*I received a free copy of this book with thanks to the author, Boldwood Books and Rachel Gilbey at Rachel’s Random Resources blog tours. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Blurb: Agatha Christie is about to embark on a new, gripping murder case. But this time, she’s not the author – she’s a suspect…
1926 – Christie is a darling of the literary circuit and the most desired guest in London’s glittering social scene. She can often be found at meetings of the Detection Club – where mystery writers come together to share ideas, swap secrets and drink copiously. But then a fellow author’s initiation ceremony takes a gruesome turn, and one of the group ends up dead. Now, Agatha is no longer just the creator of great mystery plots – she’s a player in one.
And when Agatha disappears the day after the murder, she’s widely assumed to be guilty. Only Eliza Baker, assistant to the Club’s enigmatic secretary, Dorothy Sayers, is interested in investigating the case. But in a world where murder is the ultimate plot device, can Eliza piece together the evidence and find the killer before it’s too late?
This story is a 1920s murder mystery, but Agatha Christie is one of the suspects, rather than the author, along with other well-known names like Dorothy L. Sayers and G. K. Chesterton.
The main characters are Eliza – master chess player, reluctant new secretary to the Detection Club and part-time undercover spy – and Theo – also a superb chess player, secret heir to aristocracy, would-be author and secretly in love with Eliza. So they both have plenty to uncover and investigate before a single death occurs!
Within the fictional murder mystery plot, the author cleverly weaves in events (as well as people) from real life, with the Detection Club bickering over the ‘fairness’ of Agatha Christie’s famous novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (one of my favourites and not at all ‘cheating’! This story does give away the plot of that one, but if you’re a Christie fan then you will have definitely already read it), and Agatha Christie disappearing for days only to turn up in a spa, just as she did in 1926 in reality (and this book doesn’t offer an answer to that real-life unsolved mystery).
I really liked Eliza’s drive and her no-nonsense, brusque attitude, which contrasted well with Theo’s affability and imagination, and their chemistry together was really sweet. I did actually solve the main mystery before the reveal this time, but the story set up plenty of other puzzles too, from whether the lovebirds would ever declare their feelings to why Dorothy Sayers had to rush off in a hurry. And there is an espionage sub-plot which is introduced sporadically throughout the story but not developed further until a teaser at the end, so the story clearly sets up some intriguing plot threads to lead the reader into sequels.
In fact, the only real issue I had with this book was Eliza’s dismissive attitude towards mystery fiction, which – as a massive fan – thoroughly irritated me! Perhaps Theo can open her mind towards it, via “Emily and Leo”?
Minor difference of opinion with the main character aside (!), this was a really fun murder mystery and I love that the setting involves books and writers (including two of my personal favourite crime queens), so I would definitely read more from the Detection Club and Kelly Oliver in future.
Purchase Link: The Case of the Christie Conspiracy on Amazon
About the author
Kelly Oliver is the award-winning, bestselling author of three mysteries series: The Jessica James Mysteries, The Pet Detective Mysteries, and the historical cozies The Fiona Figg Mysteries, set in WW1. She is also the Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University and lives in Nashville, Tennessee. She is bringing new titles in the Fiona Figg series to Boldwood, the first of which, Chaos in Carnegie Hall, will be published in November 2022.
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Don’t forget to check out the other blog stops on the tour for more great reviews and content (see the poster below for details)!
