Book Review: Death in a Desert Land

Death in a Desert Land Book Review 

By Andrew Wilson 

"Fresh from solving the gruesome murder of a British agent in the Canary Islands, mystery writer Agatha Christie receives a letter from a family who believe their late daughter met with foul play. Before Gertrude Bell overdosed on sleeping medication, she was a prominent archaeologist, recovering ancient treasures in the Middle East. Found near her body was a letter claiming that Bell was being followed and to complicate things further, Bell was competing with another archeologist, Mrs. Woolley, for the rights to artifacts of immense value.

Christie travels to far-off Persia, where she meets the enigmatic Mrs. Woolley as she is working on a big and potentially valuable discovery. Temperamental but brilliant, Mrs. Woolley quickly charms Christie but when she does not hide her disdain for the recently deceased Miss Bell, Christie doesn’t know whether to trust her—or if Bell’s killer is just clever enough to hide in plain sight." 

Death in a Desert Land begins immediately after A Different Kind of Evil, Agatha Christie the well-known mystery writer is on her way to Ur to investigate the death of Gertrude Bell. Ms. Bell was believed to have committed suicide until letters are found that suggests otherwise. Mrs. Christie travels to the archaeological dig site in Ur which is run by Mr. and Mrs. Woolley. 

Mrs. Woolley is an unusual character, she is a brilliant lady but seems unsettled. Mrs. Woolley is a huge fan of Mrs. Christie's mystery novels and is excited to learn more about her, within the first meetings Mrs. Woolley and Mrs. Christie charm each other. However, Mrs. Woolley seems to be hiding something.  

Then a murder takes place at the site, and Mrs. Woolley is the prime suspect. Mrs. Christie has her own thoughts on what took place and doesn't believe Mrs. Woolley committed the crime. Using her wit and smarts she takes on trying to clear Mrs. Woolley's name, if she is in fact innocent. 

I gave this novel a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review. This was by far my favourite Agatha Christie detective novel by Andrew Wilson. The mystery was brilliantly done and Agatha is a great detective, she holds up with her own characters. 

Andrew Wilson's newest Agatha Christie detective novel: I Saw Him Die is to be released July 21, 2020