The Case of the Discontented Husband - a Parker Pyne Short Story

Parker Pyne #4

by Agatha Christie

Reginald Wade goes to see Parker Pyne when he learns that his wife has decided to leave him for another man. Reggie’s only hope is that his wife has declared a six-month grace period. If she still feels the same way at the end, she wants a divorce. Pyne decides that a short interlude with the dark, glamorous Madeline de Sara is what Reggie needs to console him and to rescue his marriage as well. But how will Mrs. Wade react? Is this such a good idea?

Librarian's note: this entry relates to the short story, The Case of the Discontented Husband. Collections and the other stories by the author are located elsewhere on Goodreads. The Parker Pyne series includes 14 short stories. Entries for the stories can be found by searching GR for: a Parker Pyne Short Story.

Librarian's Note #2: the story was published in the print anthologies, Parker Pyne Investigates and Mr. Parker Pyne, Detective but it first appeared in Cosmopolitan magazine in 1932.

Librarian's note #3: this is #4 of the 14 stories.

Genres: Agatha Christie, Mystery, Short Stories, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Crime, Fiction

29 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 29, 1932

About the author

Agatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.

This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.

Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

When his wife tells him she's leaving him for a more artsy man, Reggie asks for a 6-month grace period to work it out and then hits up Parker Pyne.



Pyne sets him up with a fake girlfriend (his assistant) who has so much va-va-va-voom that he wouldn't trust most men not to fall head over heels for her. But Reggie loves his wife.
And there's no way his wife won't be jealous once the stunning Madeleine shows an interest in her sports-loving husband.



This is one of the few cases that doesn't go the way Pyne thinks it will.

I liked it! It was the cute evil twin of the short story, The Case of the Middle-aged Wife.

Read as part of Parker Pyne Investigates .

[wilted flower]

This one saddens me.

But before we go into why, a synopsis is due. Reginald Wade walks into Parker Pyne's office with one goal; to win his wife back. Mrs. Wade has expressed her interest in marrying another man and is asking for divorce, but she has agreed to give Reggie six months to 'change her mind'. And clueless as to how to accomplish that, Mr. Wade turns to Parker Pyne. Parker Pyne employs his assistant, the irresistible "vamp" Madeleine de Sara to feign an affair with Mr. Wade and make Mrs. Wade jealous. Drama ensues.

Brief interlude in Gay Minor:
I am a woman. And as it happens, I like women. Too much for my own good, even. And it really, really irks me when any author, male or female, reduces women into these two-dimensional creatures of drama and jealousy. It doesn't matter that it's Agatha Christie doing it, and that she was a woman herself. I cannot like it.

I hope I'm clear on this: I do not protest female characters who are jealous or possessive or materialistic or frankly, insufferable. It's the concept of feminine human nature that just doesn't sit well with me. In fact, the concept of any human nature doesn't sit well with me.

And of course, given the nature of Parker Pyne and his peculiar profession, I understand that he needs to rely on statistics and the predictability of human nature. But I don't like this particular statistic. Fictional statistic, mind you. Bite me.

If I were a man, I wouldn't be too happy with a female character who can allure any man either. I feel it's derogatory towards men to reduce them into such shallow creatures. Maybe it's personal preference; I value individuality and I detest generalisations of any sort. And given this is my review space, I have no qualms about stating it.

Parker Pyne's whole scheme does go askew. But not because Christie wanted to make a statement and say "Look! Finally a woman who doesn't fit into the narrowminded worldview of our time!". On the contrary, that is exactly what happens. The scheme goes askew because Christie would rather have said "Look! This woman can make any man fall in love with her! Any of them!". Nicely done, Agatha.

This is, unfortunately, not the first time I've been blatantly reminded of Agatha Christie's ignorance. Every time that happened in the past, I was willing to look past it because it was the last century that she wrote in, but this time I just cannot. So disappointing but two stars because at least there was some element of surprise.

[Jack Heath · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars. Ah, the battle of the sexes. It never ends, and there are always original twists in the age-old story. Ready for another episode? A nervous Reggie Ward comes to see Pyne. He admits he's unhappy about the state of his marriage - his wife Iris wants a divorce but he loves her and wants her to stay. He freely admits that he's to blame: "In a way I can understand a clever, beautiful woman getting fed up with an ass like me." He hasn't abused her, nor deprived her; it's just that he bores her. She has a new male friend who talks with her about movies and opera, art and concerts. My copy is from a 12 story collection, Mr. Parker Pyne, Detective, published in 1971. In cases of the heart, Pyne relies on the young Madeleine de Sara, exotic with dark curls and a beret. We've seen her before - in Problem at Pollensa Bay for example. When Iris and Madeleine meet, sparks fly and not of the lovestruck variety. It's daggers at 10 feet. And then Sinclair Jordan, the art lover, joins in. Does the marriage hold? Mr. Pyne thinks his effort in this case was a failure. I'm not sure. You? (Jul2021/No2025)

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and enjoyable read.

