The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict is a really fun, interesting and satisfying read for anyone who like me, loves a good historic or mystery novel. The story centers around five female mystery writers, Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, Ngaio Marsh, and Margery Allingham who band together and call themselves The Queens of Crime. They decide to try to solve a real life crime in order to be recognized as creditable and on par with their male writer mystery counterparts. They take on a real life unsolved murder of May Daniels, was a young English nurse who disappeared while on vacation in France. Things soon turn serious as they follow the trail of clues and realize they are closer than ever of solving the mystery. This book was well written and kept me engaged until the very last page!

The Queens of Crime indeed!!! Marie Benedict is a queen of historical fiction! I absolutely love the mysteries the women in this book have written and so getting to read a book about them solving a murder together was a real treat! Dorothy Sayers was such a brilliant woman and author and this story really showed how brilliant she was. Being in the real life Detection Club with these women would have been absolutely amazing and I loved getting to read about it! Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for my digital ARC!!

I became a fan of Agatha Christie in high school. But what has become more intriguing to me was her real life disappearance in 1926. The Queens of Crime touches on this disappearance and the initiation of the real life Detection Club, formed in 1930 by a group of British mystery writers including Agatha and Dorothy Sayers. This book mimics those classics penned in the 1930's, known as "The Golden Age of Detective Fiction". The Queens of Crime: Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh and Baroness Emma Orczy attempt to solve a true locked room mystery, and in doing so garner the respect of their male counterparts in the Detection Club.

If you love historical fiction and mystery this book does not disappoint.

This is the tale of five women who were crime authors. They were Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, Margery Allingham and Ngaio Marsh. They called themselves the Queens of Crime.

A nurse, May Daniels, had been murdered but the police surmised that she died of an overdose. This whodunit had everything A first-rate mystery should have. It has suspense, intrigue and Three possible culprits to choose from.

I thought the author did an incredible job developing the storyline. And the characters were oh so believable. They each had their own distinctive personalities and they came from varied walks of life, but they worked well together. Dorothy was the ringleader and Agatha was her sidekick. They were up against terrible odds with the police believing May was a drug addict. They believed that because they found a syringe next to her body. They also believed she had gone to France to conduct some kind of drug transaction. Along with the syringe, they found an excessive amount of blood under her. It turns out she was pregnant.

Everyone in the story, including May, was from London, but the murder took place in France.

All in all, I was extremely impressed with this book and I would love to read other books by this author. I gave it five stars.

I enjoyed this book. I thought it was fun with the five murder mystery authors solving a real life crime. I enjoyed the dynamic between the five women and how Benedict highlighted how often a woman’s opinion was ignored and women were cast to aside in 1930s Britain.

It gave a voice to women during that time. I also enjoyed the murder mystery aspect, although the ending was not the big plot twist I imagined (I think I read too many twisty thrillers). Overall, this read like a cozy mystery novel and was an interesting read.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

The Queens of Crime made me want to read more books! I am familiar with Agatha Christie and vaguely familiar with Dorothy L Slayers but was introduced to new favorites!! The way in which the authors are written made me want to dive into their books and learn more about their lives.
I appreciated that the story was written from Dorothy L Slayers. I liked learning more about her, the struggles of being an authoress at the time and her newlywed experience.

I'm still thinking about this book months later! For a lover of books, this was the perfect mystery! Would be great for a book club.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I’m a huge Marie Benedict fan but unfortunately this fell so flat compared to her others and I had to Dnf at 50 percent

A nice combination for lovers of historical fiction and mystery/crime. It is an interesting concept of mystery writers solving a crime, as well as showcasing how women were/are underestimated and undervalued. The book has quite a slow start, but I pushed through and was rewarded with a good story. There were a few confusing parts, but overall while addressing hard topics, the book was a lighter easy read.
3.5 stars, rounded to 4 on NetGalley

I agree with the other reviewer that this book starts slowly but it is worth sticking with it, The women solving the the murder is fun. It show what little respect women received at the time. They had to fight hard for any respect.

I usually Benedict’s books but this one didn’t work for me I lasted through halfway maybe I’ll pick it up again one day

The Queens of Crime is set after Marie Benedict’s The Mystery of Mrs. Christie and features the great female mystery writers of the early 1900’s. Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy are the top mystery writers in Great Britain but still face sexism among their fellow writers. Banning together, the women start their own club inside the Detection Club. Determined to get the recognition they deserve, they set out to solve the disappearance and then murder of a young nurse. Told in first person, Dorothy Sayers leads the women on the case that feels much too personal for her. All of their fictional deductive skills come into play as the women solve the case the police have written off. The mystery moves quickly in an unexpected twists that draw the women together as one of their own is threatened. The story reads like one of their great mysteries from the ladies who are the stars of the book and keeps you guessing until the end for a page-turning whodunnit. My voluntary, unbiased, and non-mandatory review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

Queens of Crime was such a fun and cozy mystery! When May Daniels disappears and her body is discovered five months later and the odds of her killer facing justice are slim to none, a camaraderie between female mystery writers determined to sleuth out the guilty party themselves.

