The Vanished Heiress: Agatha Christie’s Eleven Days of Silence The true story behind the Queen of Crime’s greatest mystery. In December 1926, the world’s most famous mystery writer became the center of a mystery herself. Agatha Christie—already Britain’s bestselling novelist—vanished without a trace. Her abandoned car was discovered on a lonely hillside, headlights on, coat inside, but no sign of her. For eleven days, a nation speculated wildly: had she been kidnapped, murdered, or driven to despair? When she was finally found at a spa in Harrogate—registered under another woman’s name—Agatha offered no explanation. Theories spread like wildfire: amnesia, revenge, even a publicity stunt. To this day, her silence remains one of literature’s greatest enigmas. In The Vanished Heiress , true crime author Linda Davidson unravels the haunting puzzle of Agatha Christie’s disappearance. Drawing on historical accounts, cultural context, and Christie’s own works, this book explores: The personal grief and betrayal that shadowed Christie before her vanishing. - The nationwide manhunt that captured headlines and drew in literary giants like Arthur Conan Doyle. - The mysterious days at the Harrogate spa—where Christie danced, read newspapers about herself, and lived under an assumed identity. - The lasting impact of those eleven days on Christie’s legacy and writing. Part true crime, part literary history, and part psychological exploration, this is the story of how Agatha Christie became both the detective and the mystery. Fans of The Mystery of Mrs. Christie and Agatha Christie: A Mysterious Life will be captivated by this deeply researched, vividly told account of the disappearance that stunned the world. Sometimes, the greatest mystery is not the one an author creates— but the one she lives.