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siobhanward's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Reese's Book Club Pick 58/68
This really just reinforces that Reese and I do not have the same taste in books. Another 2* book club pick. I'm kind of over fiction about real people - maybe it can stay in the fanfic world where it belongs.
I'm not sure what de Gramont was trying to achieve with this - was I supposed to like Agatha Christie more because suddenly she's more sympathetic? Was I supposed to hate Nan? I have no idea. Not only was this book totally impossible, I couldn't stand Nan. I understand why she was doing what she was doing, sure, but it did not make me care for her at all. I know this was a work of fiction but it was totally unbelievable and the only person I cared about was Agatha - and she felt mostly like a secondary character the entire time.
This really just reinforces that Reese and I do not have the same taste in books. Another 2* book club pick. I'm kind of over fiction about real people - maybe it can stay in the fanfic world where it belongs.
I'm not sure what de Gramont was trying to achieve with this - was I supposed to like Agatha Christie more because suddenly she's more sympathetic? Was I supposed to hate Nan? I have no idea. Not only was this book totally impossible, I couldn't stand Nan. I understand why she was doing what she was doing, sure, but it did not make me care for her at all. I know this was a work of fiction but it was totally unbelievable and the only person I cared about was Agatha - and she felt mostly like a secondary character the entire time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Infertility
fabs2510's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, and Infidelity
Moderate: War, Rape, Suicide, Sexual assault, and Self harm
Minor: Infertility, Death of parent, and Death
raemow's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, War, Religious bigotry, Miscarriage, Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Suicide, Rape, Child death, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Kidnapping, and Murder
amberrc's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual assault, Rape, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship
frantically's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This would've been so much more fun without Agatha Christie. Sorry. Nan's story was so well-written and just deserved its own place, especially in this climate, where we're more openly talking about the horrible things that have happened due to organized religion. The "historical" details of what happened to the Christies always took me out the story and didn't really fit within the plot, in my opinion. I got really into it at the end but the writing was a bit confusing at times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Animal death, Death, Infidelity, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, War, and Physical abuse
Minor: Death of parent and Abandonment
feebles640's review against another edition
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Rape, Infidelity, Abandonment, Misogyny, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, and Death
Minor: Child death and War
annamontana's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book started slowly and built up. I liked it but it will not stay with me long.
I found the 2 stories interesting, Nan's backstory giving her character some likeability.
I found the 2 stories interesting, Nan's backstory giving her character some likeability.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Pregnancy, Infidelity, and Murder
Moderate: Child death
Minor: War
circleofacquaintances's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Infidelity
mlleblanc10's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Sexual assault, and Rape
inthefallstateofmind's review
4.0
I am a fan of Agatha Christie's work and I have listened to a podcast about her life so I knew about the mysterious days that she went missing which she never spoke of. Her answer to questions about that time was always that she couldn't remember what happened. So learning that the premise of The Christie Affair was a fictional take on what happened during those missing days, I was very intrigued. With that being said, I haven't extensively looked into Agatha's history so as for what is really based on truth in this book, I can't say. I read it as though liberties were taken with the majority of the story.
The book is narrated from the POV of Agatha's husband's (Archie) mistress, Nan O'Dea. Nan is determined to steal Archie from Agatha even after being confronted by Agatha herself. The night that Archie finally tells Agatha that he is leaving her for Nan, Agatha packs a suitcase, grabs her typewriter, and disappears in her car. However, the car is later found on the side of the road and Agatha is nowhere in sight. The reader goes back and forth between this current time where the whole country is searching for Agatha and Nan is laying low at a luxury hotel and Nan's past where she fell in love with an Irish boy who was sent to fight in the War. After he returned, Nan got pregnant, but her love falls deathly ill before they could be married. The boy's parents send Nan off to a convent for unwed mothers where she is starved, forced to do backbreaking labor, and witnesses the physical and sexual abuse of other girls. After giving birth to her baby, the little girl is quickly given to a family without Nan's knowledge. Nan makes it her mission to find her child again.
There are a lot of moving parts and people in The Christie Affair and surprisingly not much of it has to do with Agatha Christie herself. While it uses her story as a basis, this is really a book about fictional character Nan O'Dea. In the beginning I wasn't sure how I would feel about this or her character, but Nina de Gramont did a great job at building Nan's character and getting you to feel sympathetic to a her despite doing some rather unfavorable things. Her story is actually the strongest in my opinion. Agatha is in the story and she plays a role, but don't go into it feeling like she is going to be a focal point. One thing that I think The Christie Affair could have benefited from was multiple POV narrators. Nan tells the whole story including other character's activities and thoughts at times when she wasn't there. Nan explains in the book how that was possible, but I think actually getting to hear the character's thoughts from their own POV would have allowed de Gramont the ability to dive deeper into each other psyches.
The book is narrated from the POV of Agatha's husband's (Archie) mistress, Nan O'Dea. Nan is determined to steal Archie from Agatha even after being confronted by Agatha herself. The night that Archie finally tells Agatha that he is leaving her for Nan, Agatha packs a suitcase, grabs her typewriter, and disappears in her car. However, the car is later found on the side of the road and Agatha is nowhere in sight. The reader goes back and forth between this current time where the whole country is searching for Agatha and Nan is laying low at a luxury hotel and Nan's past where she fell in love with an Irish boy who was sent to fight in the War. After he returned, Nan got pregnant, but her love falls deathly ill before they could be married. The boy's parents send Nan off to a convent for unwed mothers where she is starved, forced to do backbreaking labor, and witnesses the physical and sexual abuse of other girls. After giving birth to her baby, the little girl is quickly given to a family without Nan's knowledge. Nan makes it her mission to find her child again.
There are a lot of moving parts and people in The Christie Affair and surprisingly not much of it has to do with Agatha Christie herself. While it uses her story as a basis, this is really a book about fictional character Nan O'Dea. In the beginning I wasn't sure how I would feel about this or her character, but Nina de Gramont did a great job at building Nan's character and getting you to feel sympathetic to a her despite doing some rather unfavorable things. Her story is actually the strongest in my opinion. Agatha is in the story and she plays a role, but don't go into it feeling like she is going to be a focal point. One thing that I think The Christie Affair could have benefited from was multiple POV narrators. Nan tells the whole story including other character's activities and thoughts at times when she wasn't there. Nan explains in the book how that was possible, but I think actually getting to hear the character's thoughts from their own POV would have allowed de Gramont the ability to dive deeper into each other psyches.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Infidelity, Child death, and Sexual assault