(3.5) I’m always excited to see which female in history Marie Benedict decides to write about. This time around, she’s writing about a group of women, namely Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, and Emma Orczy.

When a young woman (May Daniels) is found dead, this team of five authors find themselves investigating her case, using their skills as mystery writers to track down her killer.

This book felt different from other Marie Benedict novels I’ve read and I enjoyed it. I might have enjoyed it a bit more with fewer main characters (though the emphasis is on Dorothy Sayers), but it felt like a nice homage to these ‘Queens of Crime’. I also enjoyed the camaraderie between these female writers who had to band together in a male-dominated industry.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital ARC of the book!

Thank you to the publishers and @netgalley for this freeARC in exchange for a fair review. I have always been a huge fan of Marie Benedict and jumped on the chance to read her newest book. It had all of the elements of a story I love. Strong female protagonist, great imagery, and a good and compelling mystery. I see this being a huge hit once it is released. The balance between girl power and a serious mystery was a masterful, as is the Marie Benedict way!

This was a great murder mystery about a young nurse that goes missing and is found several moths later dead

The story kept you on your toes
It was a great read and would recommend
Thank you for letting me read an early copy

Thank you #StMartinsPress and #NetGalley for providing this #ARC Advance Reading Copy. The expected publication date is February 11, 2025

#OUABC 2024 Reading Challenge: 40 Prompts (27. A book about best friends) • 4 Stars

"The Queens of Crime" by Marie Benedict is a historical fiction set in 1930s London, where five renowned women mystery writers secretly form the Queens of Crime to solve an actual murder mystery, inspired by real events. The group, including Dorothy L. Sayers and Agatha Christie, tackles the case of May Daniels, a nurse found dead under mysterious circumstances in France. Their quest intertwines their fictional detective skills with real-life investigation, aiming to prove their mettle against the male-dominated Detection Club. The story explores themes of female empowerment, camaraderie, and the fight for recognition in a patriarchal society.

#TheQueensOfCrime #MarieBenedict #Bookstagram

I enjoyed this one about a detection club featuring Agatha Christie and Dorothy sayers among others and takes you into their minds and lives . Benedict is a master at historical fiction
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review your book

Marie Benedict's The Queens of Crime deviates from her usual style and feels somewhat forced. While she is known for her engaging historical fiction that brings lesser-known figures to life, this novel attempts to tackle a murder mystery featuring iconic mystery writers from the 1930s, like Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers. Unfortunately, it often reads like a series of name drops rather than a cohesive narrative.

The dialogue among characters lacks depth, making it tedious to read. Additionally, the relentless internal questioning leaves little room for readers to form their own thoughts or draw conclusions about the characters. The mystery itself is straightforward and lacks suspense, which diminishes the overall experience.

Another drawback is the frequent use of untranslated French dialogue, which can alienate readers who aren’t fluent. While some might appreciate the cozy murder mystery elements, I found the pacing drawn out and the plot unengaging. Overall, this was a disappointing departure from Benedict's typical storytelling.

The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict tells the story of Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy all mystery writers in London 1930. They are part of the detection club but are shunned by the male members. So the ladies decide to solve the murder of May Daniels.

I really loved this book. The characters were great and so was the dialogue. The female relationships were very well portrayed. The reader got to see how authors think and write their murder stories.

I highly recommend this novel. Thank you to NetGalley and St Martins Press for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.0. I like Marie Benedict but I don’t love her books as I like some but not all as I find them inconsistent. I really did like this one which focused on five women mystery writers in the early 1930s, Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy, who take it upon themselves to use their talents as the writers of fictional sleuths to investigate a real crime to show their male counterparts in the newly formed and legendary Detective Club that women mystery writers are on a par if not better than the men at their craft... The women come and work together to investigate a high profile crime of a British woman on French soil, where for various reasons the authorities failed to thoroughly investigate the case, and as a group these women all bring their particular strengths to the case It’s a historical novel where we find out about the personal lives of these mystery writers which I found very interesting. . As with all her works, this one was well researched. It’s fun and interesting reading and I highly recommend even for those who do not read mystery novels. Thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased and candid review

Five of the great female mystery writers join together to become part of a larger group of male authors. When they are distanced by the group, the women decide to solve a real mystery. The story has a lot of back and forth, and is based on this group trying to determine who killed a young nurse. A mention of another young woman (violinist) who had also disappeared is brought into the storyline. In the end, the murderer confesses and justice is served for the nurse. However, the violinist is never brought back up other than the confession that she was also killed. I wish there had been a tie in that her family found out that she had not run away, but was murdered as well . The book was ok, not one that I found I "loved". It's a quick read. Thanks to NetGalley, Ms Benedict and St Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars - Enjoyed this title a lot!! I had previously read the authors "Mystery of Mrs. Christie" so this new title seemed a good bet & follow-up. I really enjoyed getting to know about the other female mystery writers, especially Sayers, Dame Aggie's rival, as they investigate the murder of a young girl. Lots of fun & snark, though it was a bit slow at the beginning (that's the half star). My thanks to Net Galley & the publisher for the DRC - very happy to review it!

