The Christie Affair

Too much of the book was Nan's backstory for my liking, but the ending is lovely. Would have liked more Agatha, more of the mystery.

Our book club enjoyed this light fare. Historical fiction meets murder mystery with a whimsical retelling of Agatha Christie's missing 13 days back in 1926. It takes a minute to warm up to the narration by the home wrecker but eventually we come to understand her motivation. The writing in this book had a soothing effect on all of us. We recommend it! And thank you @kellyccall for my signed copy.

There's a lot going on in this 300 page book that I thought would be a light beach-read-like imagining of “what really happened” when Agatha Christie went missing for 10 days in 1925. The story is narrated by Nan O'Dea, who we quickly find out is conducting an affair with Agatha Christie's husband, Archie, and is intending to get him to divorce Agatha and marry her. We might make some assumptions about why Miss O'Dea is doing this, but as we learn more about her history, those assumptions are called into question.

This is a clever mystery wrapped up in a tale of star-crossed lovers, separated by World War I and then patriarchy, and then grief and trauma.

I was very interested in this book when I first heard about it because of the premise. I find the unexplained disappearance of Agatha Christie to be a fascinating topic and I really liked the story that Nina de Gramont created around it.
I enjoyed reading this book and I fell in love with the characters. Nina de Gramont is a new to me author, but I am definitely planning to check out her other books.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this one. I enjoyed most of it, but not without some initial confusion and some scenes and plot lines I could have lived without. 

I'll start with the title. It's a bit misleading. The story is told by Nan O'Dae, the fictionalized version of Archie Christie's mistress. Though Agatha Christie is present in the story and revolves around her disappearance, the story is largely about Nan and her backstory. While it was an interesting story, I spent the first fourth of the book trying to figure out why it's titled The Christie Affair and when the perspective would change to Agatha. Though it's not the biggest quip for me, it was distracting at first. As I said, Nan's story was interesting, but it overpowered Agatha's story. 

My second issue with the book was the pacing. Even with Nan narrating, there were scenes with Agatha, Archie, and Chilton that didn't involve Nan which felt a little off now and then. Mostly it was the placement and the number of storylines going on. Nan often times broke the fourth wall, making it feel like a ‘he said, she said' tale. That was the point of the narration, but those moments jarred me out of the story being told. 

Lastly, I didn't care for some of the content in Nan's backstory. Though a driving force for the plot, I found the scenes with the nuns and the priest upsetting. I'm sure I'll get some flack for saying so. It's one thing to acknowledge it than have to read it in detail. Especially when it's not told in a way that's informing. 

My complaints out of the way, I'll wrap this up by saying that I did like the book for the most part. The characters were likable and I like how they were written in a way that you're rooting for all of them even though their aspirations conflict with at least one of the others. There was mystery, romance, and intrigue all in one with none of them too over the top. 

Framed around the real life 11-day disappearance of mystery writer Agatha Christie in 1925, and told from the point of view of Nan O'Dea, Archie Christie's mistress and eventual second wife, this intriguing and lyrical book was a joy to read. It spins an alternative version of the facts to reveal a different “why” to the well-documented events and a surprising yet logical motive behind the actions of all the principal players. The story dives into the past, to the rolling hills of Ireland, a handsome boy-next-door and a convent for out-of-wedlock mothers, to the present day where a double homicide has occurred at a fancy hotel at the same time police forces across England are engaged in a manhunt for the missing author. There are two touching love stories threaded through the narrative, as well as insights into the depth of a mother's love. Bravo to Nina de Gramont's story-telling as well as her intriguing and satisfying denouement.

Few events in literary history are as fascinating as Agatha Christie's unexplained disappearance. De Gramont's imagined solution is creative, satisfying and maybe... true? One will never know ;) But it was that believable. The period and setting really came alive at her hand. The characters were complex, endearing and vivid. I learned about Irish history, reading this book. I felt such sympathy for Nan yet she made me a good frustrated. I whizzed through the first half of the book, but then, it did feel like there wasn't much to be revealed in the remaining pages. The book wasn't paced to my taste, but I felt it was a well-conceived interesting read.