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Available
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Publication
Sourcebooks Landmark (2020), 288 pages
Description
"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"--… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member jmchshannon
In her latest novel, The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, Marie Benedict takes the real-life, unsolved mystery of Agatha Christie’s eleven-day disappearance and imagines what actually happened during that time. We have no way of knowing how accurate Ms. Benedict’s solution actually is to the truth,
I went into The Mystery of Mrs. Christie not knowing much about Dame Christie other than the fact that she disappeared and no one knows why or where she was for those eleven days. What Ms. Benedict presents is certainly plausible, especially given the care with which she builds her case. The question of whether it is historically accurate is anyone’s guess.
Still, Ms. Benedict builds a fascinating picture of Dame Christie as she was in her youth, young and hopeful and a bit naive. We see her fall in love with her first husband and watch that marriage evolve into something much different than what she wanted and expected. Also, we notice Dame Christie’s burgeoning strength of character and emerging brilliance as a mystery writer.
At the same time, we see Dame Christie’s disappearance through the eyes of her first husband, Archie Christie. We recognize that there is something significantly wrong with his reactions regarding her disappearance and that all is not as it seems. Again, we have no idea whether Ms. Benedict’s portrayal is historically accurate, but it certainly makes for interesting reading.
There is an innate frustration when authors try to solve unsolved mysteries because of the simple fact that they are unsolved and therefore completely hypothetical. Yet, Ms. Benedict does a decent job of building The Mystery of Mrs. Christiearound the facts, bare as they are, to create a story that is entertaining and plausible. When it comes to such stories, that is the best for which we can hope.
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but it certainly is an intriguing hypothesis to an unusual mystery.I went into The Mystery of Mrs. Christie not knowing much about Dame Christie other than the fact that she disappeared and no one knows why or where she was for those eleven days. What Ms. Benedict presents is certainly plausible, especially given the care with which she builds her case. The question of whether it is historically accurate is anyone’s guess.
Still, Ms. Benedict builds a fascinating picture of Dame Christie as she was in her youth, young and hopeful and a bit naive. We see her fall in love with her first husband and watch that marriage evolve into something much different than what she wanted and expected. Also, we notice Dame Christie’s burgeoning strength of character and emerging brilliance as a mystery writer.
At the same time, we see Dame Christie’s disappearance through the eyes of her first husband, Archie Christie. We recognize that there is something significantly wrong with his reactions regarding her disappearance and that all is not as it seems. Again, we have no idea whether Ms. Benedict’s portrayal is historically accurate, but it certainly makes for interesting reading.
There is an innate frustration when authors try to solve unsolved mysteries because of the simple fact that they are unsolved and therefore completely hypothetical. Yet, Ms. Benedict does a decent job of building The Mystery of Mrs. Christiearound the facts, bare as they are, to create a story that is entertaining and plausible. When it comes to such stories, that is the best for which we can hope.
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LibraryThing member wagner.sarah35
I've encountered Agatha Christie's mysteries (who hasn't) and I knew the biographical detail that she disappeared for a short time for reasons that remain unclear today, so this novel which attempts to unravel that very question was quite intriguing. As the book took shape and especially towards
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the end, I really enjoyed the characterization and the story starting to feel something like one of Agatha Christie's novels. Fans of mystery novels would likely find this novel fascinating. Show Less
LibraryThing member brangwinn
I found this a deeply satisfying fictional account of what happened when Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days in December. 1926. With her husband asking for a divorce so he could marry his girlfriend, the timing of Agatha’s disappearance showcases her husband’s conceit, arrogance, and lack
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of concern about his wife’s unknown whereabouts. He is certainly unwilling to help the police in their search. In alternating chapters, Agatha tells the story of her meeting her husband, Archie, and the toll it took on her. Archie, on the other hand’s story, is told by a man who does not want the truth to come out, and at the end, when Agatha gets to tell him why she disappeared, the reader will cheer for her. It is not only novels in which Agatha Christy can develop a mystery plot, she can do it in her own life. Show Less
LibraryThing member breic
Rather bland. In a mystery involving Agatha Christie, I had expected there would be a clever twist, or big reveal, at the end, but there isn't really. Neither Christie nor her husband is very believable.
