The Case of the Caretaker is a short story featuring Miss Marple which was first published in The Strand Magazine in Jan 1942. It was then included in the short story collections Three Blind Mice and Other Stories (US, 1950) and Miss Marple's Final Cases and Two Other Stories (UK, 1978).
Plot[]
Poor Miss Marple is in bed with flu, when reading Dr Haydock's manuscript, based on real events which ended in a tragic death. But the doctor is convinced it was no accident and Miss Marple tends to agree with him.
Characters[]
- Miss Marple
- Dr Haydock
- Miss Harmon
- Harry Laxton
- Major Laxton
- “Mrs Harry”, Louise Laxton
- Mrs Price
- Miss Brent
- Mr Edge
- Mrs Bella Edge
- Clarice Vane
- Mrs Murgatroyd
- Prince Hal
Adaptations[]
In 1998, BePuzzled released a 323 piece jigsaw puzzle mystery based on the themes of the story. Players read the short story (minus the final conclusions) and then have to assemble the jigsaw without having a reference picture as a guide, and then use the completed jigsaw to solve the mystery.
The Case of the Caretaker's Wife[]
An early version of this story titled The Case of the Caretaker's Wife was included in John Curran's nonfiction work, Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making in 2011.
Publication history[]
- 1942: The Strand Magazine (Issue 613), January 1942
- 1942: Chicago Sunday Tribune, 5 July 1942
- 1942: The Province, 11 Jul 1942, as "The Case of the Caretaker's Conduct".
- 1950: Three Blind Mice and Other Stories
- 1950: Dodd, Mead and Company (New York), Hardback, 250 pp
- 1952: Dell Books, Paperback, 224 pp, (Dell number 633)
- 1960: Dell Books, Paperback, as The Mousetrap and other stories, (Dell number D354)
- 1984: Berkley Books, Paperback, 212 pp, (Berkley number 06806-4)
- 1966: 13 Clues for Miss Marple, Dodd Mead, 1966.
- 1969: Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, vol. 53 no. 3, whole no. 304, Mar 1969.[1]
- 1978: Miss Marple's Final Cases and Two Other Stories
- 1978: Ulverscroft Large-print Edition, Hardcover, ISBN 0-7089-2346-1
- 1979: Collins Crime Club (London), October 1979, Hardcover, 140 pp ISBN 0-00-231596-3
- 1980: Fontana Books (Imprint of HarperCollins), Paperback
- 1985: Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories, Putnam, 1985 and other editions.
- 2008: Miss Marple and Mystery: The Complete Short Stories, HarperCollins (London), 2008.
- 2022: A Deadly Affair. HarperCollins, January 2022. Paperback, 272 pp; ISBN 978-0063142343
- 2025: Capital Christie, HarperCollins (London), 2025.