Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

This was a great story, especially since it is based on a real unsolved murder, and the characters are five real-life queens of mystery writing from the 1930s. Benedict did an excellent job of distinguishing these exceptional women so you really felt their individual personalities and the period that they lived in. Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy come together as part of the Detection Club for mystery authors, but after facing sexist attitudes from the male members, the women set out to solve a real crime. The story was engaging and showcased intelligent, strong female characters who became friends while working out the crime they set out to solve. I was familiar with Sayers and Christie, but not the other authors, so it was nice to get to know them.

This was a quick and interesting read that kept me wanting to read "one more chapter." I also appreciated the author's note at the end highlighting this real-life crime, these powerful women, and how she became interested in writing this novel. This would be a perfect read for someone who loves historical fiction and a good mystery, especially anyone who loves reading about the Golden Age.

A wonderful historical fiction mystery. Whenever I read a historical fiction, I like to look up facts to see what is true and was thrilled to see that this group of ladies really did have this group. A great mystery that was laid out perfectly and a look into the process of how to solve a crime. Excellent

I bit cozier than I expected it to be but still fun.
light and entertaining. Bessie Carter does an amazing job narrating.

As a fan of The Personal Librarian, I knew I had to get my hands on this, especially given how many people have been talking about this book. 4.5 stars! This gave me Thursday Murder Club vibes, in the best way. This was charming, clever, feminist.

The most epic way to end a book: "We are all queens".

I was excited to receive this as an ALC.

Actually enjoyed this book tremendously. The writing was rich and really brought out some of the things I love about some of the classic female authors. A great listen. P

I absolutely loved the audiobook of The Queens of Crime written by Marie Benedict and narrated by Bessie Carter. While it is historical fiction, I could easily imagine real life mystery authors Agatha Christie (detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple), Ngaio Marsh (detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn), Dorothy Sayers (detective Lord Peter Wimsey), Margery Allingham (detective Albert Campion), and Baroness Emma Orczy (The Scarlet Pimpernel) banding together as “women in arms” to form a subgroup of the Detection Club, after being treated as second class citizens by the men in the club. They call themselves the Queens of Crime, and they use their mystery writing skills to solve a real case: the strangulation of an English nurse who is found in a park in France. They investigate the crime thoroughly after the police and authorities on both ends of the pond consider the matter closed on flimsy and circumstantial evidence. Even after one of their own is threatened repeatedly, they do not stop until justice is obtained for the victim.

I remember my grandmother reading books by most of the Queens repeatedly and was eager to listen to this book (thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for providing me a copy of it in exchange for my honest review). It was well written with several red herrings, which is befitting the style of Agatha Christie herself. I highly recommend this audiobook as I found it hard to put down!

Marie Benedict is always popular and with the combination of mystery and historical fiction in The Queens of Crime, this is sure to be big. The library's Mystery Book Club is already interested.

My rating reflects my enjoyment of the narration, which is slightly better than how much I enjoyed the story.
The narrator handles accents well; there is more than one in the story, and she was a delight to listen to.
I am from the US, so I was unaware of all real-life female mystery writers, the queens of crime, who were the subject of this historical fiction, except Agatha.
You follow 5 women writers in the 1930s, as they formulate a plan to join a mostly male-dominated detective club. They not only want to join but want the respect of the male members. To do this, they decide to solve a real murder. We follow their investigation and the challenges they face in a male-dominated industry of crime-solving.
The story shows that the issues they faced in the 1930s are no different today. Not much has changed when women are victims of crime, victim blaming, shaming, and questioning their behavior instead of the perpetrator of the crime.
We get a little hint into one of the writer's personal life. But we don't get a well-rounded view of the other 4 members of this crew. That is one of my disappointments with the story, in addition to the mystery's ending which was a little formulaic.
I have read other works from this author, Personal Librarian and The Other Einstein, which I enjoyed immensely and recommend to readers interested in historical fiction.
This book is missing character development, maybe because of the number of writers who are the subject of the book.
I appreciate the author's research into the real-life events that inspired this work of historical fiction.
Overall 3.5, rounded up to 4 because of the wonderful narration.
Thank you to Netgalley for the audio ARC.