LibraryThing member kimkimkim
I have read several of Marie Benedict’s books and found them to be well researched but the tone has been a problem for me. “The Mystery of Mrs. Christie” was a total miss. Sure it is a well researched piece of writing and there is a mystery to be solved but everything about this book is so
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demeaning and mean that I never cared about the inherent puzzle, the unsolvable mystery. If, as Ms. Benedict posits, “that we are all unreliable narrators of our own lives....highlighting our invented identities”, might it have been more palatable to imbue our protagonist with a modicum of dignity instead of the relentless fawning and obsequious behavior? Show Less
LibraryThing member miss.mesmerized
An abandoned car brings the police to Styles, the famous residence of Agatha and Archibald Christie. The famous writer has gone missing after a fierce quarrel between the couple during breakfast. Archie does not seem concerned at all and he is astonishingly reluctant to cooperate with the
“Then the phone rang, shattering my lonely vigil. When I picked it up, I nearly cried in relief to hear a familiar voice. But then the voice spoke. And in that moment, I knew that everything had changed.”
Agatha Christie’s disappearance in December 1926 is, due to broad media coverage, a well known fact. However, the mystery has never been really solved and the crime writer herself did not comment on what actually happened during the ten days of her absence. Marie Benedict, by whom I already totally adored the portrait of Hedy Lamarr in “The Only Woman in the Room”, fills this gap with a very clever story which especially enthused my due to the tone which perfectly copies the crime writer’s style.
The narration tells the events of two points in time alternatingly. The first recounts how Agatha and Archie met, their first years during WW1 and their quick marriage which is immediately followed by darker years stemming from Archie’s depressive and dark moods. The second point of time follows the events after her disappearance. The first is shown from Agatha’s point of view, the later gives more insight in Archie’s state of mind thus revealing a lot to the reader but at the same time, omitting very relevant pieces of information which keeps suspense at a high level.
Even though it is a mystery, it is also the story of a woman who wants her marriage to succeed, who is willing to put herself and her daughter second after her husband’s needs and who fights even though there is nothing to win anymore. However, she does not breakdown but emerges stronger and wiser since she used her cleverness and capacity of plotting to free herself of her marital chains.
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investigators. For the detectives, his behaviour is highly suspicious and even more so when they uncover an affair he has had for quite some time and because of which he asked his wife for a divorce. Yet, all this information is not really helpful in determining the whereabouts of the grand dame of crime. This is one way the story can be told, but maybe there is also a completely different version.“Then the phone rang, shattering my lonely vigil. When I picked it up, I nearly cried in relief to hear a familiar voice. But then the voice spoke. And in that moment, I knew that everything had changed.”
Agatha Christie’s disappearance in December 1926 is, due to broad media coverage, a well known fact. However, the mystery has never been really solved and the crime writer herself did not comment on what actually happened during the ten days of her absence. Marie Benedict, by whom I already totally adored the portrait of Hedy Lamarr in “The Only Woman in the Room”, fills this gap with a very clever story which especially enthused my due to the tone which perfectly copies the crime writer’s style.
The narration tells the events of two points in time alternatingly. The first recounts how Agatha and Archie met, their first years during WW1 and their quick marriage which is immediately followed by darker years stemming from Archie’s depressive and dark moods. The second point of time follows the events after her disappearance. The first is shown from Agatha’s point of view, the later gives more insight in Archie’s state of mind thus revealing a lot to the reader but at the same time, omitting very relevant pieces of information which keeps suspense at a high level.
Even though it is a mystery, it is also the story of a woman who wants her marriage to succeed, who is willing to put herself and her daughter second after her husband’s needs and who fights even though there is nothing to win anymore. However, she does not breakdown but emerges stronger and wiser since she used her cleverness and capacity of plotting to free herself of her marital chains.
