The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont

Because I have been driving a lot recently, I have downloaded a few audiobooks and The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont was one of those books.  

In 1926, the author Agatha Christie disappeared for eleven days after a fight with her adulterous husband. When she was found, she claimed to have no memory of what she did during that time. There are two main theories about her disappearance - either she did have temporary amnesia/was in a fugue state or that she intended to embarrass her husband with her disappearance, but never imagined how big the search would be for her. In the true crime community, this nearly one hundred-year-old mystery is still hotly debated. Regardless of the truth, in this book, de Gramont tells the fictionalized story of Agatha's disappearance through the lens of her husband's mistress, Nan O'Dea.  

I struggle with books that seem to glorify adultery. I don't love marriage in peril stories. And, look, Nan's defense of adultery is terrible. But there's more to this book than simply a woman defending her choice to seduce a married man. There's a mystery and a meditation on right and wrong. I found myself swaying from finding Nan's motives repulsive to a kind of sympathy to a deep sadness. 

But the story is from Nan's point of view and if you're interested in Agatha's point of view, too bad. That's not the story de Gramont wanted to tell.  

I liked how de Gramont wove together details from the true story (or what's known to be true, anyway) with things she made up whole cloth. I thought the way she connected the impact of WWI in the interwar period of Europe to Nan and Agatha's lives in particular was crafty. I loved the various settings around Ireland and England. I loved all the scenes with dogs. I did not care for a few of the themes (children are more important than any other human beings, marriage is temporary), but just because I don't like and/or agree with them doesn't mean it wasn't a fascinating listen.

4/5 stars

Lines of note:

A person who has nothing might be excused for taking one thing, a husband, from a person who has everything. (timestamp 17:38)

What an excuse for becoming an adulterer! 

She didn't even think of herself as an author. Her primary occupation and identity was married lady. That's who she was. Married...Who would she be if that were no longer the case? (timestamp 36:10)

I think this is an interesting question and I might write a longer post about identity later on. What is your primary occupation and identity?

The dogs sniffed and bayed uselessly, finally catching a whiff of a rabbit and leading the searchers on another fruitless chase. Even experts are, in the end, dogs. (timestamp 5:31:21)

Dogs be dogs.

Can a man live with a woman for so many years, sleep beside her so many nights without the molecules in his body palpably rearranging themselves in the event of her death? (timestamp 7:07:51)

This comes up in fiction all the time. (A Spell of Winter comes to mind.) People seem to think that their body will somehow react when someone they care for dies and they'll know immediately. What a weird thing to think.

Nothing in the world removes the ills a wife causes like the balm of a mistress. (timestamp 8:33:27)

So much defense of purposefully becoming a mistress.

The Age of Disappearing Women. It had been going on forever. Thousands of us vanished with not a single police officer searching, not a word from the newspapers, only our long absences and quiet returns, if we ever returned at all. (timestamp 8:36:30)

So many missing people.

...petting a panting Labrador who cuddled up beside her. She laughed when the dog licked her chin and kissed him back for good measure. (timestamp 8:46:11)

There were a lot of dogs in the book. I heartily approve of this. (There is a description of a sad, violent dog death, though, so be aware.)

Hat mentions (why hats?):

I wore a pleated skirt, a button-up blouse, a loose cardigan and stockings, fake pearls, and a smart new hat. (timestamp 5:28) 

....she removed her hat, so I did, too...(timestamp 12:48)

My hat was still on my head - it had barely budged. (timestamp 22:33) 

Colleen wore a knitted woolen hat and pulled it down over her ears. (timestamp 1:12:30)

I packed my warmest clothes - boots and hats and gloves...(timestamp 2:15:15)

My hat had started to fall and he pulled it back onto my head, down over my ears...(timestamp 3:20:43)

...bundled up in a hat and coat. (timestamp 8:19:47)

...and tipped his hat. (timestamp 9:38:23)

...and put on his hat, pulled it down over her forehead.(timestamp 9:42:39)

...had forgotten to wear his hat...(timestamp 9:46:24)