Marie Benedict

"December 1926: England unleashes the largest manhunt in its history. The object of the search is not an escaped convict or a war criminal, but the missing wife of a WWI hero, up-and-coming mystery author Agatha Christie. When her car is found wrecked, empty, and abandoned near a natural spring, the country is in a frenzy. Eleven days later, Agatha reappears, claiming amnesia. She provides no answers for her disappearance. That is...until she writes a very strange book about a missing woman, a murderous husband, and a plan to expose the truth. What role did her unfaithful husband play? And what was he not telling investigators? THE MYSTERY OF MRS. CHRISTIE explores one strong woman's successful endeavor to take her history into her own hands"--

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie

"A deft, fascinating page-turner replete with richly drawn characters and plot twists that would stump Hercule Poirot." —Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network, The Huntress, and The Rose Code The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room returns with a thrilling reconstruction of one of the most notorious events in literary history: Agatha Christie's mysterious 11-day disappearance in 1926. In December 1926, Agatha Christie goes missing. Investigators find her empty car on the edge of a deep, gloomy pond, the only clues some tire tracks nearby and a fur coat left in the car — strange for a frigid night. Her World War I veteran husband and her daughter have no knowledge of her whereabouts, and England unleashes an unprecedented manhunt to find the up-and-coming mystery author. Eleven days later, she reappears, just as mysteriously as she disappeared, claiming amnesia and providing no explanations for her time away. The puzzle of those missing eleven days has persisted. With her trademark historical fiction exploration into the shadows of the past, acclaimed author Marie Benedict brings us into the world of Agatha Christie, imagining why such a brilliant woman would find herself at the center of such murky historical mysteries. What is real, and what is mystery? What role did her unfaithful husband play, and what was he not telling investigators? Agatha Christie novels have withstood the test of time, due in no small part to Christie's masterful storytelling and clever mind that may never be matched, but Agatha Christie's untold history offers perhaps her greatest mystery of all. Fans of The Secrets We Kept, The Lions of Fifth Avenue, and The Alice Network will enjoy this riveting saga of literary history, suspense, and love gone wrong. Also By Marie Benedict: The Other Einstein Carnegie's Maid The Only Woman in the Room Lady Clementine

A Novel

Laura Mauler

The writing is as dry as burnt toast. 

We as readers are not invited into the book, we are held at a cool distance and flatly recited the story; it had the liveliness of a Wikipedia article. In fact, numerous sections felt as if they had been lifted directly out of an encyclopedia. For example: "[...] a girl who wore the Peter Pan collar. This newly fashionable feature on dresses, adopted by all my friends, allowed us to abandon the old high collars with their uncomfortable boning for a turned-down collar inspired by the main character in Barrie's play. (p.56)" The author thought this sentence belonged in a NOVEL. A novel! This is unacceptable writing, absolutely unacceptable.

Why 2 stars instead of 1? (view spoiler)[The twist with the Agatha-narrated chapters being her manuscript, that it was filled with lies to make her look sympathetic and her husband look bad, and that this would be used against him if he didn't do what she wanted. So +1 stars for a clever twist. (hide spoiler)]

Melissa Palmer

Good

Interesting take on Christie's appearance. Some unlikable characters. Decent mystery. A bit slow at first but it picked up. I recommend.

Lara Engle

This was a fun mystery sparked by the real life mystery of the eleven days Agatha Christie was missing in December of 1926. Pay attention to the details because the clues are there. The story is clever and well-crafted. While the characters are often grating and frustrating, they feel real and their relationships seem honest even when they themselves are not. Their dishonesty even extends to their thoughts of themselves. We all shape our own stories to present ourselves in a way that is true to the image we've crafted of ourselves (even to ourselves). That theme is ever-relevant, especially in our age of social media. At times, the thematic messaging was heavy-handed, but this is a minor complaint about what is otherwise a fast-paced and enjoyable take on The Mystery of Mrs. Christie.

Lamia Hajani

A quick read. Interesting theory of what happened to Agatha Christie during her random disappearance shortly before her skyrocket to fame. It’s a little bit long winded and might have fared better as a short story or essay.

Cheri McElroy

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is the story of the disappearance of Agatha Christie by a wonderful writer of historical fiction. Agatha is seen as a woman who wants to please her husband, mother, and everyone else. Her first husband, Archie, is damaged and self-centered. I really liked this novel.

Thank you to #netgalley for the advanced reader copy.

Elena Enns

Overall a fine book. Not a spectacular one, but enjoyable. Kinda of slow until the last fifty pages. Good story though.

Rebecca Shaffer

Alyssa Rovella

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER! "A stunning story... The ending is ingenious, and it's possible that Benedict has brought to life the most plausible explanation for why Christie disappeared for 11 days in 1926."--The Washington Post The New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room returns with a thrilling reconstruction of one of the most notorious events in literary history: Agatha Christie's mysterious 11-day disappearance in 1926. In December 1926, Agatha Christie goes missing. Investigators find her empty car on the edge of a deep, gloomy pond, the only clues some tire tracks nearby and a fur coat left in the car--strange for a frigid night. Her World War I veteran husband and her daughter have no knowledge of her whereabouts, and England unleashes an unprecedented manhunt to find the up-and-coming mystery author. Eleven days later, she reappears, just as mysteriously as she disappeared, claiming amnesia and providing no explanations for her time away. The puzzle of those missing eleven days has persisted. With her trademark historical fiction exploration into the shadows of the past, acclaimed author Marie Benedict brings us into the world of Agatha Christie, imagining why such a brilliant woman would find herself at the center of such murky historical mysteries. What is real, and what is mystery? What role did her unfaithful husband play, and what was he not telling investigators? Agatha Christie novels have withstood the test of time, due in no small part to Christie's masterful storytelling and clever mind that may never be matched, but Agatha Christie's untold history offers perhaps her greatest mystery of all. Fans of The Secrets We Kept, The Lions of Fifth Avenue, and The Alice Network will enjoy this riveting saga of literary history, suspense, and love gone wrong. Also By Marie Benedict: The Other Einstein Carnegie's Maid The Only Woman in the Room Lady Clementine

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie

Reviews