The Christie Affair
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4.1 • 27 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
'AN ABSOLUTE MARVEL.' Kristin Hannah, bestselling author of Firefly Lane and The Four Winds
In 1926, Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days. Only I know the truth of her disappearance.
I'm no Hercule Poirot.
I'm her husband's mistress.
Agatha Christie's world is one of glamorous society parties, country house weekends, and growing literary fame.
Nan O'Dea's world is something very different. Her attempts to escape a tough London upbringing during the Great War led to a life in Ireland marred by a hidden tragedy.
After fighting her way back to England, she's set her sights on Agatha. Because Agatha Christie has something Nan wants. And it's not just her husband.
Despite their differences, the two women will become the most unlikely of allies. And during the mysterious eleven days that Agatha goes missing, they will unravel a dark secret that only Nan holds the key to . . .
The Christie Affair is a stunning novel that reimagines the unexplained eleven-day disappearance of Agatha Christie in 1926, which captivated the world.
PRAISE FOR THE CHRISTIE AFFAIR
'A novel that literally out-Christies Agatha. An exciting, moving and delightful read.' Janice Hallett, bestselling author of The Appeal
'This is a book which has it all.' Elizabeth Macneal, bestselling author of The Doll Factory
'Elegant, ingenious and hugely enjoyable.' AJ Pearce, bestselling author of Dear Mrs Bird and Yours, Cheerfully
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
De Gramont (The Last September) offers an intriguing new theory of why Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days in this superior thriller, which places the woman Christie's husband, Archie, was having an affair with at the time—here the fictional Nan O'Dea—at its center. A gripping opening sentence teases O'Dea's dark side ("A long time ago, in another country, I nearly killed a woman"). In December 1926, Archie decides to reveal the affair to his wife, to whom the news comes as no surprise. Agatha, however, is taken aback by her husband's declaration that he is both leaving her and seeking a divorce. A day later, the world-famous mystery author vanishes, and her abandoned car is found near a body of water notorious for corpses being found in it, leading some to suspect the writer killed herself. Flashbacks flesh out the backstory of O'Dea, who at 19 was sent to a convent by the head of the family she was working for in Ireland after getting pregnant by his son. De Gramont treats O'Dea's story with sympathy and care, highlighting the bleak circumstances for both women in the historical period and teasing out the motivations for breaking up the Christies' marriage. This is an enjoyable reimagining of a scandal whose exact nature remains a puzzle a century later.
Customer Reviews
False advertising
2.5 stars
Dame Agatha already had half a dozen novels to her credit 1926 when Archie, her husband of 14 years, announced he was leaving her for a younger woman. Soon after, she abandoned her car near a quarry and “disappeared” for 11 eleven days. She was found, after a nationwide manhunt, at a resort hotel, where she was registered under a false name (the same surname as her husband’s lover). She denied all memory of interval events, and claimed to be unaware of the furore she had caused. She divorced Archie in 1928. He married his b**bo (am I allowed to say that?) the next day.
Here, the author tells the story from the POV of a young woman involved in an affair wth AC’s hubby at the time, except her name is different from the one Archie actually had the affair with. It’s mostly about her life, which was suitably dramatic. All well and good you might say, but disappointing for someone hoping for dirt on the Dame. The prose was slow in parts.