I enjoyed so much about this book— the mystery was very satisfying, and I loved the occasional use of French throughout. Overall, I enjoyed this book very much and will enjoy checking out other books by Marie Benedict.

I would like to thank St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Marie Benedict does it again. I'm really not one for historial fiction but Maries books suck you right in. Agatha Christie and other female mystery writers join the mens club at Dorothy's invte. After seeing some push back they decide the best way to get in is to solve a real life murder. SO off they go to solve the murder of May a young nurse. Multiple suspects, secrects uncovered, and danger around the corner. Sprinkle in this was done in a time when women were to be seen and not herd and if you stepped out of that view you were looked down upon. Overall great book.

Thanks to Netgalley for a digital review copy in exchange for an honest review.

In this latest from Marie Benedict, Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh. Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy--the doyennes of golden age mysteries, band together to solve a real murder. Set in 1930, Dorothy Sayers calls together the top female writers of mystery. They are nearly all English (Hungarian Baroness Orczy and New Zealander Ngaio Marsh are the exceptions) to solve the murder of a young Englishwoman found dead in France who has connections in unexpectedly high places. The murder is mildly complex but the interaction between the writers is what keeps you turning the page. Marie Benedict may not be the sparkiest writer but she is thorough and has written a solid and enjoyable novel. Her many readers will gobble this book up!

The book was an interesting and fun read! I really enjoyed the many different points of view from strong female characters! I would recommend this to all historical fiction cozy fans!

This mystery revolved around five female mystery writers: Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh. They set out to prove themselves to the male members of the Detection Club by solving an actual crime. Their task was not easy. The women had to prove themselves over and over since the story took place in 1931 when sexism and misogyny were the norm.

I liked the different personalities of these women along with their occasional clashes. I also enjoyed how they put away all differences to help and support each other. Voice of reason overtook any possible pettiness. As the story evolved so did the emotional depth of the women as they discovered the circumstances surrounding the death of a young woman.
Overall, this was a well written and compelling story.

In 1930, when a young English nurse disappears during a visit to France, five of the greatest female crime writers band together to solve the mystery. This book has such a fun premise! Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Emma Orczy assign themselves the title “Queens of Crime” and the fun begins. While they try to prove to their male counterparts that they aren’t second-class citizens, they learn about cooperation over competition. More importantly, the women realize solving this real murder has much greater stakes than crafting their fictional works.

I’m a fan of Marie Benedict, and she didn’t disappoint with this book. The fact that a true story in Sayers’ life inspired it made the reading all the more intriguing. My favorite part was the relationship between Christie and Sayers. I loved Benedict’s take on how these two strong women might have worked together. I was unfamiliar with the rest of the authors, but now I’m going to check out their bodies of work.

Mystery, a look inside history, insights into female friendship, and the “battle” of the sexes, combine with well-rounded, interesting characters to make The Queens of Crime compelling and entertaining. Curl up with a cuppa and a soft blanket and lose yourself in its pages.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advance reader copy.

e-book ARC from Netgalley, all opinions are my own

This is my second Marie Benedict, and I thoroughly enjoyed it :) As usual, there is a well developed blend of history and fiction, real people and made up characters... Dorothy L Sayers and Agatha Christie, as well as Ngaio Marsh, Margery Aligham and Emma Orczy, solve the murder (that was passed over by the police as a drug related death) of a young woman.

I feel as though the personalities and dialogue for each of the female mystery writes was true to the real woman, and I was happy to read more about their lives and careers.

I like historical fiction and I loved the premise of this book, but this didn't quite work for me. I didn't feel as if the women were working as a team, and the tone of the dialogue didn't work well for me. The book was incredibly slow in some parts and moved too quickly in others. Thanks to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Queens of Crime is a great "what if" story about the Queens of mysteries in the Golden Era of Detective Fiction.

Dorothy Sayers and several other mystery writers are launching The Detection Club. The male members want to admit just one other woman, Agatha Christie, but Dorothy tricks them into admitting three others - Baroness Emma Orczy, the author of the Scarlet Pimpernel novels, Ngaio Marsh, the author of the Inspector Alleyn novels, and Margery Allingham, author of the Albert Campion novels.

The women form a club within the club, and set out to make their mark by solving a real mystery. An English nurse, May Daniels, was killed in France, and the Queens of Crime decide to investigate.

This novel is great fun. I love the interplay between the women writers and their sharp minds as they solve the crime. If you love old mysteries and mystery writers, you will enjoy this book.