Wilson's novel posits that the real reason Agatha Christie disappeared for eleven days in 1926 was because she was being blackmailed by the doctor of her husband's lover. The idea that Christie could have been coerced into murdering the doctor's wife to prevent a scandal is unimaginable. The aptly named Dr Kurs went to extreme trouble and expense in planning a hit-job that is glaringly obvious would have been simpler and considerably less risky to perform himself.

This contrived poorly written novel was an entire waste of time. Yes, it's fan-fiction and not to be taken seriously, but Wilson's tale was so ridiculously far-fetched that he scuttled my interest soon after starting. I'm convinced Christie's name was only used as an attention-getter to attract Agatha Christie readers.

If you are looking for a novel featuring Agatha Christie as a character I recommend The Woman on the Orient Express by Lindsay Jayne Ashford. ( )

I liked the idea more than I liked the story, to be honest. I found it a bit too far-fetched and I struggled with the book quite badly, took me several days to finish it since I didn't find the book that compelling to read, which meant reading a couple of chapters now and then, and letting other more interesting books come before this one. The whole blackmailing into committing a murder was, to be honest, a bit ridiculous especially since the "mastermind" wasn't especially scary, and the conclusion? Bah!

2 stars since I actually did manage to finish it and the beginning of the book was promising. ( )

I was underwhelmed to tell the truth. The premise is decent, based as it is on the real life disappearance of Agatha Christie, but there were several things that bothered me. Her husband was a cad and not worth all the emotion Walker attributes to Christie, yet at the very end when he comes to her hotel and she is “found,” Christie still has moments of loving longing for him. Bah. The bad guy is very bad indeed and didn’t seem at all to fit in a polite English mystery, with suggestions of rape, disfigurement, mafiosi confederates and the like. Lastly, the entire premise of Christie being coerced or blackmailed into the circumstances the author set up just seem unlikely. ( )

This had potential but felt flat to me ( )

In 1926, author Agatha Christie disappeared. Ten days later she was found, nearly incoherent, in a hotel under an assumed name. She would never discuss the incident, even avoiding the subject in her autobiography. It was reported that she was suffering from amnesia brought about by stress from her failing marriage to Archie Christie, the pressures of her writing career, and severe depression.

Andrew Wilson's book, A Talent for Murder, suggests a different reason.

Blackmail.

This work of fiction takes Christie's factual disappearance and adds in a crazed doctor, a blackmail scheme and murder. Agatha does not want the press to know that her marriage is dissolving because her husband is having an affair. She wants to protect her soon-to-be ex-husband, daughter and precious dog, Peter, from harm and public scandal. They are all in danger from the corrupt, psychopathic doctor who offers the famous author an impossible choice -- the safety and privacy of her family....if Agatha will murder his wife.

Although I think the real Agatha Christie would have taken this matter straight to the police rather than be subjected to this sort of blackmail, I still loved this book! Agatha Christie has been my favorite author since I was 9 years old and read The Mysterious Affair at Styles. I found the story to be both creative and interesting. The mixing of fact and fiction was intriguing. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down! I definitely recommend it to any Christie fan, or mystery lover!

Andrew Wilson is the author of several other books including The Lying Tongue and Flame Thrower. ( )