[a ☕︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

free my girl madeleine

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

A disappointed man visits Mr. Pyne looking for a solution to his divorce problem. His wife wants to divorce him and marry another man but he asked her to give him 6 months to try to change her mind. Mr. Pyne enlists one of the pretty young ladies in his employment to visit him in the country and seduce him right in front of his wife. This starts to work and the wife is flustered so she decides that it is only fair that she be allowed to have her male friend visit too. When he arrives, Mr. Pyne’s lovely young employee turns her talons on him and degrades him to the point that the wife changes her tune and decides that she doesn’t want a divorce. But then the husband declares his love for Mr. Pyne’s employee! Mr. Pyne decides that the case was a failure and moves on. A bizarre ending!

[Kayla Lodge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow! With the way he was acting the whole time I never expected it to end this way. I really do appreciate the fact that I could not see this ending coming.

[bella · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Case of the Discontented Husband sees Parker Pyne take on a case to help out a Mr Wade, whose wife has met someone else and intends to divorce him. Wade wants to win back his wife and asks Parker Pyne to help.

I'm starting to discover that these Parker Pyne mysteries are more about the affairs of the heart and human nature than actual mysteries. He's not looking for any object or solving a murder, but he's setting things right for people. In this case it's reuniting a Mr and Mrs Wade in the easiest possible way - with jealousy!

I liked this story and I found it interesting that Mrs Wade had gone off her husband - well until another woman came on the scene. It was a fun story, even if Parker Pyne didn't predict how it would all end. I will definitely keep reading the Parker Pyne stories as I'm starting to enjoy them immensely.

[mairiachi · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a stupid ending. I thought it was still playacting to get his wife to love him again and then it wasn't...? Super confusing and stupid and I don't know why Agatha Christie thought that ending was good because it wasn't.

[Selah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good Lord, that was painful! I *hate* when Agatha writes about romance and love.

[itchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

eponymous-ey sentence:
p4: "...There are wives who are in trouble over their husbands...."

When your associate is too effective for her own good...

Read as part of the collection Parker Pyne Investigates.

[Kristen Bouma · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok.

[Serena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Parker Pyne Investigates

My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.

[Akemi G. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread, and it’s still so funny! And interesting when you compare it to The Case of the Middle-Aged Wife - a Parker Pyne Short Story

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good short story

[Joseph Willingham]

Love and happiness

You don't know what you have until you lose it. She thought she found someone to take his place but he found someone of his own.

[Abeer Albossany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was waiting for some surprise or twist in the event but nothing really came out. Not that it lacked excitement, yet it was a bit predictable.

[Vin Vineeta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reggie doesn't want to be the unlovable waste of space anymore. If he has to win his wife back, he has to be sly dog Reggie. Enter, the Queen of the vamps, Madeline... Oh I love this one 😂👍🏽

[R. R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw a classic TV adaptation of this story. Light and funny. Another feather in Christie's hat.

[Rubee Nisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read. Enjoyable and fun.

[Cammie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty predictable but still good.

[James · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve market this down as it is the exact same story as “The Case of theMiddle Aged Wife” except the roles are reversed.

[Jina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ohhh a bit of a backfire! Fun little audio book read by Hugh Fraser!

[Emma Gallacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

The reverse of the first story-almost!!

[Rolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another entry of this interesting new series of Christie’s, with Parker Pyne as the scientific student of human nature who creates situations to try to solve his clients’ problems. As with “The Case of the Distressed Lady,” I really wasn’t a fan of the heavy-handed moralism of this entry--this time, I really wasn’t a fan of what Christie seems to be saying about how marriages can/should work in her thinking, which is based in some very outdated notions around the relationships between men and women.

[Erika HerO✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

No me terminó de convencer este cuento de Parker Pyne. La historia gira en torno a un matrimonio en crisis y la solución que propone Pyne es hacer que el esposo sienta celos para reavivar el interés en su esposa. Personalmente, no me gusta ese tipo de estrategia manipuladora para resolver problemas de pareja.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

A retired soldier is bored in England after an active career of colonial service in Africa. He pays a man 50 pounds refundable to cure him of his tame and boring life. So is this a con and dangerous? Little does he know he's just plot fodder for a famous mystery writer.

[Alinnarossa · Rating 4 out of 5]

hahahahah this one was hilarious & unpredictable! i thought it would go smoothly & successful just like usual but the husband couldn't help the temptation. it's realistic and i love it.

[Joop · Rating 3 out of 5]

AC weet die PPs leuk te schrijven

[milovnice_knihy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dostala jsem se na stranu 14 a prišlo mi to nudny(vubec jsem nepochopila O co tam jtsm má má jít s pro se ta kniha se jmenuje tak se jmenuje)Tu knihu jsem nedočetla