Five of the most prominent female mystery writers of the 1920s and 30s band together in an attempt to solve a real life mystery in hopes of garnering acceptance from their male counterparts. As they retrace the movements of their victim and piece together clues the Queens inch closer to answers, justice, and acceptance.

I love the way that Marie Benedict weaves fact and fiction together in her writing; it never fails to engage and educate. This one did start a tad slow for me but it picked up quickly and held my interest. Bessie Carter's narration is incredible; she was the perfect choice for the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced audiobook. This was my first Marie Bennett book and I really enjoyed it. I look forward to reading more from this author and reading her backlist. The audiobook was great and it felt like you were back in time.

My first historical fiction book for 2025 and what a way to start! This book was so much fun and I was sad when it ended. This year one of my reading goals is to read more Agatha Christie and this book was nice side read. I can’t believe that this was inspired by real life adventures! These women were fabulous and the narrator was brilliant. She did a fantastic job at giving each character a unique voice, and I was especially impressed by her kiwi accent.. not easy to do without sounding awful!

It is the early 1930s and women are still trying to be taken seriously. 5 incredible crime writers are on a quest to have them seen as equals to their male counterparts. Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, Baroness Emma Orczy and Ngaio Marsh form their own society and decide to solve a real life murder and show the men what they are made of. A young nurse, May Daniels went missing in France months ago and now her body has been discovered. They use all their research and knowledge of crime fiction to work together to solve this case.

The Queens of Crime were formidable. Nothing stopped them from getting to the truth and justice for this poor woman. It was at times funny, at times sad. I got lost in the story. I need to check out books from the rest of these women now.

If you love a good mystery then grab yourself a copy of this fantastic book. Publishes on February 11th. Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for my advanced copy to listen to.

Five historical mystery novelists come together as the Queens of Crime to help solve the disappearance and murder of a young nurse in the 1930's. This is a nice blend of history and mystery as these real yet fictional characters work together to try to solve this crime. I enjoyed how certain challenges of the past, including society's views of women, were also highlighted as strengths at times and allowed the women to work through things at a different angle than their male counterparts. This book made me want to know more about this period of time but also these iconic authors.

The pace of this was a bit slow at first as the characters and story were set up. However, things progressed quickly as they got settled into their process and as things heated up with the investigation. Ultimately I enjoyed it and think it was worth the wait and setup. I thought the narration was done well and the voice/tone perfectly fit the story.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for this ARC.

I usually like Marie Benedict books better than I liked this one. This one just felt a little confusing and forced for me. A society within a society, the Queens were a group of female mystery writers at the time of Agatha Christie. While I loved the idea of this, I found that the actual crime that the Queens were investigating was confusing (sometimes how they interpreted clues made me scratch my head) and although we know that misogyny is a big thing at the time, literally every man was a misogynistic pig. I know it made for a great book, but it just didn't grab me, overall.

Although it is historical fiction, I was having trouble getting into it, and really relating to all of the characters.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for an advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the involvement of classic female mystery writers I don’t read a lot in the genre and this book may have convinced me to start. I enjoyed the setting and the cast and felt the main character was well written and pacing was spot on.

This is my first book by Marie Benedict. It was very enjoyable. The audio was exceptional. I loved the narrator. She did an excellent job of making this book come to life.

The power of a group of females is pretty strong. Even when men would have stood in the way.

My favorite line from this book is: "You saw what I wanted you to see and what you expected to see. Things are not always as they appear."

The main characters in this book are: Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh. Five authors from 1931. Five female authors.

The five women decide to participate The Detection Club, an organization of mystery writers, primarily men. They are soon drawn into a real life murder. A young nurse who went missing and was found murdered and lying in a big pool of blood. These women decide to find out exactly what happened to her. Though the papers have made this woman to look like a loose women with a drug problem the Queens of Crime do not believe that. They are about to embark on a journey to find the killer and prove this young woman's fate.

