Hoping to make a clean break from a fractured marriage, Agatha Christie boards the Orient Express in disguise. But unlike her famous detective Hercule Poirot, she can’t neatly unravel the mysteries she encounters on this fateful journey.Agatha isn’t the only passenger on board with secrets. Her cabinmate Katharine Keeling’s first marriage ended in tragedy, propelling her toward a second … relationship mired in deceit. Nancy Nelson—newly married but carrying another man’s child—is desperate to conceal the pregnancy and teeters on the brink of utter despair. Each woman hides her past from the others, ferociously guarding her secrets. But as the train bound for the Middle East speeds down the track, the parallel courses of their lives shift to intersect—with lasting repercussions.
Filled with evocative imagery, suspense, and emotional complexity, The Woman on the Orient Express explores the bonds of sisterhood forged by shared pain and the power of secrets.
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For the question of the week, “What book would you love to see made into a movie?”, I’d have to say The Woman on the Orient Express fits that nicely.
I was a bit leery of this book as it mixes fact with fiction and concerns one of my all time favorite authors, Agatha Christie. But the author is excellent at her craft as well as respectful of Dame Agatha. There’s mystery and romance in an exotic locale as our heroine becomes involved in the lives of two other women with secrets of their own, as they travel from London to Baghdad. And the icing on the cake is the fictionalized version of the meeting of Mrs. Christie and her future husband Max Mallowan. Now, wouldn’t that make a lovely movie?
This was a good book. I did not realize it was based on true facts with some fiction woven in until the end. It was an interesting read. I am a Agatha Christie fan and enjoyed delving into her life a little. Nice read and the ending was a bit unexpected.
This book will make you think you know Agatha Christie’s heart. It was at once uplifting and sad. I found everything about Christie’s journey and her problems very powerful and realistic. It was a sad time in the author’s life, when she attempted to disappear for a while by taking a journey by train. She hoped to remain anonymous along the way, but she meets a woman who’s on to her, and the story begins to be just as cat-and-mouse as one of Christie’s mysteries. The dialogue between the two women is excellent.
Although Christie was troubled during this journey, the novel is not depressing. I wanted to take the ride on the Orient Express along with Christie and the amazing woman she meets along the journey. Well-written and satisfying.
This well-written book isn’t a murder mystery, but it is about the most famous murder mystery writer of all time. Lyndsay Jayne Ashford imagines what might have happened to Agatha Christie if, after her divorce, she took an impulsive trip on the Orient Express to avoid the publicity surrounding her ex-husband’s new marriage. This isn’t an easy thing to do when your lead character is virtually public property, but Ms. Ashford successfully weaves reality and the fantasy together in a compelling way that kept me turning the pages.
Travelling incognito, Agatha befriends two other women on the train whose backgrounds and secrets are as gripping as her own. These three strong female characters are given equal importance in the enthralling storyline. Set against the evocative landscapes and architecture of ancient European cities and the heat, blinding sunlight, grit and rich spicy smells of the Mesopotamian desert, this book sweeps you along with it and makes you wish you were there.
Entertaining, educational
The most fascinating part of this novel for me included the rich images the author conveyed of Iraq, the smells, the culture, the landscapes, and the people, during that time period, well before the decimation of so much of this, by the Gulf War. The kind of archaeological digs that were possible at that time and the wealth of materials they produced as well as the references to biblical places were also intriguing. Taking the Orient Express and in 5 days time going from London to the Middle East, at that time was a true travel adventure. The author did an excellent job of recreating this cultural journey while also revealing much about a famous author’s personal journey and a tragic story that she found herself involved in.
This is a fun, easy read, especially if you like Agatha Christie mysteries. Ashford combines history and imagination to create a period piece that ties in Mrs. Christie’s disappearance, divorce, and remarriage along with ideas that pop up in her mysteries. Very enjoyable!
Excellent
I bought this on a whim. I was immediately drawn into the story. Based on a real character, made it even more fun.
An easy read, combining fact and fiction about Agatha Christy’s life in the late 1920’s and how she met her second husband. I found the descriptions of train travel, the scenery, and archeological digs interesting and enjoyable. Good insight into the inspiration for Christy’s writing, i.e., the settings and themes. I was inspired to re-read some her mysteries once again!
Good reading
This book was a great read. Very interesting take on Agatha herself.
I enjoyed the characters; how the were developed, the plot line and good conclusion.
I love Agatha Christy
More romance than mystery but very enjoyable. I enjoyed the descriptive details that are often lacking by many of today’s writers.
I adored this intriguing and wonderfully written book. I’m a big Agatha Christie fan, so this was a real treat for me. The author weaves the real life story of Christie into a fictional account of how she turned her life around after a devastating divorce, traveled, discovered and interacted with characters who would turn up in future books. Very well done! Thoroughly enjoyed this.
Kudos for a great tribute to Agatha Christie–almost like her writing about herself!
Fabulous fabulous book!
I really enjoyed this book…until the end. I was swept up in the journey of these three women and the train journey and descriptions of destinations. The ending was so vague, I had to re-read to figure out what happened.