Miss Marple reading order

A plan for the whole series

12 volumes, 2,969 pages, about 55 hours. At 45 min a day that is about 10 weeks.

• From volume 2 on, the number of ratings falls most before volume 3, “The Moving Finger” (by 50%). Plan your break after volume 2, before the series plans it for you.
• Readers scored volume 5, “They Do It with Mirrors”, below its predecessor (7.5 after 7.8). If you slow down there, that is on the book, not on you.

Stages

4 stages, with 3 short books from outside the series between them. You finish around February 1, 2027, about 3 weeks later than in one go.

1. 1
   Stage 19 h12 daysby November 10, 2026

   • 1. The Murder at the Vicarage1930 · 289 pages · 5 h
   • 2. The Body in the Library1942 · 208 pages · 4 h
2. BreakMaus · Art Spiegelman · 295 pp. · score 9.05 h, by November 19, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
3. 2
   Stage 217 habout 3 weeksby December 12, 2026

   • 3. The Moving Finger1942 · 224 pages · 4 h
   • 4. A Murder Is Announced1950 · 258 pages · 5 h
   • 5. They Do It with Mirrors1952 · 207 pages · 4 h
   • 6. A Pocket Full of Rye1953 · 228 pages · 4 h
4. Short breakThe Fire Next Time · James Baldwin · 120 pp. · score 8.82 h, by December 16, 2026. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
5. 3
   Stage 320 habout 4 weeksby January 11, 2027

   • 7. 4.50 from Paddington1957 · 253 pages · 5 h
   • 8. The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side1962 · 351 pages · 6 h
   • 9. A Caribbean Mystery1964 · 224 pages · 4 h
   • 10. At Bertram's Hotel1965 · 248 pages · 5 h
6. BreakBorn a Crime · Trevor Noah · 304 pp. · score 8.96 h, by January 20, 2027. A short book from another shelf, so you come back to the series hungry.
7. 4
   Stage 49 h12 daysby February 1, 2027

   • 11. Nemesis1972 · 237 pages · 4 h
   • 12. Sleeping Murder1976 · 242 pages · 4 h
8. The end of the series

   February 1, 2027

We count 1.1 min per page, the pace of an average novel reader. Faster? Move the slider.

Does the series hold up

Shape of the series: uneven. Scores jump by 0.5 points with no clear direction.

Best volume: A Murder Is Announced (7.8, 240 ratings). Weakest: At Bertram's Hotel (7.3). From volume 2 on, the biggest drop in the number of ratings is between volume 2 and 3: 50%. The series is complete; you can read it start to finish with no waiting. The last volume (7.6) scores close to the series average or above it.