• The Moving Finger

  • A Miss Marple Mystery
  • By: Agatha Christie
  • Narrated by: Richard E. Grant
  • Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (1,137 ratings)

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The Moving Finger  By  cover art

The Moving Finger

By: Agatha Christie
Narrated by: Richard E. Grant
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Publisher's summary

The indomitable sleuth Miss Marple is led to a small town with shameful secrets in Agatha Christie’s classic detective story, The Moving Finger.

Lymstock is a town with more than its share of scandalous secrets—a town where even a sudden outbreak of anonymous hate mail causes only a minor stir.

But all that changes when one of the recipients, Mrs. Symmington, commits suicide. Her final note says “I can’t go on,” but Miss Marple questions the coroner’s verdict of suicide. Soon nobody is sure of anyone—as secrets stop being shameful and start becoming deadly.

©1943 Agatha Christie Limited (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about The Moving Finger

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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My favorite Miss Marple Mystery

Would you listen to The Moving Finger again? Why?

Yes, The story line, characters and superb reading by Richard Grant make this an audiobook I would listen to again.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The Moving Finger could almost be considered a stand-along book by Christie, as Miss Marple does not appear until Chapter 10. The characters were engaging, the story had more going on than just the murder mystery, and I found it quite enjoyable.

What does Richard E. Grant bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His voice is perfection. He narrates quite well and does each of the different voices in a pleasant manner. Richard Grant does such an excellent job that I would actually seek out more audiobooks read by him.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The sweet romance between the main character/narrator Jerry and Megan. I really enjoy when there are interesting side stories going on within the main plot.

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12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Richard E Grant is marvelous!

The classic mystery that introduced the world to Miss Marple, given just the right touch by the charming, sly and irresistible Richard E Grant. A wonderful way to rediscover an old favorite.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Miss Marple is Mostly Missing

Listen to this book if for no other reason that Richard E. Grant is the perfect narrator.

I think this was my first Miss Marple mystery in book form. And it is so different from the Joan Hickson variety TV movie. Mainly because the book is written from the first person point of view of another character. And at least in this instance, Miss Marple is hardly part of the story. In fact, she doesn't show up until well into the narrative. She is used mostly to reveal the killer and motive.

The story revolves around anonymous letters plaguing a small village. The narrator is pilot recovering from injuries in a flying accident. He and his sister are renting a home in Lymstock while he recovers. The rest of the cast are local recipients of the hateful letters. There's a bit of romance, a bit of intrigue, and lots of local color. A pleasant diversion for a summer's day.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Christie Listening Perfection

Many people have reviewed this, so I considered just enjoying it without comment. However, the superb narration of The Moving Finger deserves a rave! When I saw Richard E. Grant's name, I anticipated a treat - and, sure enough, the reading is delightful.

This is a little different from most of the Miss Marple books. She only appears briefly, so other characters must carry the story. And they do, with the help of the wonderful actor/narrator. He never overdoes it - each person is distinct and colorful.

As for the book, can you figure out who did it? Sure, but, as usual with Agatha Christie and Miss Marple, the fun is in getting there - sorting out the red herrings and enjoying the characters. Old fashioned, yes, but really fun to experience in audio with superior narration.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

great characterizations with a little mystery

This is a great small-town drama with wonderful characterizations and (oh, by the way) there's a little mystery thrown in to the mix. It's really not primarily a mystery, but that turned out to be OK by me, as Christie's characterizations are wonderful. I was enjoying the drama of Jerry and his sister Joanne living in a small country town while Jerry heals from a nasty accident that almost left him paralyzed.....Meeting the townsfolk, developing friendships, and learning the local gossip - and so the mystery of the Poison Pen letters seemed almost an afterthought. At least until a couple of townsfolk turn up dead, that is.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

The Moving Finger Writes....

What made the experience of listening to The Moving Finger the most enjoyable?

Richard E. Grant's performance is wonderful. His character voices are distinctive and he has a relaxed and engaging style.

Would you recommend The Moving Finger to your friends? Why or why not?

I'd happily recommend this to any fan of the classic cozy mystery genre.

Have you listened to any of Richard E. Grant’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Although I'm a huge fan of his work in movies and on TV, this is my first experience with him as a narrator. It definitely won't be the last.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, I enjoyed spreading it out over several long commutes.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Poison Pen Letters and a Charming Romance

Any additional comments?

One of my favorite mystery tropes--the poison pen letter. When pilot Jerry Burton is seriously injured in an accident, his doctor recommends that to complete his recovery that Jerry and his sister Joanna go to a small village and get involved in the life, politics and local scandals. Quintessential Londoners, the siblings rent a house in the village of Lymestock, far away from anyone they know.

People are very nice, old-fashioned social calls and the two of them settle down to village life as Jerry continues to heal. One day, they get an anonymous letter with pasted letters from another book, intimating that they are not brother and sister but really illicit lovers. Both laugh and toss it into the fire.

Later, it seems that the letters are going everywhere. The police become involved and no one can find the writer, though it seems to be a woman. And then there is a suicide or so it seems followed by a murder. Are they connected? They all seem to stem from the letters...

Jerry and the police doggedly pursue clues and leads, seeming to get somewhere but never to the murderer. The Vicar's wife, frustrated, calls in an expert. Not Scotland Yard but a seemingly harmless knitting maiden lady named Miss Jane Marple. And the game is afoot.....

Charming story with a lovely romantic love story, again with a familiar trope. It's interesting to see Miss Marple not on center stage but still the galvanizing energy to solve the mystery and reestablish peace and harmony.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Miss Marple shows up in the last 45 minutes only

The narrator is adequate. He does multiple voices so it's relatively easy to follow conversations, but I didn't really like him. He made the main character sound like a man in his 50's when I think he's supposed to be about 30.

AND, I kept asking, "Where's Miss Marple?"

This is supposed to be a Miss Marple Mystery, but she doesn't show up until the last 45 minutes or so, and then only a handful of times. She arrives to solve the mystery. The story was good, but I was expecting Miss Marple.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

My Best Christie Listen Yet

The story is not too complex. The cast of characters is not too long. Their interrelationships aren't so intricate that one needs a score card to keep up. The solution is not far-fetched. The first-person narration puts you on a level with everyone else in the village. And Miss Marple only makes her first appearance in chapter ten, giving room for other characters to develop more fully. Don't know why, but for me Poirot and Miss Jane tend at times to suck up all the air in the room.

And then there's Richard Grant's near-perfect performance. Splendid.

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Faulty Audiobook

Will not play after a hour into book. Ruins the storyline when book has issues playing

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