The Case of the Christie Conspiracy is a fun twist on Agatha Christie that will delight readers from the first page to last. What would happen if Agatha was suspected of foul play? Everyone assumes her guilt, save for Eliza Baker, an assistant to the Detection Club of London. Follow her as she tries to prove Christie's innocence and all the delightful twists and turns that follow.

An interesting and I felt, a different style for the author.

I enjoyed the intrigue and setting (1926) and having such an interesting person as a suspect for the murder was exciting!

Who was the killer, how did it happen and will Eliza Baker find out the truth?

A witty and fun mystery! Looking forward to book 2!

Agatha Christie is about to embark on a new gripping murder case. But this time she's not the author - she's a suspect.

Set in 1926. As a huge fan of Agatha Christie's books, so when I saw this book, I just had to read it. I do like a crime mystery that's set in a bygone era. Eliza Baker got a job as the secretary to Dorothy Sayers, who was the secretary for a group of mystery authors in the Detection Club. Agatha Christie was a member of the club. But when a club member is shot, Agatha Christie is the prime suspect.

This book is a mixture of fact and fiction. This well-written story had me quickly turning the pages. It's clever;y crafted, the characters are well-developed, and likeable, the pace is steady. This is a quick read.

Published 16th February 2025.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks and the author #KellyOliver for my ARC of #TheCaseOfTheChristieConspiracy in exchange for an honest review.

The Case of the Christie Conspiracy is set in 1926. Eliza Baker is a former Scotland Yard investigator and forensics expert, but she left the force after losing her partner in a situation she felt was her fault. Unemployed and living with her sister, who works for MI5, at the start of the book, Eliza earns petty cash playing chess. Her friend, Theo Sharpe, lines up an interview for her with Dorothy Sayers for a position as assistant to help with Dorothy's responsibilities as Secretary of The Deduction Club. When one of the members is murdered at a Club dinner, Eliza takes it upon herself to investigate. The mystery and solution were high points of this book, twisty enough that it took some time to put together. There are many anachronisms, however, including the fact that The Deduction Club had not been founded by 1926, and on the sum they irked me. While I am all for strong female characters, Eliza is a bit too brash and "perfect" for my liking. Furthermore, in an era when women were often treated with bias, sexism and misogyny, Eliza only receives admiration and respect, even from the Scotland Yard detective assigned to the case, which just didn't ring true to me. The ending sets up a second book in the series and I'll probably give it a chance since I did enjoy the mystery in this one.x

First of all, I loved the premise of this book, taking the real Detection Club formed in 1930, with members such as GK Chesterton, Dorothy L Sayers and Agatha Christie herself. And then we have Christie's famed mysterious disappearance, which was never explained. And so we have a mystery where a Club member is shot dead in the dark at a Detection Club meeting, and the day after, Agatha Christie goes missing, a handkerchief with her initials found by the body.

There's competition to solve the case between Eliza Baker - orphan, former war time police officer, now newly appointed assistant to the club Secretary - and her friend Theo Torrent Sharp - aspiring writer. The two regularly hang out at a chess club in London, and both are strong minded and competitive. The novel frequently plays on the contrast of the two characters - Theo being more of a more artistic creature, Eliza favouring more rational logic and science.

It was fun to see the Queen of Crime being under suspicion rather than orchestrating murders in writing, and looking forward to seeing how this series develops.

A quick, mystery with plenty of historically accurate details. It is well written, with a satisfying ending.

A fun quick read.

The main character is Eliza who alongside her friend Theo is trying to solve a murder.

There's a setting of a chess club and the famous authors in the Detection club, although Agatha Christie is mentioned in the title she only makes a limited appearance.

Often the language and phrasing used didn’t feel realistic for England or the 1920s which I found quite jarring and distracting, but it wouldn’t necessarily put me off reading other books by this author and I’ll look out for the next in the series.

As a longtime fan of Agatha Christie and classic mysteries, I couldn’t resist picking up The Case of the Christie Conspiracy, and I’m so glad I did! Kelly Oliver delivers an engrossing historical whodunit that perfectly blends real-life literary figures with a clever fictional mystery.

The story follows Eliza Baker, a former police employee turned assistant to none other than Dorothy L. Sayers, secretary of the famed Detection Club. Right away, I was hooked by Eliza’s intelligence and determination—she’s the kind of protagonist I love to root for. Alongside her is Theo Sharp, a fellow chess enthusiast whose strategic thinking makes him an excellent investigative partner. Their dynamic was one of my favorite aspects of the book, full of intellectual chemistry and subtle romantic tension that added depth to the mystery.

