Cover Image: The Christie Affair

The Christie Affair

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Member Reviews

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

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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.

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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!

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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.

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I know I'm in the vast minority here but I was disappointed by this one... I've read some of the things, both fiction and nonfiction, about the disappearance. There is drama plenty there, with secrets and affairs and amnesia, so I certainly understand that it offers fertile ground for fiction. Yet still much of this version felt unnecessarily overly dramatic to me...

I really did not like Nan as the protagonist, both as a character and narrator. I found the shifts between first and third person and the omniscient narrator in both voices to be a storytelling style that I found difficult to fall into. While I had empathy for the series of unfortunate events that comprised her life, I still somehow found her an unsympathetic character and the combination of her and Archie was almost too much to bear...

This one just wasn't for me.

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It took some time to get used to the omniscient narrator and the alternating between first and third person story line. But it was worth the effort. This book was engaging and well written and offers an interesting and unusual explanation to Agatha Christie’s disappearance. Well done!

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I thoroughly enjoyed the Christie Affair. I must start off by saying that I am a fan of Agatha Christie and have read every book she ever wrote.
I have also read several books with carrying theories of what happened in the 11 days that Christie went missing.
de Gramont has spun a different theory that is more mysterious and apropos to Christie herself.
Written from the perspective of Nan, Christie's husband, her disappearance is related to a long standing secret that only Nan has the key to.

Lost love, mystery, and revenge are all explored in this well-written book.

I was sorry when it ended

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This was a very interesting book. I have read other books about the mysterious disappearance of Mrs. Christie, but I liked this one best. While it surprisingly focuses more on "the other woman" in the relationship between Agatha Christie and her estranged husband Archie, it nevertheless offers a fascinating insight into what might have happened during those days that Agatha just "forgot."
At first I was surprised that the whole story was "told" by Nan, Archie's mistress. But as the story unfolded it was a bit fascinating to see how Nan shared her "perspective" on the events leading up to Agatha's disappearance, as well as what exactly happened while Agatha was missing. I was also completely drawn into the book as Nan revealed how she ended up on the verge of marriage with Archie and why she felt the need to marry him.
In the beginning the book felt like it would be a mystery about Agatha's disappearance. Then, about 1/3 of the way through, the book became more about Nan and her history. The "mystery" aspect of the book fell by the wayside a bit, but the threads of Nan's story kept me very interested in the book. Then, after finishing 2/3 of the book, everything fell completely in place, and I said, "Ahhhh! Wow." The mystery part of the book picked back up a little, and all of the threads came together to really weave a compelling tale. The twists and turns which had in the beginning of the story seemed random or off-hand were actually terrible important.
If you are looking for a thrilling take on what happened to Agatha Christie when she disappeared, or a suspense-filled mystery, this probably isn't the book for you. But if you enjoy Mrs. Christie's books, like a slow-burning mystery, and want to read more about what could have happened in her life, I would recommend this book. I did enjoy it.

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I can not recommend this book enough! I read The Christie in one day. This book will be one of best books of 2022.. I appreciate net gallery and selected publishers for this early copy

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Anything to do with the wonderful Agatha Christie I am drawn to like a moth to a flame. The mystery surrounding her 11 day disappearance has intrigued so many that this is actually the second book I’ve read on the subject. I love the speculation. This book stands apart because the other did a wonderful job putting this from a different perspective. The story is told by Nan, Archie Christie’s mistress and later second wife. The affair came out during this time and making her a human not a villain was a tall order the author did well. Wonderful book highly recommend.

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I loved this story! Growing up, my mom always had an Agatha Christie book on her nightstand. She had read them all. This book tells a plausible story about what could have happened during the author's mysterious disappearance for 11 days in 1926. I felt the hand of Agatha Christie in this book-- some of it the style of writing, some of it the setting. It's a great story full of star-crossed lovers, jealousy, murder, and lies. The characters are intriguing-- and while the story is told from the point of view of one person, Miss Nan O'Dea, she fills in parts of the story that she may not have witnessed but help to tell the WHOLE story. Be prepared for some twists and turns and a beautiful tragic love story and unlikely friends.

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I LOVED this book! The dual timeline was so entertaining and then tied together even more perfectly than I could have imagined. In a perfect world this is where Agatha Christie was when she disappeared. I didn’t even know about her disappearance but now I want to know and read everything surrounding it. I fell in love with the characters and all of their flaws! Did I mention I LOVED this book?

