Narrator: I enjoyed the narrator chosen for this book.

Story: While the event the story is inspired by is tragic, the author told the story tastefully. We get to read how five amazing crime writers came together to solve a crime and prove to men they were better than they got credit for. I loved their bond and watching them get closer throughout the story. They were not afraid to take chances and find out what happened to the nurse.

This was the first book I have read by this author and I can't wait to read another story. I enjoyed her writing and the way she writes her characters.

I enjoyed the author's note at the end to the audiobook and wish it/hope it is included in the final copy of the physical book.

TW: This book mentions the choice of abortion.

Thank you MacMillian Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in advance.

If you’re a fan of classic mysteries or curious about the powerhouse women behind them, The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict is a must-read. This book dives into the lives of legendary female mystery writers and explores how they reshaped the genre during the Golden Age of Mystery. It’s packed with intriguing stories, empowering moments, and plenty of nods to the books we love. Benedict’s storytelling makes their journeys feel so vivid and personal, you’ll walk away with a new appreciation for their work and their impact. Perfect for fans of both history and whodunits!

THE QUEENS OF CRIME by Marie Benedict brings readers to 1930s London. Dorothy Sayers recruits four other female mystery authors to insert themselves into the male-dominated Detection Club. In order to prove their mettle, they dub themselves the Queens of Crime and vow to solve an actual murder.

As with many mysteries, there are plot points readers will be able to forecast, but that doesn't decrease the enjoyment. Benedict shines a light on how women can be disregarded and overlooked, and this theme finds itself key to the investigation of the case as well as Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Orczy, and others delve into the particulars. We are shown how the Queens of Crime perceive the case in a new light and interview members of the community that were previously ignored by the police and reporters, revealing that their gender can be an asset, not a detriment.

The audiobook is narrated by Bessie Carter, who does a perfect job personifying a range of characters, adding an additional level of appreciation to the experience. This was a quick listen and it would be easy to imagine this becoming a series.

(Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing this audiobook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.)

Historical fiction meets cozy murder mystery at its finest. The women authors of 1930’s crime fiction band together to create a small subgroup of the Detectives Club, and then take on solving a real life murder mystery instead of just writing fictional ones. These queens of crime, as they refer to themselves, go through twists and turns and various literary devices to try to find the murderer before one of their own is threatened. The audio book was read with a wonderful English accent with just the right amount of pomp and circumstance to truly put you in the mood of the 1930’s time frame. Fans of Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers will definitely enjoy this fictional take on their lives.

I received this an audio ARC from NetGalley. The Queens of Crime is a closed door mystery featuring five of the most prominent female writers of the early 1930's. I love the commodity Marie Benedict made you feel between all of the authors.

I appreciate the concept of uniting characters from the works of Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie (whom I greatly admire), Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Emma Orczy to collaboratively solve a crime. The narrative was highly suspenseful, and I found myself eager to discover the unfolding events. Ms. Benedict skillfully crafted the storyline in such a way that I was compelled to keep reading without interruption.

"The Queens of Crime" by Marie Benedict is a captivating historical fiction novel that brings to life a fascinating chapter in literary history. This book tells the story of five legendary female crime writers – Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy – who formed a secret society to challenge the male-dominated world of detective fiction.

Inspired by a true story in Sayers' own life, the novel follows these extraordinary women as they band together to investigate the murder of a young woman in France. Their investigation, conducted in secret, allows them to showcase their individual talents and challenge the assumptions and limitations placed upon them by the male-dominated literary establishment.

Benedict masterfully weaves together historical fact and fictional intrigue, creating a compelling narrative that celebrates the achievements of these groundbreaking women. "The Queens of Crime" is a must-read for fans of historical fiction, true crime, and the works of these literary icons.

Rating: ★★★★★

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In 1930s London, five celebrated female crime writers—the “Queens of Crime”—form a secret society to challenge male dominance. Their investigation into the murder of a young woman leads them into a dangerous game, with a killer targeting their own ranks and threatening to expose a dark secret from Dorothy Sayers’ past.

This is a fun and clever mystery with an endearing assortment of characters. It has the feel of a novel from the Golden Age of mystery, but goes more deeply into the emotions of the characters. I’d love to see this become a series! I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Another A-MAY-ZING historical fiction outing by Marie Benedict, whose crisp, intimate writing always draws you into her well-crafted novels. Here five of the leading British women detective novelists team up to solve a real-life murder. Benedict combines her historical portraits of women with the exact sort of mystery novel popular at the time.