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LibraryThing member Doondeck
More romance than mystery. Clever presentation.
LibraryThing member beckyhaase
THE MYSTERY OF MRS. CHRISTIE by Marie Benedict
Agatha Christie, renowned writer of mysteries, disappeared for 11 days in 1926. Although a country wide search was made, no one was able to find her until she turned up on day eleven claiming amnesia. What REALLY happened – no one knows. Marie
My complaint - and it is a huge one – is the two different, and interwoven, timelines. I would just get involved in one timeline and the other would pop up with a different narrator and jump back or forward in time. When I finished the book, I knew why the author chose this conceit. However, there have been entirely too many novels recently with the same “jump around” timeline. It is annoying. Please stop.
The characters are well developed. The plot is clever. The inclusion of true events lends credence to the tale. But still…. Those annoying time leaps.
Book groups will have a field day trying to suss out the real story in their discussion.
3 of 5 stars
Agatha Christie, renowned writer of mysteries, disappeared for 11 days in 1926. Although a country wide search was made, no one was able to find her until she turned up on day eleven claiming amnesia. What REALLY happened – no one knows. Marie
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Benedict makes an interesting and entirely fictional novel of the mystery. The result is a good yarn that Agatha herself would approve.My complaint - and it is a huge one – is the two different, and interwoven, timelines. I would just get involved in one timeline and the other would pop up with a different narrator and jump back or forward in time. When I finished the book, I knew why the author chose this conceit. However, there have been entirely too many novels recently with the same “jump around” timeline. It is annoying. Please stop.
The characters are well developed. The plot is clever. The inclusion of true events lends credence to the tale. But still…. Those annoying time leaps.
Book groups will have a field day trying to suss out the real story in their discussion.
3 of 5 stars
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LibraryThing member KarenHerndon
Fun guess at where Agatha disappeared to when she went missing. Well written and a fun read.
LibraryThing member bookczuk
Pandemic and beach staycation read. I wish I knew what really happened in that time when Agatha Christie disappeared (and yes, I know I’m not alone in that.) Good speculation.
LibraryThing member nivramkoorb
This is the 5th novel I have read by Benedict who happens to be my next door neighbors sister. I have enjoyed these novels that deal with famous women or the wives of famous men. She does a good job of displaying the cultural and class behaviors during the times her characters live in. The
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overriding theme is how much these women were able to accomplish when the world was stacked against women. In this book she deals with a real event, the disappearance for 11 days of Agatha Christie in December, 1926. She gives a fictional account of what might have occurred because Christie was never forthcoming when discussing her 11 day absence . The story is told in alternating chapters and timelines. In one Christie narrates her meeting of Archie Christie her first husband(1912) and then the timeline moves along until December,1926. You learn a lot about Christie and the times she lived in. The other story is narrated by Archie and deals with the 11 days of the disappearance. Benedict builds an interesting fictional conjecture about what may have occurred. There is a certain amount of suspense but because we know that she ultimately reappears and goes on to become the best selling author(along with Shakespeare) in history the story loses a little of its suspense. Overall, it is a worthwhile book and I always enjoy seeing what historical figures Marie will choose next to write about. Show Less
LibraryThing member KimD66
Confession: I've never read an Agatha Christie novel. Or seen an Agatha movie. But, this novel has inspired me to rethink that decision. If Agatha was truly half as clever as she's been portrayed in this novel, she was brilliant!!
Slow, slow book. The final chapters were fantastic, though.
Slow, slow book. The final chapters were fantastic, though.
LibraryThing member phyllis2779
I thought the book was interesting. For me, it had a slow start but it was an unusual twist on the common stories about Mrs. Christie's disappearance. It seemed to fit well with the factual data of her disappearance and the set-up seemed like something Christie herself would do. I didn't like the
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switching back and forth in time periods but it made sense in the end. For a lot of the book, I wanted to punch Colonel Christie in the nose and also Agatha's mother but this is bring a modern sensibility to a different time. However, even for this period he seemed incredibly self-centered and insensitive. And the mother was just too milky tea for me but she could well have been that way. Show Less
LibraryThing member etxgardener
This is one of those books of historical fiction that is making me look into the real history, and I hope that the story as laid out in Marie Benedixct’s novel is largely true.
Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days in December, 1926 setting off a nation-wide manhunt in Britain. She reappeared as
Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days in December, 1926 setting off a nation-wide manhunt in Britain. She reappeared as
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mysteriously as she disappeared claiming amnesia and offering no explanations for her whereabouts. The plotline of Christie’s disappearance and return is worthy of any of her detective novels. No spoilers here, but it will keep you turning the pages until the very last page. Show Less
LibraryThing member debs4jc
Agatha Christie's life is told from her point of view and from the point of view of her husband Archie. The story centers around the 11 days that Agatha disappeared and the hunt for her that followed - an event that really happened. But for part of the story the reader gets to go back in time and
I greatly enjoyed this book. It lead me to do a lot side research into the real life events behind the novel. I'm sure the author tood a lot of creative liberties with her story - but as the events have never been explained there is a lot of room for her to do so. Fans of historical and biographical fiction that focuses on the woman's side of te story should definitely read this one.
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see how Agatha met Archie, what she gave up for him, and the struggles of their married life that lead up to her disappearance. The reader also sees Archie's reaction to her disappearance and the ensuing storm of police and reporters that descends upon him. The author creates a definite explination for Agatha's disappearance, one that plays out to a satisfying end in the novel. How true it may or may not be is left for the reader to judge. However a lot is learned about her life as a wife, daughter, and mother in the early part of the twentieth century, when woman's roles were still very traditional but with glimmers of change on the horizon.I greatly enjoyed this book. It lead me to do a lot side research into the real life events behind the novel. I'm sure the author tood a lot of creative liberties with her story - but as the events have never been explained there is a lot of room for her to do so. Fans of historical and biographical fiction that focuses on the woman's side of te story should definitely read this one.
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LibraryThing member Sensory
Based on a true story. I read Agatha Christie's biography years ago and found it interesting (I was an avid reader of her books). I found this interesting too, and light reading. Kind of wrapped up a bit quickly at the end. I enjoyed the back and forth from different perspectives and timelines.
LibraryThing member mzonderm
For most of the "real" story of Agatha Christie's disappearance, or at least as much as is publically known, check out this article in the NYTimes Magazine from June 2019, which includes many clips from contemporaneous news articles. For a fictionalized, but very believable, novel based on the same
Agatha and her husband take turns telling the story. Agatha's chapters go back to the past, starting when she met her future husband and going up to the day she disappears. His start with learning of her disappearance, and they alternate until she is "found" at a Yorkshire spa. Her chapters are filled with a growing knowledge that the man she married is not the loving husband she thought he was and that perhaps her mother's advice to make him the absolute focus of her life to the exclusion of all else, even their daughter, is not all it's cracked up to be. His chapters are threaded through with an overlying but vague threat that she made in a letter she left for him before she disappeared that require him to play his part in solving the "mystery".
Benedict tells this story capably, staying very close to the known facts. So close that one wonders what the reader learns that the newspapers haven't already reported. Of course, a novel takes us into the characters' heads in a way that journalism can't, but Benedict seems to have left her imagination by the wayside in inhabiting her characters. Agatha matures throughout the book as she realizes that her marriage is not all that she hoped it would be, and becomes more resolute in her determination to shape her own destiny, but Mr. Christie is very one-dimensional throughout his chapters. I suppose some characters are easier to write than others, but I hope that for Ms. Benedict's next book, she chooses a subject that alows her more free rein with her generous writing talents.
