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There are currently 23 member reviews
for The Mystery of Mrs. Christie
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Ruth H. (Sebring, FL)
Delightful Mrs. Christie
A fascinating mystery about Agatha Christie and her relationship with Archie, her husband, that gives great insight into what women of the 1920's were like. Her Mother was a major influence in her relationship, what was best said during that time. And Archie had it all until he over stepped his bounds. What a surprise awaited for him! I really liked how the mystery is written between events and her & him in separate chapters. Such a wonderful book!
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Elizabeth K. (Glenshaw, PA)
Mystery of Mrs. Christie
Another winner by Marie Benedict!
Agatha Christie has 11 days of her life unaccounted. Was she abducted? Did she commit suicide? Was she doing research for a new mystery novel? Was she escaping from a loveless marriage? These and other questions are posed as we read this novel. Ms. Benedict has her own theory, and a fine one it is!
The reader is given an intimate look at the adult life of Agatha Christie. It reflects the era she lived and the way she was raised.
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Barbara E. (Rockville, MD)
A thrilling reconstruction
The mystery of Agatha Christie's 11-day disappearance in December, 1926 has persisted to this day. Marie Benedict presents a wonderfully engaging and thrilling answer to that mystery with twists and turns worthy of any Christie whodunit. The main characters of Agatha Christie and her husband, Archie, grow and change throughout the book, which is told in alternating chapters of flashbacks to their meeting in 1912 with the day-by-day events during her disappearance and the subsequent police search for her. The how and why of this disappearance are shocking but logical and deeply satisfying. I highly recommend this book!
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Theresa P. (Arkport, NY)
Hurray for Mrs. Christie!
I was happy to volunteer to review this book, as I had loved the author's Carnegie's Maid and enjoyed Lady Clementine. I was captivated by The Mystery of Mrs. Christie. I was completely unaware of the episode in her life that this story was based on, and loved Marie Benedict's telling of the way it might have been. The two voices alternating in the novel were well done, and held a bit of surprise for me in the second part. My detective skills were not ahead of the author's! It was a quick read, a compelling read, and one I am happy to recommend to my book club and fellow readers.
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Joan V. (Miller Place, NY)
Three Cheers for Agatha!
Other than Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Agatha Christie is probably the most famous mystery writer of all time. When she disappeared for eleven days in 1926 the English countryside saw thousands of people searching for her. They even called the search The Great Sunday Manhunt. Mrs. Christie's husband claimed after finding her at a resort in Harrogate that she had suffered from amnesia. She never commented on what really happened and up until now it as remained a mystery.
Marie Benedict has done a great job in telling a fictional account of what happened. The novel begins with a letter that includes instructions to her husband Archie and then continues with chapters that alternate between 1926 the day she disappears and 1912 when the Christies first meet. These chapters switch from narration by Agatha to third person narration. I had to get used to Ms. Benedict's style of writing since the prose was often elaborately descriptive, but the story was extremely engaging and fast paced.
There were a lot of revelations about Mrs. Christie, i.e. who knew she liked to surf! The details of Mrs. Christie's life added interest to the story and the author obviously did a lot of research. As the story progressed one developed strong opinions about the characters and I found myself rooting for Agatha who seemed to be a very complicated but likeable person and feeling animosity toward her husband who was insufferable and selfish.
One humorous person was Chief Constable Kerwood who seemed to foreshadow the "Columbo" character. He was described as a slightly unkempt man in a rain coat with "latent intelligence."
The ending and explanation of the events was entirely satisfying; indeed, I hope it was true. I received a galley proof unfortunately the author's notes were not included. I highly recommend this book to mystery fans.
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Marybeth T. (Bellingham, WA)
Good book
I enjoyed this book. I found it to be a bit of a slow burn but I think I liked it because it was. I also like the format of the book going back and forth between a manuscript and Archies point of view. A good book for fans of Agatha Christie.
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Wanda T. (The Villages, FL)
The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict
Marie Benedict is one of my favorite authors which drew me to pick this book to read and review. Even though this is historical fiction I like the way the author gave a voice to Agatha and all she went through during her marriage. The reason for her disappearance as laid out to Archie shows her cleverness and in turn the reason for her successful career.
I investigated her disappearance further and find it interesting with all the publicity and people looking for her that she did not come forward sooner to let everyone know she was alive.
Was it a publicity stunt as some claim or revenge for her husband's affair because he did become a suspect in her disappearance. Agatha never divulged her reason but the whole affair resulted in her books becoming very popular.
The author does an excellent job of bringing to light the mystery writer's unsolved mystery!
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