The Mystery of Mrs. Christie

A Novel

By: Marie Benedict

Narrated by: Nicola Barber

Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

An instant New York Times and USA Today best seller!

"A deft, fascinating page-turner replete with richly drawn characters and plot twists that would stump Hercule Poirot." (Kate Quinn, New York Times best-selling author of The Alice Network, The Huntress, and The Rose Code)

The New York Times and USA Today best-selling 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 11 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.

©2021 Marie Benedict (P)2020 Audible, Inc.

Disappointing

The story line was just ok and very much predictable. I don’t get the hype at all.

I literally could not stop listening!

What a plot! Marie Benedict weaves a fine web using material from Agatha Christie’s real life. I thoroughly enjoyed this unique “historical mystery.” I highly recommend it!

worth every minute

i enjoyed every single moment. well written. well narrated. goes to the top of my favorites list.

We’ll written and thought provoking

This novel was beautiful written and narrated. The story was clever and well constructed. It is a book that I will remember in the weeks to come.

Mystery of Mrs. Christie

As always Marie Benedict does a wonderful job at creating characters. A wonderful author of historical fiction.

Who-done-it reimagined

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie was too tempting to pass up after I learned that Agatha Christie did in fact disappear at the start of her career plus the fact that Marie Benedict has a knack for writing about overlooked historical women. This novel read like a blend of Christie's classic "who-done-it" mysteries with vengeful twists reminiscent of Gone Girl.

What I particularly enjoyed was that Benedict did a superb job weaving a dual timeline that kept my curiosity without adding an ounce of confusion. Also, her weaving of fact to fiction felt easy and inseparable. I never felt lured away from the story in an effort to differentiate the two.

What I disliked tells more about me than about the novel. The gaslighting, despicable, and narcissistic husband was well-portrayed as just that. It was miserably difficult to tolerate his ill-treatment of Agatha and stomaching her excuses for the abuse was just as trying. Perhaps that's something to commend Benedict for as well—she gave such realism to Agatha's inner dialogue that I found myself loathing the era, the marital advice she received, and her own embodiment of those societal values that I often was agitated whenever I set down the book. That "enjoyment factor" is the reason why I withheld the 5th star and even now I wonder if that's fair.

A plausible explanation, compelling reading

I enjoyed this very much, indeed. I have read all I could find about Agatha Christie's disappearance, years ago...not much! The author creates a very plausible "fill in the missing blanks", quite well-delivered. My overall impression, as someone who relished Agatha's full autobiography, and enjoyed all the books a few times over, is that Archie is the most deplorable cad, far worse than I thought previously....and that what Agatha did was unintentionally/thoughtlessly, but very unkind, to her beloved daughter. An absorbing story, and quite well-narrated.

This could have been better

There are several books and films about Christie's 'missing' days due to her husband's request
for a divorce. Christie herself has refused to discuss this publicly so any and all interpretations
of this event are fictional. The premise of this version of her absence is weak;
it portrays Christie as innocent and none too smart. Like many children of privilege before WW 1,
she was schooled at home and her role in life was to marry well, but that doesn't mean she was
shallow, as she seems here. Her first husband is portrayed weakly, there was little evidence of him
as being a fascinating person...but we can never assume that he was a bounder.
In Christie's social class, men's extramarital flings were tolerated, but here Agatha wilts rather
than develop herself. I'm interested in how and why she was inspired to write mysteries.
In this novel, there seems nothing that would express her fascination of mystery, justice and
incredible characters.. The narrator isn't appropriate; she sounds too young , and she's guilty of s
everal mispronunciations that could have been handled by a voice editor/coach.
Perhaps another narrator with a bit of substance in her voice.. but it just didn't work.

Brilliant and addictive!

What a great time I spent listening to this mystery. I was on the edge of my seat each time I turned the story on. I am a big Christie fan so to hear a bit of her life, even when if fictionalized, it was a great time. It held my attention to the very end. Bravo.

Seriously

I loved the storyline but why such an ending. Why end it like that.
Did she make him suffer, did her and Rosalind have a better relationship. Why that ending?
However I love the confidence she gained.