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thing, check out Marie Benedict's latest offering. Since Mrs. Christie refused to ever speak about what actually happenend, this may be as close as we get to the "truth".Agatha and her husband take turns telling the story. Agatha's chapters go back to the past, starting when she met her future husband and going up to the day she disappears. His start with learning of her disappearance, and they alternate until she is "found" at a Yorkshire spa. Her chapters are filled with a growing knowledge that the man she married is not the loving husband she thought he was and that perhaps her mother's advice to make him the absolute focus of her life to the exclusion of all else, even their daughter, is not all it's cracked up to be. His chapters are threaded through with an overlying but vague threat that she made in a letter she left for him before she disappeared that require him to play his part in solving the "mystery".
Benedict tells this story capably, staying very close to the known facts. So close that one wonders what the reader learns that the newspapers haven't already reported. Of course, a novel takes us into the characters' heads in a way that journalism can't, but Benedict seems to have left her imagination by the wayside in inhabiting her characters. Agatha matures throughout the book as she realizes that her marriage is not all that she hoped it would be, and becomes more resolute in her determination to shape her own destiny, but Mr. Christie is very one-dimensional throughout his chapters. I suppose some characters are easier to write than others, but I hope that for Ms. Benedict's next book, she chooses a subject that alows her more free rein with her generous writing talents.
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LibraryThing member rmarcin
Marie Benedict has imagined what happened to Agatha Christie when she disappeared for 11 days in 1926. Putting together a manuscript to explain her disappearance, and keeping her husband in line during the disappearance is an interesting storyline to explain the disappearance.
I thought the story
I received this book as part of the Sourcebooks EarlyReads Program. All opinions are my own.
I thought the story
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dragged a bit at times, otherwise, I would have given it 4 stars.I received this book as part of the Sourcebooks EarlyReads Program. All opinions are my own.
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LibraryThing member bearette24
This is another story about Agatha Christie's disappearance in 1926. I did prefer the other novel on the same topic, The Christie Affair. This one probably comes closer to the truth of what happened, but it's not as satisfying.
LibraryThing member forsanolim
In December 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared. When she was found 11 days later, she was found to have suffered from amnesia, and what exactly took place over those days is unknown. In this novel, Benedict dramatizes Christie's life up to the point of the marriage, focusing on her family life and
My local library suggested this book, and, since I definitely enjoy Golden-Age mysteries, I was really looking forward to reading it. I did enjoy it (it's a really fast read!), but it didn't do all that I was hoping. It's in large part a family drama--given its real historical basis, there's a lot of focus on the marriage and its downward spiral--and, while that's not necessarily bad, it was all kind of sad/not what I'd expected to be in for. I also thought that the ending/reveal was pretty easy to guess. Not bad by any means, and I learned a lot about Christie's life, but it didn't blow me away.
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her fracturing marriage to Archibald Christie. The novel alternates between Agatha's past and the present police investigation aiming to solve her disappearance.My local library suggested this book, and, since I definitely enjoy Golden-Age mysteries, I was really looking forward to reading it. I did enjoy it (it's a really fast read!), but it didn't do all that I was hoping. It's in large part a family drama--given its real historical basis, there's a lot of focus on the marriage and its downward spiral--and, while that's not necessarily bad, it was all kind of sad/not what I'd expected to be in for. I also thought that the ending/reveal was pretty easy to guess. Not bad by any means, and I learned a lot about Christie's life, but it didn't blow me away.
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LibraryThing member Whisper1
This is another historical book with a tad of fiction, but overall based on the real life disappearance of Agatha Christie.
Agatha married a pilot, turned business man. He was overbearing and when Agatha discovered his indiscretion with his secretary, she was deeply hurt. A very cruel and nasty
The morning after the argument, Agatha’s abandoned car was found several miles away from her home. It was submerged in bushes in a lake. The headlights were on and the inside of the car contained a mink coat and a suitcase.
At the time of her disappearance, she wrote one book which was a success. She was in the process of writing another when she disappeared for eleven days. Naturally, when the staff reported what they heard the evening of the argument, the her husband Archie Christie was the primary suspect.