What happens is a rivitating story of females on the hunt for the truth. For justice. For women to be listened to. They are determined to show that May Daniels was murdered and that it had nothing to do with a drug deal. It was from a lover who didn't want her to reveal any secrets.

This book keeps you wanting to know more and guessing along the way. It's a great mystery. Most of the characters are so likable and the history in it is great. Well written. A real page turner. I enjoyed it from start to finish. There are several things that happen to keep you on edge.

Thank you #NetGalley, #StMartinsPress, #MacmillanAudio, for this ARC.

4 stars.

A cozy mystery and historical fiction all rolled into one! I did find it slow to get started, but once our Queens of Crime got together, the story picked up and I’m glad that I stuck with it.

I absolutely loved this book! It was brilliant, bringing together the Queens of Crime to solve an actual murder! From the way the club originated, was confirmed then immediately challenged to eventually lauded was so well thought out. I really enjoyed how each character’s differences in styles were highlighted yet blended to unravel mysteries. The strengths of each of the writers is showcased and woven together. Not only did these women prove themselves up to the task, but they also showed everyone that we are all stronger when we band together. I found the murder mystery to be quite compelling and perfectly handled. The clues and red herrings were perfectly placed, and the pace was just right to keep my attention fixed and unmoving. I found myself wishing this was a series so I could continue the adventures with these Queens! I had the additional benefit of listening to an audiobook and really loved how the story came to life in a new way through the narrator’s talented voice.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

When the preeminent female crime novelists of their time, Dorothy L. Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Emma Orczy, go about solving a real-life locked-room murder mystery, they do it without the benefits extended to their male counterparts. They must make use of their resources to overcome prejudices- a common theme of Benedict's. The characters are clever, the action is fast, and the audio book is narrated well, making for a very enjoyable read. Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ARC of this audiobook. I am a big Marie Benedict fan, and this story didn't let me down.

Proceed with caution.
Yes, I gave this 4 stars, but I recognize this is not going to be so for everyone. I am even surprised that I was able to enjoy it. Police/Detective procedurals are not my cup of tea, I tend to find them extremely slow and there is an abundance of repeating of the facts. For those two reasons alone I get bored. That being said The Queens of Crime unfortunately does fall into step with my stereotype.
As the book began I couldnt help but be enchanted with Bessie Carter's voice. Her narraration added a whole layer of depth to this novel and made for a pleasurable listening experience. Pair her voice with Marie Benedicts storytelling and you can't go wrong.
I applaud Ms Benedict for finally not inserting her extrememe feminist or DEI agenda in this novel (yes she. mentioned how women were not equals in the writing world, but she handled herself MUCH more appropriately and did not include any additional characters to add to her DEI agenda) I was actually able to enjoy the book.
I am excited to hear more about how she came upon this somewhat historical account of Dorothy Sares and Agatha Christie solving a real life crime (in the author's note she suggest the real crime was never solved) but I like how she took this as a launching pad and wove it in to create a very intersting historical FICTION book. Just keep that in mind as you read, this is fiction. It was also fun to see a group of mystery writers (who I guess could be rivals...?) team up together to use their sleuthing skills to collect clues, fool people into giving them information and just be clever!
Yes there was a lot of repetition of the clues and revisiting of facts, but it felt real.
I am so glad I stuck with this book because it had a very satisfying ending and I am going to recommend this one to all my detective loving enthusiast.
Slow and steady, but wildly fun!
The description of the ladies clothes was pretty funny too...haha it seems like Ms Agatha Christie was not fashionable!

Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to review this advance copy listen audiobook. I was not influenced or paid in exchange for my review.

GO READ IT!

I love how Marie Benedict blends fact and fiction to bring the reader an engaging story about a historical female figure. When famous mystery writer Dorothy Sayers joins forces with legendary rival Agatha Christie and other female writers in order to solve the murder of a young nurse, they set out to prove to the men that they are just as good, really better, at solving crime. Marie Benedict gives breath to a true story that happened in Sayer's life, giving us another piece of female history that has not been written about before. I really enjoy Benedict's approach to showing strong, independent, intelligent female historical figures. The narrator of the audio was amazing! Highly recommend.