The Mysterious Blue Geranium

     Could an old Victorian lady be a master detective? In Agatha Christie's Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories, Miss Marple is just the character. The book itself is a collection of short stories: Thirteen of them, each one chapter long. The stories take place in a living room, with a group of people sharing their collective knowledge on unsolved mysteries. Then, one by one, they try to figure out what actually happened there. 

    One story was particularly interesting to me. Told by Colonel Bantry, "The Blue Geranium" is focused on two people: George Pritchard, a reasonable and friendly man, and his wife, Dolly. The story takes place inside the couple's house. At the time they had guests over, including Jean Instow, a young, sweet, and somewhat innocent girl. Many hospital nurses were in and out of the house, and one nurse, Nurse Copling, Mrs. Pritchard liked. Usually, Mrs. Pritchard would eat lunch upstairs, and the Nurse and George would do their own things for the rest of the afternoon. One day, a letter comes in from a mysterious "Zarida, Psychic Reader of the Future". That afternoon, Mrs. Pritchard feels very ill after reading the letter, which reads: "I have seen the future... The Blue Primrose means Warning; the Blue Hollyhock means Danger; the Blue Geranium means Death..." (Christie 100). Inside her bedroom is a wallpaper resembling a garden, with flowers all around the border. 

    The nurse and Mr. Pritchard try to comfort her for the night, but the next morning and the morning after, one blue primrose and one blue hollyhock appear beside her bed on the wallpaper. Now, the very night before, each time, Mr. Pritchard and the nurse checked with their very own eyes and there were zero blue flowers anywhere on the wallpaper. Everybody in the house was very shaken by these, but one month later, Mrs. Pritchard is found dead in her bed with a blue geranium above her head. The doctor is called and it is determined that she had been dead for about eight hours. There's a slight smell of gas, but it is quickly ruled out. 

    I think this story was really interesting. It encompasses all of the features of a good mystery. The door is wide open for conjecture. There are many unanswered questions that the reader has about her death. Was it supernatural? Was it murder? If it was, how did the murderer do it? Who was it? This story showcases the writing power of Agatha Christie and the ability to create works of such depth in only 19 pages. This story (and the 12 others in the book) were really interesting, and I would strongly recommend reading this book in your free time.
Now, what happened to Mrs. Pritchard, and how did she die out of the blue? Read the book to find out! Or, you could talk to me and I would be happy to explain what happened :)

- Bruce