This is a wonderful homage to British style mysteries- the writing deftly brings you into Agatha's world.

The characters are detailed, their personalities 'real' and believable. You feel the wonderful fabrics of their clothes, the comfort of their overstuffed chairs, the smokey peat take of their cocktails.

This is a historical mystery that is suspenseful and told from multiple points of view.

This one missed the mark with me. Too much back and forth with Nan was getting me mixed up with where Agatha was in the story.

There have been so many books lately about Christie and this one didn't add anything to her tale.

Such a beautiful feat of imagination. A story worthy of the legendary mystery author, The Christie Affair is written with a precision of psychology and a foundation of compassion. More than just homage, this book will be a classic in its own right.

A joy to read. Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin's Publishing for giving the chance to have an early read.

An excellent telling of what possibly happened when Agatha Christie disappeared and claimed not to remember where she had been.. Well-written, well-told, and very creative. Definitely reminiscent of Agatha's books. I often think these fan fiction novels fall short, but this one was excellent. A mystery, a couple of love stories, a slice of life in the period. I can't say enough good things about it. I love how it took an unsympathetic character and unveiled her truth. It shows how so often we only see a person through our own filters and never go deep enough to find their pain and motivation for their actions. Challenges one's morals and judgments.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
In December of 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days and was presumed dead. Her soon-to-be ex-husband was the primary suspect in what police felt was a murder. Colonel Christie had reason to be nervous since he had asked his wife for divorce right before she vanished. It didn't look good for him. But, interestingly, she was not dead and lived a long life; it was just a devious way to torture her soon-to-be ex. Over the years, many theories had been gossiped about and motives considered. But, in the end, no one but Agatha Christie knows what went on for the 11 days she claimed to have amnesia. Leave it to Agatha, a well-respected writer and heartbroken wife, to get away with the amnesia defense. The Christie Affair includes some of the actual people involved, yet additional characters in this book are fictional. Having studied this topic in the past, I felt the fictional embellishment of this story to be a challenge to accept. If you read the story as mostly fiction, you will enjoy this book because I believe very little is based upon factual evidence. The Christie Affair is a nifty historical novel about a missing wife, a smothering mistress, and a lecherous husband. How fun. By the way, this cover is beautiful. #author #agathachristie #womanscorned #missing #mistress #mystery #historicalfiction #thechristieaffair
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⚜️ Thank you Netgalley and Penguin Random House for the opportunity to read this book which absolutely delighted me.

#reading #books #bookstagram #book #booksofinstagram #booklovers #bookish #lindaleereads2021 #mmdbookclub #idratherbereading #readinglife #mmdsummerreading #summerreadingguide @modernmrsdarcy #mmdchallenge #September

I loved the writing and the story kept me turning pages. If it hadn’t been so completely outlandish in its conjectures about the disappearance of Agatha Christie, one of my favorite writers, I would have enjoyed it more.

I love when an historical fiction book makes me google to see how much was real and how much was author’s license. This one had me so curious to know if Agatha Christie really did disappear and how much of the details the author provided were true. Such an interesting read. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 3.5 stars rounded up.

This one caught my eye right away due to the gorgeous cover and when I read the synopsis, I knew it needed a place on my TO READ list!

The story is "told from the point of view of Miss Nan O'Dea, a fictional character but based on someone real. In 1925, she infiltrated the wealthy, rarified world of author Agatha Christie and her husband, Archie. A world of London townhomes, country houses, shooting parties, and tennis matches. Nan O'Dea became Archie's mistress, luring him away from his devoted wife. In every way, she became a part of their world--first, both Christies. Then, just Archie. The question is, why?

And what did it have to do with the mysterious eleven days that Agatha Christie went missing?

The answer takes you back time, to Ireland, to a young girl in love, to a time before The Great War. To a star-crossed couple who were destined to be together--until war and pandemic and shameful secrets tore them apart.

What makes a woman desperate enough to destroy another woman's marriage?

What makes someone vengeful enough to hatch a plot years in the making? What drives someone to murder?"

I CANT WAIT to read this one! How about you? If you love historical fiction, you might one to add this to your #TBR list too.

I had head such amazing things about this book, that when I was given an opportunity to read and review it, I jumped on it and started it right away! Although I am familiar with Agatha Christie, I haven't ever read her books.

This is my first book by Nina de Gramont and I have to say that her writing was elegant and the plot of this book was amazing! The pacing of the book lows, carrying you seamlessly from one scene and one point of view to the next. The characters are complex, believable, and interesting.

I can't wait to read more from this author!

As other reviewers have mentioned, this book takes a fictional look at the 11 days Agatha Christie went missing. Was it amnesia? Was it a nervous breakdown? Was it a publicity stunt? To this day, no one really knows what happened and Ms. Christie never said.

This book is told through the lens of Nan O’Dea, Christie’s husband’s mistress, which was an interesting twist. I liked this idea a lot. As the plot progresses, it takes on the feel of a Christie mystery, which was another bonus.

What didn’t quite work for me was the timeline jumps, combined with the omniscient narrator and changing points of view. I also didn’t care for all of Nan’s backstory - while it helps establish more information about Nan I didn’t always care for the detail it went into. There wasn’t an Author’s Note, which I would’ve enjoyed reading to learn more about the Author’s take on what inspired her to write this book.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the gifted digital copy from NetGalley.

This novel is narrated from the POV of Nancy Neele, named Nan O'Dea in this story. I found Nan to be an unlikable character.

This novel was well written. However, the name changes threw me off. Agatha Christie's daughter was named Rosalind and I do not know if she was ever called Teddy.