The novel opens with Dorothy Sayers founding a British Detection Club to help raise the literary status of mystery writers and get them to be taken seriously by the literary establishment in the 1930’s. Much to her chagrin, the male President she installs only wants Dorothy and Agatha Christie among the ranks of dozens of men. Dorothy and Agatha hatch a plot to get three other leading women writers initiated, Baroness Emma Orczy, Ngaio Marsh, and Margery Allingham, but the women continue to get snubbed by the condescending men.
To take their come-uppance, the women decide to embark on solving the real-life murder of sweet nurse May Daniels who disappeared during a day outing in France shopping with a friend and has been found months later dead in brambly bushes of that French town. May, in her sparse nurse living quarters, has two sumptuous gowns and hard-to-get tickets to best-selling play that she could never afford on her own. The women detectives brilliantly start to apply their female intuition about people and relationships as well as their literary detective skills to unravel what truly happened to May.

Red herrings abound as each author gathers increasingly complex clues. You get swept up in their intense efforts now focused on justice for May, as the police have brushed off the crime investigation.

Delightful narrator Bessie Carter, an English actress best known for her role as Prudence Featherington on Bridgerton, is fantastic. She ranges nimbly from clipped posh British accents to New Zealand twang to imperious men. What a perfect choice for Marie’s latest book!
If you have yet to discover Marie Benedict’s fantastic other novels (I’ve listened to them all and they are all 5 stars!) - a real literary treat awaits you!

Thanks to Macmillan Audio for an advanced listen to this audiobook.

The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict is the story of a group of real life famous female mystery writers that form a secret society to show that they will no longer be treated as second class citizens in the literary world due to their gender. Together the women are the Queens of Crime and they are determined to be treated equally to the men in the Detection Society, a mutual benefit group where the authors share tips and create guidelines to better the art of crime writing. When efforts to infiltrate the group fail, the women turn their attention to a real life crime, the murder of a young woman. Can they solve it our will danger find them instead?

I listened to the audiobook and the narrator Bessie Carter is absolutely superb. She changes accents seamlessly and provides each character with their own unique voice which enhances the book wonderfully. This historical fiction mystery was very interesting and I liked that it was based on the real Detection Society, but I felt it was a bit too long and parts of it were a little slow. I give it three and a half stars.

I received this advance audio copy from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and feedback.

A CAREFUL AND CLEVER ASCENT

SUMMARY
The Queens of Crimes is a historical fiction novel highlighting the friendship among five of the finest women writers from the golden era of mystery. Dorothy Sayers inspires the group with support from Agatha Christie. Also part of this talented club are Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, and Baroness Emma Orczy. These women unite to demonstrate to the male naysayers the capabilities of female authors in the genre. To showcase their ability to understand the minds of criminals, the women endeavor to solve the mysterious death of May Daniels, a young English nurse who disappeared during a day trip to Boulogne-sur-Mer, France, in 1931. Her strangled and bloody body was recently discovered in a park.

REVIEW
Queens of Crimes is essential reading for lovers of female-centric historical fiction. This is an inspiring tribute to a generation of women who fought the good fight for women authors and their careers. Most importantly, the story highlights the fortitude and persistence of women.

Author Marie Benedict’s writing is a careful and clever ascent that will have you cheering on these five delightful and diverse characters. Benedict draws us into the life of the victim, May Daniels through the women’s creative sleuthing.

My favorite part is when the women confront one of their primary murder suspects in a beautiful and well-known London hotel.

The story is suspenseful and told from the perspective of Dorothy Sayers, who intriguingly becomes a target during the investigation. The book is easy to read and composed of short, well-labeled chapters. I both read and listened to the book. Bassie Carter's audio performance was rich and delightful, bringing the story to life.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book and audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher St. Martin’s Press
Publisher Macmillan Audio
Published February 11, 2025
Narrated Bessie Carter
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

This audiobook grabbed me from the very beginning and kept me listening whenever I had a spare minute all the way til the very end, I absolutely loved that this book included these incredible real life crime authors and gave us a glimpse into what their lives and personalities may have been like. I thoroughly enjoyed following them as they tried to solve a real life murder that no one else seemed to care about and found myself trying to figure it out right alongside them. I definitely recommend this one and highly recommend the audio — very well done! I also appreciated the author’s note.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this audiobook. All thoughts are my own.

London, 1930. The five greatest women crime writers have banded together to form a secret society with a single goal: to show they are no longer willing to be treated as second class citizens by their male counterparts in the legendary Detection Club. The group includes Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy. They call themselves the Queens of Crime. Their plan? Solve an actual murder, that of a young woman found strangled in a park in France who may have connections leading to the highest levels of the British establishment.

