Agatha Christie writing as Mary Westmacott1934
4/5 stars
This semi-autobiographical novel follows the life of Celia, a lovely, shy woman, who finds herself with a broken soul in the midst of a life crisis. These vignettes of Celia's life cover nursery days to coming out in Egypt, first suitors to a whirlwind courtship, and happy marriage to devastation. It gives a round picture of late Edwardian living and life during the years between the World Wars.
Those that have previously read Christie's Autobiography will recognize many of the stories, but the interest value of these tales is such that Unfinished Portrait doesn't suffer as a result of fore-knowledge. Christie writes well enough that the reader is both entertained by Celia's life, as well as tense, waiting for the blow to fall. Christie understands human nature, even if it is only her own she is writing about, and as a result, this novel presents as real and believable. It's a good read, for many reasons, and I recommend it.