I really enjoyed this one! The "Queens of Crime" are a diverse group of women crime writers in the 1930's who embark on a mission to solve a real murder. The story kept me interested the entire time, and I couldn't wait to see what actually happened. It does a great job intertwining the process of writing crime with solving it. Would highly recommend! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This is the first book I’ve read by Marie Benedict, and she has made an instant fan out of me! I am a sucker for a tantalizing murder mystery, and this is that with a twist as five mystery writers take on a real murder case.

This was such a refreshing take! I was enchanted and feel like it was genius for famed mystery writers to use their skills to help save a woman who was wronged in the worst way.

It did have some moments that did drag but then it would pick right back up and pull me right back in. I truly enjoyed this novel so much and feel like it really helped kick off my fall reading in the best way possible.

A delightful mystery featuring 5 of the best female mystery writers of the early 1930s, including Agatha Christie! The five women set out to solve a real world mystery to show the men of the newly founded detective club that they are just as worthy as the men to be there. Working together the women are successful in their quest to solve the crime. I loved every single minute of this read!! Wonderful characters, a great mystery and a well paced, well written novel made it easy to rate this a 5/5.

In 1930's London five of the most talented women mystery writers come together to try and break into the renowned Detection Club, which has only two token women writers included in its membership; Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers. Wanting respect for their writing talents from the men, the five band together to take on the solving of the murder of a young English nurse in France. Using their plot building skills, they retrace the young woman's final days and solve the riddle of how she managed to escape from a "locked room" scenario. The women discover that powerful men are involved in the crime which puts their own lives at risk.

It was delightful to have these women writers come to life as real everyday people. Solving the crime wasn't really that hard for this reader but I continued on to the end of the book just for the interactions between the women. Another historical novel by Marie Benedict which brought her characters to life and will most likely fuel reader's curious about these writers' works to check out the titles at their local libraries.

Five of the greatest mystery writers of their time, including Agatha Christie, have joined The Detection Club for the company of other mystery writers and boost the genre. However, these five are female and not easily accepted in the club. To show that they are just as capable, if not more so, as their male counterparts, they set out to solve the disappearance of a young nurse.

The Queens of Crime is a well written mystery that is clever, witty, sad and action packed. A real page turner that will keep the reader hooked from the beginning. Who doesn't love anything involving Agatha Christie. I highly recommend this book to all mystery lovers.

The Queens of Crime, by Marie Benedict, is a fun murder mystery novel, that 5 women (all real historical figures) work together to solve, in hopes of establishing their place among the male authors of the time. The self-proclaimed "queens" are an eclectic group of dedicated writers who become detectives in an attempt to solve the case. The story is fast-paced and keeps you turning the pages. It was hard to put this one down. Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with the ARC ebook I read and reviewed. All opinions are my own.

The concept was okay,
You have a group of now famous women who become detectives in real life to solve real crimes.
In this case a murder.

The characters were very one dimensional.
This was more a book about women's rights than it was about the mystery.
The plotline and the perpetrator was very easy to read.
While I enjoy the written works of Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, and even the leader of the group, G.K. Chesterson.
The characters did not mesh, nor did they make a cohesive group.
The first 30% or so was very very slow paced and I almost did not finish it.
While the latter half of the book was better, I found the overall story to be lackluster and I would have been better off reading a different book.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this Advanced Reader Copy.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys historical fiction. The author, Marie Benedict, has done her research and is well done. Benedict is known for extensive research and well-written books and this book does not disappoint.

It is the story of the Queens of Crime: Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, Margery Allingham, and Ngaio Marsh. These mystery authors become members of the Detection Club that solves the murder of a young woman, May Daniels. The setting is in England during the 1930s. Throughout the books various authors and titles are shared and I found it delightful to reminiscence about these books. The Queens use their writing skills to solve the mystery by determining what characters in their mystery novels would do.

Those times show the challenges women encountered. Men, including other authors, treated women as though they were disposable. Yet it was these Queens who solve a murder mystery that the police stated was due to drugs.

If you enjoy well-researched historical fiction or like Benedict’s writing style, then this book is for you. It will not disappoint.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Thanks to the publisher, St. Martin’s Press and the author for the privilege to read this advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was thrilled to learn of The Queens of Crime, a new novel, by one of my favorite authors Marie Benedict. While I have thoroughly enjoyed all of her historical fiction novels about great women, I was surprised that this one is a murder mystery. The book depicts, somewhat, the lives of Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayer, and an additional three historical female writers of the past. The book focuses on the efforts of these women solving a real life murder. Their ultimate goal however, was to prove that their writing and deductive capabilities were on par with the male writers of that time.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy of this novel. So looking forward to Marie Benedict's next novel! .

Historical fiction can sometimes drag for me and I wasn’t sure how I would feel about this one, but chose it since I really love Agatha Christie books and the premise of her and other female authors teaming up to solve a real crime peaked my interest.

This was my first book by Marie Benedict and I really enjoyed it! I plan to read The Mystery of Mrs. Christie next!

I loved this book’s focus on female friendships and how the Queens used their various talents and experience to solve the mystery. It was a great ensemble of characters - I was only aware of Agatha Christie going into it, but am now interested in reading books by the other Queens as well!

I thought the story unfolded well and definitely kept me engaged until the end. The ending itself didn’t quite land for me 100%, but I still really liked this a lot. I would definitely recommend to other mystery fans!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for the opportunity to read an advanced copy in exchange for my review!