It does not make sense for Archie to have two daughters named Rosalind. In real life, his daughter by Agatha was named Rosalind. In this novel, Nan had a daughter with Archie named Rosalind. Again, this threw me off.

Readers who enjoy soap opera type of stories may like this novel.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Digressing from the usual retellings, this one is from the eye of Agatha Christie's husband's mistress. Sounds cool? YAS! It was absolutely amazing that I think an audiobook of this novel would also be best listened to. I finished it in few hours because it was unputdownable.

This book revolves around Agatha Christie’s disappearance. It’s actually told mostly by her husband’s mistress, which at times could be confusing. There’s more of a mystery going on besides Agatha’s disappearance too. It does make for some interesting reading. I enjoyed the story
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the early copy

I loved the narrator's voice and the way the narrative moved fluidly back and forth through time. The passages in the home for unwed mothers were grueling and I kept track of how many I had left to steel myself for the misery. The narrator's feelings were nuanced and seemed honestly rendered. I enjoyed spending time with most of the characters and would read this author again.

***Spoiler***
Blowing up the dog, Alby, was a bit much. I would have rated this a star higher if that over the top narrative choice had been left out.

CW: sexual abuse, child death, animal death

The Christie Affair takes the true disappearance of novelist Agatha Christie and imagines what happens during those 11 days. It is told from the perspective of Nan O'Dea, a fictionalized version of Archie Christie's mistress and later, his wife.

I appreciated the suspense and unexpected twists and turns; that's the positive side of completely fictionalizing an event from the past. I did not have trouble transitioning back and forth between Nan's days as a young woman and the period of Agatha's disappearance. However, after awhile, I found some of the plot points a bit outlandish, and I had trouble suspending my disbelief. I will not go into detail since I do not want to spoil it for anyone. I believe this is worth reading, especially if you are an Agatha Christie fan and/or a fan of historical fiction with strong female characters. This is the first book I have read by Ms. de Gramont, and I will definitely take a look at some of her other titles.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced e-reader copy of this book!

I'm probably one of the only people who hadn't realized Agatha Christie infamously disappeared early on in her career or that no one knows what happened during those eleven days. This book details one of many possibilities. While the title suggests it's about the Christies, but it's really a fictional account of Archie Christie's mistress, Nan O'Dea, and her involvement with the Christie family.

There are definitely many unexpected twists and turns in this book that spans Nan's life from young girl, her life during the 1st World War, until she becomes involved with Archie Christie. It's an interesting look at life pre and post WWI and the insecurities women faced during that uncertain time. I admired Nan, even though I didn't much like her. The same goes for Agatha Christie's character.

But, though the concept was intriguing, I couldn't get past the narrative style which often led to confusion. It was the first people narrative intrusion in scenes that Nan could know nothing of that put me off and pulled me out of the story.

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with a digital ARC of this title via Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

I quite enjoyed this title. I had never heard about Agatha Christie's mysterious disappearance, but I was intrigued to learn more. This title is totally fictional but enjoyable and well written. I liked the narrative from the viewpoint of the mistress/second wife and how her story wove in with Agatha's. Fun read

I really enjoyed this book. It reimagines the disappearance of Agatha Christie, and I though it was unique, insightful, thought provoking, and ultimately, interesting.

This story kept me hooked until the last page, and I thought the twists and turns were very well done. It’s a suspenseful, mystery type historical fiction, and I don’t read a lot of those. This one kept me hooked, though!

I think my favorite part of the story was how it was told. The story is told from the perspective of Christie’s husband’s lover, which is unique, angering, and intriguing all at the same time. It’s like giving someone a window into a private life that doesn’t need that window at all. I didn’t think I would like the story being told from the misstress’ perspective, but it worked. It made the story more real and raw, especially knowing the mistress is who drives the couple apart. I liked that the other woman had a lot to say in this story, and I just thought that narrative really added to the intrigue of the story.

I would definitely call this a character driven novel, and I think it highlights how cruel people can be at times. There are a lot of heavy concepts in this book, but overall, the story is really engaging.

As a rabid Agatha Christie fan who has read each of her books (including those under her pseudonym) many times, I read everything about her I can get my hands on. I have an entire Agatha Christie section in my library so was excited about another book about her intriguing disappearance in 1925. I love that it has been kept secret and enshrouded in mystique. Oh, how fun it would be to have a chatty tea wherein she spilled all the juicy details.

Though fictional, this suspenseful book of course does include some facts. It is written from the perspective of the paramour which is incredibly interesting. Her name has been slightly changed from Nancy Neele to Nan O'Dea. The portrayal of Agatha in ways is much different from how I have traditionally viewed her but this is a reimagining. Not only do we witness Nan's take during the eleven-day disappearance but we get information on Nan's background as a young girl which is fascinating. We see glimpses into Agatha's home life with her husband Archie and daughter nicknamed Teddy as well as the frantic search for her by countless police officers and investigators. Details such as her deserted car and typewriter add pieces of reality which is well done.

Some aspects of this story are believable, others less so. However, it is a frolicking and witty read with fabulous bends and turns all over the place. Well worth the read for Agatha Christie fans as well as those who enjoy unsolved mysteries.

My sincere thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this riveting book!

My thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the chance to review this very interesting book .

Everyone that is a Christie fan knows the story of how Agatha disappeared for 11 days in the late 1920s, how her marriage to her first husband ended, and how he remarried his mistress. Well this tale is told from the perspective of the mistress as to the HOW and WHY she came into Archie Christie's life and what COULD have happened.

I enjoyed this. A different perspective. Highly recommend. Told from 2 alternative time lines which come together.