A Superbly Written and Fully Authorised Account of the Queen of Crime's Life.. - Rated 
My son gave me a copy of this fascinating book for Christmas and a very nice present it turned out to be! I've watched many a Poirot and Miss Marple on television, but never really given much thought to their creator Agatha Christie. This is the only fully authorised account by the Wattses, a branch of Agatha Christie's family, and it is truly fascinating to read about their recollections of her as a person and how their grand estate Abney Hall resurfaced, time and again, lightly disguised as the country house settings in her crime fiction. As a retired police officer, I am most impressed with the meticulous research that Jared Cade has put into his book. Here is a first-rate researcher, who interviewed police officers, civilians and a good many other witnessess involved in the search for Agatha Christie when she went missing in in 1926. Not to mention her family, who decided finally to lift the lid on what happened to her for the sake of her fans, and staff at the hotel where she was eventually found hiding away from the world. An added attraction for me of this book is that I live in Surrey quite near where her car was found abandoned and I am familar with all the pivotal locations in the book. Newlands Corner, West Clandon Railway Station, Sunngindale (just over the border),and it is obvious Jared Cade knows his territory. There's even a map of Newlands Corner in the book for those people curious enough to visit the site. I would urge you to do so because the countryside is beautiful and Newlands Corner a local beauty spot much frequented by picnic parties and hikers.
The general feeling of the police was that Agatha Christie deliberately disappeared to work out a personal problem, and Jared Cade shows us how and why, with the benefit and involvement of Agatha Christie's family members who have actively helped him to put together this book. Although now retired from the police force, I know only too well that the answer to a good many secrets are concealed in families, away from the prying eyes of the public. Jared Cade amply demonstrates this in an elegantly written book. His intelligent research, compassion and objectivity shine off every page. A word of praise, too, must go to her relatives. It's a very brave step to go public with the truth, even after so long, and they have found here a perfect marriage between themselves and Jared Cade. I must say I wouldn't have minded his help in solving a few of my own cases during my time! I've read the other reviews here on Amazon and I think they are all very well deserved.
Highly gripping - Rated
I am a huge fan of Agatha Christie. This biography was so gripping I read it in a day and a half. Afterwards I simply could not get it out of my head. The facts of her life are extraordinary and at times quite sinister when it comes to her disappearance. But that didn't put me off and the book gave me a lot of insight into her as a person. A week later I did something I've never done before and picked it up again and read it from cover to cover. It's obviously been very well researched. There is a lot of information not found in Christie's autobiography, and lots of anecdotal material directly from her family. The photographs of Agatha and her family are quite delightful, and I enjoyed seeing some of the inscriptions she wrote in her books. If you're as big an Agatha Christie fan as I am you owe it to yourself to read this book. Five stars does not do it enough justice. I'd like to have given it more. The recommended retail price is a bit pricey for a paperback so I was glad to buy it through Amazon.
The truth about Agatha's disappearance - Rated
a wonderfully sympathetic and detailed biography requiring extensive research, which was made possible by a part of Agatha's family who were prepared to open up their archives and memories. Certainly a book that any real fan of Agatha should have, it is Agatha's true life and it still keeps her image as glowing as ever but with the benefit of a deep human story.
The lady vanishes. - Rated
At last! Someone has got to the bottom of one of the most intriguing British mysteries of the 20th century. Just what did happen to the first lady of crime fiction in December 1926? I'm certainly not going to spoil things for you by letting the cat out of the bag, suffice it to say that the truth (as is often the way) is quite startlingly simple. The author finally tracks down Dame Agatha during her 11 days of oblivion, and also reveals why she was haunted by the disappearance for the rest of her life, and which made her so publicity shy when she became the most famous author in the world. He also reveals that her second marriage, to Max Mallowan, was far from being the contented haven after a stormy sea that we had previously been led to suppose, and that she never stopped carrying a torch for Archie. This isn't muck-raking, or digging up old ghosts, as the author clearly has a lot of respect for Dame Agatha. It is just a shame that, yet again, someone who brought so much pleasure to people over many years, knew little peace herself. A must-read for all Christie-ites.
Revealing the mystery writer's mystery. - Rated
Revealing the mystery writer’s mystery. Fame and wide acclaim came to Agatha Christie in 1926 when “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd” was published. In the same year, however, her disappearance and the eleven-day search for her attracted even more attention. Subsequently in interviews and in her own autobiography, Agatha Christie refused to explain or refer to the incident. It was inferred that the breakdown of her first marriage had been one aspect of the mystery, and her reluctance to refer to anything so painful was respected. Since her death, she has been the subject of several biographies. None that I have read, even that of her second husband, Sir Max Mellowan, provides a satisfactory motivation or time table for the eleven missing days in 1926. It seems remarkable that a young writer from the smallest state in Australia should be the one to adequately research the subject and to have access to the best informants. Jared Cade knows Agatha Christie’s novels, plays, poetry and short sories well, and demonstrates how insights into this major crisis in Agatha Christie’s life reside in them. His theories are sound, his rebuttal of false and misleading explanations is strong, and his judgments - even of Dame Agatha herself – are balanced. Interest in what happened to the world’ best-selling author back in 1926 may no longer be strong, but it is good to read something that at last sets the record straight. It is, moreover, a fascinating and focussed biography of someone who tried to keep herself away from public scrutiny. I like the compliment paid to the author by his principal informants, descendants of Agatha Christie’s best friend: "This is the only biography that tells Agatha's life as it really was. Your insight into her life and personality is unsurpassed."
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