )

It provided for an enjoyable afternoon! ( )

An interesting idea for a story but I feel that Christie gives Miss Marple the short shift in most of the longer stories. Still, I liked that idea that she discovers a crime syndicate at her beloved Bertram's Hotel. I just wish that Miss Marple got to be the center of her own stories. It alwasy seems to be someone else that does alot of the work and she simply tells that person what she's observed. Just once I would like her to have a big scene where she tells all who the murder is. ( )

Not one of her best books, but still an Agatha Christie. ( )

2.5 rating - This was definitely not one of my favorite Agatha Christie novels. While I'm not a giant fan of Ms. Marple, I was rather surprised at how little of a role she played in a Ms. Marple novel! Honestly, it read more like a Tommy & Tuppence story. It's a decent mystery, but definitely not as strong as the majority of Christie's work. ( )

Listen to the audio book. The narrator can make or break an audio book. With this book I found the narrator off putting. I hated her voice for the older characters. I'll have to read this book instead. ( )

Two more books after this one and that is the end of reading anymore about Miss Jane Marple.

At Bertram's Hotel has Miss Marple taking a holiday at the previously named Bertram's in London. We have Miss Marple reminiscing about an old beau in her youth and her staying at the hotel with her family. We also have Miss Marple referring to events in other novels such as A Caribbean Mystery which keeps the events in that novel fresh in readers minds.

While staying at Bertram's Miss Marple overhears a conversation between Bess Sedgwick (an adventuress) and a member of the staff at Bertram's and starts to take note of other guests such as Elvira Blake (a 20 year old heiress) and Canon Pennyfather.

At first things in the story were rather muddled to me until we have Miss Marple becoming involved after Canon Pennyfather goes missing. Pretty soon a case is afoot and readers along with Miss Marple will start to question why Bertram's always seems so perfect.

When a commissionaire at Bertram's is accidentally shot we finally start to get more pieces to what is going on at Bertram's. Everything in the end ties together and makes sense, however, I have to admit that for a while there I was totally lost at what exactly was going on. What was great to me though is that we have Miss Marple's sense of justice and what is right prevailing in the end and though we don't get a satisfactory ending with certain individual(s) I like to think that they did pay in the end. ( )