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A review by catherine_t
The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
In 1926, Nan O'Dea became Archie Christie's mistress, fulfilling a plot she'd begun years earlier, in Ireland, when she was just a teenager. Moving back and forth in time, Nan recounts the events that led her to this moment, and the disappearance of Agatha Christie for eleven days.
My mother really enjoyed this book. I, on the other hand, did not. Yes, I am well aware that this book is fiction. It doesn't purport to solve the mystery of Christie's real-life disappearance (something which Christie herself never discussed, not even in her <i>Autobiography</i>). But the way it characterizes both Christies just struck me as false, hollow. Starting out, I couldn't understand why certain real-life details were changed (the Christies' daughter being named Teddy, for instance, not Rosalind, and Agatha using a typewriter when she was known to write longhand and have a secretary type the manuscript). In fact, it's these little niggling oddities that kept pulling me out of the story. Perhaps if I weren't such a devotee of Christie (I've read two biographies, most of her novels, and am eagerly awaiting the release of Lucy Worsley's biography of Christie later this year), these things wouldn't have bothered me, but they did.
Maybe this book isn't for those of us who know Christie and her work. As I said, my mother really enjoyed the book, and she's read one biography and a handful of the novels (I think). If you can consider this more of an alternate-universe version of Christie, perhaps you'll enjoy it more than I did.
My mother really enjoyed this book. I, on the other hand, did not. Yes, I am well aware that this book is fiction. It doesn't purport to solve the mystery of Christie's real-life disappearance (something which Christie herself never discussed, not even in her <i>Autobiography</i>). But the way it characterizes both Christies just struck me as false, hollow. Starting out, I couldn't understand why certain real-life details were changed (the Christies' daughter being named Teddy, for instance, not Rosalind, and Agatha using a typewriter when she was known to write longhand and have a secretary type the manuscript). In fact, it's these little niggling oddities that kept pulling me out of the story. Perhaps if I weren't such a devotee of Christie (I've read two biographies, most of her novels, and am eagerly awaiting the release of Lucy Worsley's biography of Christie later this year), these things wouldn't have bothered me, but they did.
Maybe this book isn't for those of us who know Christie and her work. As I said, my mother really enjoyed the book, and she's read one biography and a handful of the novels (I think). If you can consider this more of an alternate-universe version of Christie, perhaps you'll enjoy it more than I did.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and War
Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Suicide