Reviews with content warning for War - The Mystery of Mrs. Christie

Reviews tagging 'War'

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict

5 reviews

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

mscalls's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional 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

2.0

Content Warnings

annie_e_bea's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

msjk427's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

chrysanthxmum's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

3.75

Content Warnings

More...