<P> There is no definitive source for the derivation of the name' Marple' . The most common explanation is that the name was taken from Marple railway station in Stockport, through which Christie passed . Alternatively, Christie may have taken the name from a family named Marple, who lived at Marple Hall near her sister Madge's home at Abney Hall . </P> <P> The character of Jane Marple in the first Miss Marple book, The Murder at the Vicarage, is markedly different from how she appears in later books . This early version of Miss Marple is a gleeful gossip and not an especially nice woman . The citizens of St. Mary Mead like her but are often tired by her nosy nature and how she seems to expect the worst of everyone . In later books she becomes more modern and a kinder person . </P> <P> Miss Marple solves difficult crimes because of her shrewd intelligence, and St. Mary Mead, over her lifetime, has given her seemingly infinite examples of the negative side of human nature . Crimes always remind her of a parallel incident, although acquaintances may be bored by analogies that often lead her to a deeper realization about the true nature of a crime . She also has a remarkable ability to latch onto a casual comment and connect it to the case at hand . In several stories, she is able to rely on her acquaintance with Sir Henry Clithering, a retired commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, for official information when required . </P> <P> Miss Marple never married and has no close living relatives . Her nephew, the "well - known author" Raymond West appears in some stories including Sleeping Murder and Ingots of Gold, which also feature his wife Joan, a modern artist (though prior to their marriage she is referred to as "Joyce Lemprière", in The Thirteen Problems stories). Raymond overestimates himself and underestimates his aunt's mental acuity . Miss Marple employs young women (Clara, Emily, Alice, Esther, Gwenda and Amy) from a nearby orphanage, whom she trains for service as general housemaids after the retirement of her long - time maid - housekeeper faithful Florence . She was briefly looked after by her irritating maid, Miss Knight . In her later years, companion Cherry Baker, first introduced in The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side, lives in . </P>

What made miss jane marple a great investigator
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