What I enjoyed most was how Oliver brings 1920s London and the literary elite to life. The glimpses into the Detection Club, featuring legendary mystery writers like Christie and Sayers, made my book-loving heart so happy. The mystery itself is well-plotted, filled with twists, red herrings, and sharp dialogue that kept me guessing. I also appreciated how Oliver wove in themes of female independence and ambition, making Eliza’s journey feel both inspiring and relevant.

This book was an absolute joy to read. If you love historical mysteries with strong female leads, clever plotting, and a touch of literary nostalgia, The Case of the Christie Conspiracy is a must-read. I’ll definitely be looking for more of Kelly Oliver’s books!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

If you’re a fan of the golden age of British mystery writers and enjoy a quick, easy to read whodunnit, then this book will be for you. It brings to life authors like Dorothy L Sayers, G.K. Chesterton, Anthony Berkeley and the great Agatha Christie. Although the book includes the disappearance in December 1926 of Agatha, she is not the main character in the book, this falls to Eliza Baker. The authors belong to the famous Detection Club and Eliza sets out with Theo to try and solve the murder of one of their members. I believe this is the first in a new series by Kelly Oliver and I look forward to seeing how Eliza and Theo develop in the next book. Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood books for letting me read and review this book.

The Case of the Christie Conspiracy is a new cozy mystery series opener starring a fictionalized version of the best mystery writers ever in the Detection Club. Eliza Baker is tasked with going undercover for MI-5 in the famous Detection Club as an assistant to its secretary to see if one of the top mystery writers is sharing national secrets. Soon afterwards, one of the members is killed during a club function and Eliza begins to investigate with the young Theo. Agatha Christie disappears the day after the murder and becomes a leading suspect. But she’s not the only author under suspicion as each new clue seems to implicate someone new. Twisted and unpredictable, the mystery keeps you guessing along with the pair of interesting sleuths with clear chemistry between them. This was a fun and interesting read in a series that I anticipate reading all of. To clear up any confusion, the main character is Eliza and the mystery writers are all supporting cast including Agatha. My voluntary, unbiased, and non-mandatory review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

I thank NetGalley and Boldwood Books for an advance reader copy of “The Case of the Christie Conspiracy.” All opinions and comments are my own.

The real-life disappearance of Agatha Christie in 1926 is worked into the narrative of Kelly Oliver’s "The Case of the Christie Conspiracy,” as aspiring Detection Club secretary (and failed female police constable) Eliza Baker and her fellow chess aficionado Theo Sharp (who’s mooning over Eliza) find themselves caught up in a case of “bookish” murder, literally as well as figuratively. And good heavens, is someone giving away military secrets, too?

With multiple narrators and appearances from the giants of the Golden Age of fictional mysteries including Dorothy L. Sayers, Anthony Berkeley and G.K. Chesterton, there’s plenty of secrets, twists, and turns to keep readers occupied. At the end, we have a big “drawing room scene” whereby all the authors get to posit their interpretation of whodunit – while Eliza refutes each one, revealing the killer.

The finish sets up for a next book, one I won’t be reading. I didn’t find Eliza and Theo interesting at all (especially the “soap opera” nature of their relationship), and while the book has its moments, it didn’t capture enough of my attention to merit further reading.

The Case of the Christie Conspiracy is a short, cozy mystery with a nod to the beloved queen of mysteries, Agatha Christie. She is after all, one of the central characters of this book and for the first time possibly a suspect.
Taking place in 1926, the book is a fictional who-did-it surrounding a former agent of Scotland Yard, a hope to be up and coming author, and the very real Detection Club of the 1930s. Eliza Baker joins the Detection club as a secretary, hoping to make enough money to move out of her sister's apartment with her dog, Queenie. Using her past a Scotland Yard member, she is tasked by her sister to not only be the clubs' secretary, but also MI5's eyes and ears as they believe that the Club is trading state secrets. Reluctantly agreeing, no sooner in her first week of Detection Club secretary does Eliza get tossed back into the police work world as one of the premier members is murdered. Diving into what she knows best, Eliza is on the trail of who did it and how when there were only so few people in the room.

This was an introductory 1st book to which I am assuming will follow with a cozy little series. This was my first by the author, and while I did enjoy the little Christie-esque twist, the overall story just fell flat. It was a quick easy read, but felt a little cut off in the writing. The sentences seemed to lack flow to carry the intrigue to the end. I am unsure if I would continue with the series, but I do feel that there is potential for it to grow in the cozy mystery community with the historical flair it brings along.
Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

The Case of the Christie Conspiracy
By: Kelly Oliver
Publisher: Boldwood Books
Pub Date: 2/16/2025
NetGalley ARC

I grew up honing my love of mysteries by reading Agatha Christie. I have always been interested in that mysterious period of her life in 1926 when she went missing for a while. Oliver has created an interesting mystery plot around it. I did not know about the Detection Club nor the chess dens popular in London at the time. Oliver has included a number of historical characters in this novel. Dorothy Sayers runs around on a motor cycle and Gilbert (G.K.) Chesterton talks about God. It was fun to see how their fictional characters corresponded to what I knew about them.

