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meezan's review against another edition
emotional
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, by Marie Benedict, is a work of fiction, but it is based on the real-life 11-day disappearance of Agatha Christie. The chapters alternate between two time periods. The first time period begins when Agatha first meets Archibold Christie, the man she later married. The second time period begins on the first day of Agatha's disappearance. The two time periods eventually come together. Part one is the bulk of the book, with part two providing a possible explanation for her disappearance.
I had never heard of Agatha Christie's mysterious disappearance until I heard people talking about this book. It sounded interesting, so I decided to read it. It took me a few chapters to really get into it, but once I did, I was fully invested and curious to know how it would all unfold. I enjoyed the format with the two alternating time periods eventually coming together. The explanation in part 2 was intriguing and it made sense as one possible explanation for her disappearance.
If you are planning to read this book, I highly recommend you read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd first. The reason for this is that in chapter 31 of The Mystery of Mrs. Christie there is a major spoiler for The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. This simply wasn't necessary. The book would have been fine without this spoiler. I have not read The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, but I've seen a movie adaptation and I was thankfully already familiar with the spoiler.
Overall, though, this is an enjoyable read. Knowing how it ended, I can easily see myself re-reading it with a different perspective. I don't often re-read books, so the fact that The Mystery of Mrs. Christie is worthy of a second read is saying something. I will also be checking out some other books written by Marie Benedict because I really enjoyed her writing style in this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
It's a rough read, watching a relationship slowly fall apart. It's also a fascinating theory about Agatha Christie's disappearance, and that part was quite enjoyable.
I was a bit annoyed by the implication that advice to Agatha to put her husband first and let her life revolve around him contributed to the problem. If her husband hadn't been a jerk, and had reciprocated by putting her first in his life, they could have had a perfectly lovely life following this advice. (Well, assuming they'd figured out how to be good parents AND good spouses at the same time, at least.)
I was a bit annoyed by the implication that advice to Agatha to put her husband first and let her life revolve around him contributed to the problem. If her husband hadn't been a jerk, and had reciprocated by putting her first in his life, they could have had a perfectly lovely life following this advice. (Well, assuming they'd figured out how to be good parents AND good spouses at the same time, at least.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Grief
Moderate: Mental illness and Death of parent
Minor: Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Car accident, and Pregnancy
wellreadjill_'s review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
cambam37's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Death of parent
gwen87's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
There are things to like about this book - it is well researched and the characterisation is done quickly and effectively (key, given that there are only really an couple of characters with minor players floating in the background). But it really needed a bit of editing. The writing itself isn't great, and the repetition of adjectives got quite annoying. At times it felt like the author was trying to persuade us that she had done her research by throwing facts in as part of narration. It also contains a major spoiler for one of Christie's most significant novels (The Murder of Roger Ackroyd) which felt really out of keeping with the spirit of a book about the queen of plot twists.
I listened to this as an audiobook. The narrator was fine, but her constant mispronunciation of Berkshire (and Harrogate) was deeply irritating!
I listened to this as an audiobook. The narrator was fine, but her constant mispronunciation of Berkshire (and Harrogate) was deeply irritating!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
msjk427's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I've always been fascinated by Ms. Christie's disappearance when I learned of it. There's even a great Doctor Who episode around it. So imagine my delight when I found this gem. This is my second book by Marie Benedict (I enjoyed The Other Einstein earlier this year). This book is intriguing and provides insight into a tumultuous marriage, leaning on how we build people up in our minds. We really are the main characters in our own narratives. And Benedict delves into one of Christie's techniques of unreliable narrators. I loved this interpretation of the motivation for Christie's disappearance and actually could see it as completely feasible. Amnesia or hoax that simultaneously further catapulted her fame and put her philandering husband in his place? The world will never actually know.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and War
Minor: Body shaming, Sexism, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
giraffestickers's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, and Car accident
stephbakerbooks's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.5
This book is Gone Girl—except without the mystery, without any thrills, without complex, developed characters, and without a coherent plot.
And I did not like Gone Girl...
I do like Agatha Christie and the books of hers that I've read (though beware, this book will spoil a few of her books...), so I was interested in this story. And I watched the movie Agatha and the Truth of Murder on Netflix a few months ago, which also gives a fictional explanation for her eleven-day disappearance, and enjoyed it.
But this book was so boring. There is barely a plot, and the mystery is obvious from the beginning. I didn't like any of the characters, and they don't get any development or any real deep-dive into their actions. The ending gives us an info-dump to explain everything that happened previously—a lot of telling and not showing. And then it just ended and I was left thinking, "What was the point of this book?"
It's only saving grace was that it was short.
And I did not like Gone Girl...
I do like Agatha Christie and the books of hers that I've read (though beware, this book will spoil a few of her books...), so I was interested in this story. And I watched the movie Agatha and the Truth of Murder on Netflix a few months ago, which also gives a fictional explanation for her eleven-day disappearance, and enjoyed it.
But this book was so boring. There is barely a plot, and the mystery is obvious from the beginning. I didn't like any of the characters, and they don't get any development or any real deep-dive into their actions. The ending gives us an info-dump to explain everything that happened previously—a lot of telling and not showing. And then it just ended and I was left thinking, "What was the point of this book?"
It's only saving grace was that it was short.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Infidelity
Minor: Domestic abuse, Grief, and Death of parent