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this early. It is going to be a BEST SELLER for sure!!

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THE CHRISTIE AFFAIR is a fascinating historical novel with well-researched period details and a suspenseful plot.

I previously read The Mystery of Mrs Christie by Marie Benedict, and enjoyed it as well.

This novel focuses on Nan, Mr. Christie's mistress. It's a fresh perspective and I enjoyed getting to see how Nan viewed Agatha.

The writing is very strong, although for some reason, I wish the story had been told in third person versus first. I don't usually mind first person, but here it felt slightly jarring or self-centered at times, especially since it's clear de Gramont is a master storyteller. If the author had used third person, it's my opinion the novel would have been even stronger (and more traditional, befitting the time period).

I was a little surprised at how much of Nan's backstory we got. She had quite a traumatic past. While the portions of the narrative that explore her past are certainly interesting, at times they took away from the urgency of Agatha's disappearance.

The ending, while it does not wrap everything up in a neat bow, felt right for the story.

Overall, this is an extremely well done historical novel by an immensely talented writer.

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I appreciate the publisher allowing me to read this book.. What a great read it ducks you in right away and I couldn't put it down until finished. Highly recommend

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Once I adjusted to the first person narrative by Nan, the mistress, I started to enjoy the story for the fiction that it is. It was interesting, with lots of twists and unexpected plot changes. But now I want to go find a book that tells the true story of Agatha Christie's disappearance.

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It's extraordinary how the plot of this book works so perfectly.

Agatha Christie disappeared in 1926 from her home in England for eleven days causing a huge uproar from the public wondering what happened. Her husband, Archie, just prior to that time declared that he wanted a divorce and after he left the house, so did she. Archie was notified by the police when they found her car abandoned off a Surrey road with a few personal items inside. But she was missing. The author gave this story a spin by writing from the perspective of his mistress, Nan.

The book is focused on the well-known disappearance of Agatha with the reader trying to once again piece together the puzzle. Yet, what makes this unique is the story of Nan's background which turned it into a totally engaging plot. It was filled with unexpected moments of romance and emotional heartbreaks from a period of time during and after the Great War with the hardships for those in England and Ireland. Agatha's agent said, "Nothing in life unfolds the way you think it will. Does it?"

This book has it all -- love, suspense and the contrast and strength of two women in love with Archie. It makes me cringe with some dark parts of the past. It was said that, "worry tends to give way to such emotions." The characters and the setting made me feel like I was there. It was written with a lot of imagination from the author to make it feel real. The cover conveys perfectly the feeling of the story. Highly recommended.

My thanks to Nina de Gramont, St. Martin's Publishing Group and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book with an expected release date of February 1, 2021.

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Unfortunately due to file issues, I was unavailable to read this or download it. Would love another opportunity. Please email me!

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I can't thank St. Martin's Press and NetGalley enough for this fresh, exciting historical fiction ebook copy!

The Christie Affair by Nina is a wonderful, fresh, mystery book.
I was thrilled when I seen I was approved this read.
The gripping, suspense novel had me engaged from the first page till the very end.
The Christie Affair depicts what could have happened during the short time frame Agatha Christie was missing. I thought this was so exciting to get to dive into and read about. The history behind this was so well done. I couldn't have been happier with the way this book turned out.
This is one story any book lover will not want to miss.
Five amazing stars from me.

Now St. Martin's Press..... Bring on more reads please. 😘

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This book blew me away! I cannot say enough good things about this book. A total page turner. You will love it. Every word, every page just kept my interest and kept me pulled in since the first page. So many well developed characters - most likable and some just tragic lost souls. The Christie Affair is set to be published in February 2022. Go put this novel on your list of books to read in 2022.

This book is about the time in Agatha Christie’s life when she went missing for 11 days. Did you know about this time in Agatha’s life? I didn’t. No one knows what happened during those 11 days either. This books speculates what happened and what a tale! The surprising part is that this book is told from the point of view from Agatha’s husband’s lover - the lover he divorced Agatha for. It pushes into human behavior and why people do what they do. I did not know what to expect when I started this book. My interest in this book was piqued after I had heard a podcast review of it from an author. The last part of the book blew me away as everything began to unravel - It felt like I was reading an Agatha Christie Novel!

I’ve posted a review on goodreads and will blurb about it on my Instagram book blog. This is the best book I’ve read this year!

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Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. A murder happened almost a century ago in England. There was more questions than answers when trying to solve the case. This book dragged a little bit at times.

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