This is an entertaining novel involving historical mystery writers actually solving a mystery. They revealed some of their own ideas and rules for mystery and plot development. I enjoyed it.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC.

The premise of this story was a good one--the Detective Club of famous mystery writers, a real murder, a little romance--a genuine whodunnit. However, the writing style often got a bit in the way of telling a good story.

Short scenes, jumping back and forth between narrators, and missing plot pieces left me scratching my head. There was even a point I went back to see if this book was actually a YA book, the dialogue and narrative so basic. What could have been a really interesting a fun read kind of fell short for me. I really had to push to finish it, and don't plan on continuing the series.

Enjoyed the mystery, but the pacing was off. Also the miscommunication being the obstacle to the romance was super frustrating. The characters were fun to follow and I will be reading the sequel but hope that pacing can be smoothed out as the series continues.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Overall I really enjoyed it. I am a fan of Agatha Christie which initially attracted me to the book. I particularly liked the characters of Eliza and Theo and the way their relationship developed as they investigated the incident. I liked the Detection Club storyline and the way the “murder” was conducted. A couple of American spellings irked me - center. The book ended on a cliffhanger so I’m hoping there’s a book two to read.

Review to be posted on Goodreads

I would like to thank Netgalley and Boldwood Books for a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This had a good premise and was enjoyable in the end, it just dragged a little. I did find the solution to the mystery to be clever!

📚The Case of the Christie Conspiracy📚
Kelly Oliver
Genre: historical mystery🔪☠️

💭My thoughts💭:

This novel has several things working in its favour:

+ A backdrop of Britain in the roaring twenties
+ A female lead with a badass backstory
+ A really intriguing premise and setting
+ A cleverly plotted mystery

So why only ⭐⭐⭐?

The problem for me was the main character.
I found Eliza baker somewhat childish and really bad at reading people.
Which is a problem because she is supposed to be a former street urchin AND a former British Intelligence agent- two environments in which you HAVE to be able to read people if you are to survive. My irritation kept pulling me out of the story and affected my overall enjoyment.

Nevertheless, this remains a well-plotted, engrossing historical mystery.

The Case of the Christie Conspiracy sounded promising, yet was ultimately a disappointing cozy mystery. From the title, I knew the general idea of what it would be about. In real life, in 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared in bizarre circumstances (obviously re-appearing), and I was excited to read a cozy novel around that real life mystery. Instead this was a confusing and anti-climactic whodunnit and Christie's disappearance was mostly a side note.

In 1926 Eliza Baker, a failed police officer or something like that- I think, the book was muddled enough I was confused about what her background was supposed to be- lives with her sister, an M15 agent, and while in urgent need of employment answers an ad from Dorothy Sayers (an actual contemporary of Agatha Christie) who is hiring an assistant for her Detection Club (a real club Sayers was in with Christie and other notable mystery authors of the time). She is hired and at one of her first meetings of the club, a member is murdered and shortly after that Christie disappears.

Here is where the plot goes sideways. I was very confused about whether or not this was in the middle of a series or the beginning (it is in fact the beginning) because the way Eliza's past is explained as well as her relationship to her friend Theo Baker, her sidekick throughout whose perspective we occasionally see, is all written like there are prior books explaining all of this and in this book it's just a recap. In addition to the primary characters being explained poorly, I was having trouble following the relationships of all of the other characters which seemed unnecessarily convoluted.

The plot also contains very little action and is mostly just Eliza and Theo travelling to different homes to speak to suspects. One of their trips serves the purpose of exploring whether or not Eliza and Theo have more to their relationship than just friends, however it is written in a way that comes across very forced.

Christie's disappearance, what I thought the mystery would focus on, or at least play a larger role, is essentially just a minor plot point that is treated like no big deal which is extremely confusing.

I rated this book three stars because it wasn't so confusing or muddled that I didn't want to know what happened. It has a solid idea for a plot and themes, I just felt that it could have more action, a clearer idea of who some of these people even were, and a more interesting way of explaining and resolving Christie's disappearance.

Many thanks to Boldwood Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review. This review is my honest opinion

Eliza lands a job at the Detection Club as an assistant.
She’s surrounded by mystery writers all a little quirky.
This was a good mystery with several surprises. I liked Eliza and Theo and can tell they’ll make a good team.
I’m looking forward to where the next book in this series goes.