A sure fire story to hook me in. Growing up, I discovered mystery novels when I discovered Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers. They are the reason I can be so rough in my assesment of modern mystery writers. They never cheated to solve a crime or gave some imaginary reason a character mentioned on page 3 is the culprit. The solution is always valid and justified.
Marie Benedict has brought all of these unparalleled authors together in a story that could so easily be true.
Benedict's level of research and authenticity is not just awe inspiring but oh so entertaining.
The Queens of Crime is a fantastic example of these women's skill as well as the authors. I highly recommend it.
I also recommend listening to the Audio version of this book with narrator Bessie Carter. The audio books makes it so easy to drift to 1931 and watch these queens in action yourself.

It is expected to be published 2/11/2025
Thanks to @netgalley and Macmillian Audio and St. Martin's Press for allowing me the opportunity to read this eArc in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion

Marie Benedict delivers again, and this may just be my favorite novel of hers to date! Intrigue, female empowerment, and justice mix with remarkable character development to create Benedict's latest historical fiction, "The Queens of Crime."

The novel is centered around author Dorothy L Sayers, who bands together with four other famous female crime writers to solve a real-life mystery. A young woman was found strangled in a local park, and the police seem quick to dismiss the case. The five detectives, nicknamed The Queens of Crime, decide that getting to the bottom of the murder will help build their credibility among male mystery authors. While Benedict embellished many fictional details (including the culprit of the crime), the story is based on a true event.

Bessie Carter did exceptionally well on narration. She moves seamlessly between accents, and the combination of her narration skills and Benedict's writing style convincingly immersed me in another era. Fans of historical fiction and classic mysteries are likely to enjoy this book, especially if they have read works by the five authors and would love to see their more "real-life" side.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Marie Benedict for an advance copy for honest review. 4.5 stars rounded up.

The is a fun read where five crime writers get together to solve a crime. One of my favorite parts was that Agatha Christie is one of the five, It was rather cool to see her in real life trying to do what we have seen her do so many times.

The story is about May Daniel’s, who turns up missing and then dead. The five writers will band together to go through the evidence, with the goal of solving the murder.

I read that the story was inspired by an event in Dorothy Sayers’s own life.

I did both the audio and the ebook simultaneously, I do believe I liked the audio book better, the pace was nice and steady.
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I thoroughly enjoyed The Queens of Crime—it had all the classic elements of a cozy, old-school mystery whodunit! The setting and time period were beautifully crafted, transporting me into a bygone era filled with intrigue and charm. The camaraderie and friendship among the women were truly heartwarming and added depth to the story. What stood out most was how forward-thinking and progressive the 'queens' were throughout the book, making it both a nostalgic and refreshingly modern read. I’ll definitely be picking up more of Marie Benedict’s works in the future! Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for allowing me to listen to this book!

I have a box set of Marie's books that are on a long TBR list. I'll be digging into those soon after having listened to this audiobook. The description of The Queens of Crime featuring 5 author protagonists in a club of mystery writers is a instant wishlist/buy reaction for me. And it's integrated, not just tacked on.

Spending time with Dorothy and her queens is like eavesdropping on a vibrant book club. It feels a bit fun in the beginning, being on an adventure with the ladies. When things escalate later in the book, Marie has you hooked into caring about every character. The clues and delivery are satisfying throughout.

I can't speak to the accuracy of the accents, but for a book with such a large amount of characters, I was never confused as to who was speaking. Bessie Carter is an excellent narrator and actress for this production. I'll be following her future work.

I will say if I had read any trigger warnings I may not have given this a listen. But it is a murder mystery based on some real life/death, so it's s kind of a given there will be triggers. I'm glad I didn't overthink it. This was a quick 'read' with Marie's writing and Bessie's voice acting. It played out like a good mini-series. A very satisfying read.

This is the first book I have read from Marie Benedict. It was fun to think of 5 women mystery writers getting together to solve a murder. I love how their relationships grew as the book goes on. It is hard to be a woman in a man's world. The "Queens of Crime" work hard to prove that they belong as writers. That they too can solve a murder and look beyond what a man would consider. I felt at times it was long...and repeating the timeline several times over and over. I will look into other books by this author.

This is a fun crime/ mystery with some great women characters! It’s a slower moving story as you follow the “queens of crime” characters solving a murder. The narrator is fun but her voice didn’t pull me into the story and the story didn’t keep me wanting to read more. It just wasn’t for me but could see how many would enjoy it.

This was my first book by this author & i really enjoyed it. I loved the camaraderie between The Queen's! The sleuthiness (is that a word) of these women is such a great story line. I would love for the Queens of Crime to become a series or even a television show. I definitely look forward to more from this group of women.