She returned to her home claiming she had amnesia when in fact she hid from society and her husband. She left her husband and continued her writing, and became a highly successful mystery writer.
Agatha married a pilot, turned business man. He was overbearing and when Agatha discovered his indiscretion with his secretary, she was deeply hurt. A very cruel and nasty
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argument overheard by the house staff lead Agatha to leave their ten year old daughter with the maid, and she disappeared.The morning after the argument, Agatha’s abandoned car was found several miles away from her home. It was submerged in bushes in a lake. The headlights were on and the inside of the car contained a mink coat and a suitcase.
At the time of her disappearance, she wrote one book which was a success. She was in the process of writing another when she disappeared for eleven days. Naturally, when the staff reported what they heard the evening of the argument, the her husband Archie Christie was the primary suspect.
She returned to her home claiming she had amnesia when in fact she hid from society and her husband. She left her husband and continued her writing, and became a highly successful mystery writer.
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LibraryThing member ritaer
Author frames Christie's disappearance as clever plot to force her husband to divorce on her terms
LibraryThing member Micareads
First, thank you to Edelweiss and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with this ARC.
In 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared for eleven days leaving a mystery in her wake. For those eleven days, the police interrogated her husband, her staff, and those who knew her attempting to discover what had
Benedict always tells an amazing story and takes the time to understand the details behind the historical moments in time that she uses as the base for her fiction. Marie Benedict weaves an interesting story that keeps the reader invested until the very end.
In 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared for eleven days leaving a mystery in her wake. For those eleven days, the police interrogated her husband, her staff, and those who knew her attempting to discover what had
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happened to her. Marie Benedict expertly tells the story of what her husband went through and the explicit instructions she left for him. The back and forth between the story and the number of days after her disappearance makes the story flow smoothly and allows the reader to know what is going on - even if they don't realize that is what is happening.Benedict always tells an amazing story and takes the time to understand the details behind the historical moments in time that she uses as the base for her fiction. Marie Benedict weaves an interesting story that keeps the reader invested until the very end.
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LibraryThing member Maydacat
It goes without saying that Agatha Christie’s mysteries are legendary, but perhaps the greatest mystery of all is her eleven day disappearance. We will never for sure, but author Marie Benedict has written a credible account of what might have happened. I was captivated by this novel from page
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one, and by Agatha and her unhappy life with her first husband. After a whirlwind courtship due to the Great War, her idyllic marriage turned sour when her husband returned from the war. She did everything he wanted her to do, but it wasn’t enough. He was unfaithful for months, distant from her, and finally asked for a divorce. And then, she disappeared, leading to the largest search ever as thousands looked for her. It’s an intriguing theory, what this novel says Agatha did, and I found myself thinking how clever she was. It’s quite well written, and the novel is filled with interesting details of the lives of the people who lived the story. We will never for sure . . . or maybe we do, now. Show Less
LibraryThing member pgchuis
I found this a quick, easy read, although the Archie chapters became very repetitive as so little happened in them. The author had clearly done lots of research, with characters telling each other all about divorce and custody legislation and the date the New Forest came into being, but this didn't
I think the writer was going for something thought-provoking and clever about unreliable narrators, but by the end I was just finding the whole thing very grubby. I'm deducting a star for the fact that the writer has given away the resolution to Christie's 'Murder of Roger Ackroyd'.
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save her from various Americanisms ('acting out', I guess', and 'lot' for car park being the ones that grated most). There were a few typos and grammatical errors, three (admittedly minor) characters called Mary and two (more major) called Madge.I think the writer was going for something thought-provoking and clever about unreliable narrators, but by the end I was just finding the whole thing very grubby. I'm deducting a star for the fact that the writer has given away the resolution to Christie's 'Murder of Roger Ackroyd'.
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Awards
LibraryReads (Monthly Pick — Hall of Fame — December 2020)
Original language
English
Original publication date
2021
Physical description
9.25 inches
ISBN
1492682721 / 9781492682721
UPC
760789277559