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Elegy for Eddie: A Maisie Dobbs Novel (Maisie Dobbs #9)

by Jacqueline Winspear (Goodreads Author)

3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 · rating details · 3,636 ratings · 688 reviews

Maisie Dobbs—psychologist, investigator, and "one of the great fictional heroines, equal parts haunted and haunting" (Parade)—returns in a chilling adventure, the latest chapter in Jacqueline Winspear's bestselling series.

Early April 1933. To the costermongers of Covent Garden—sellers of fruit and vegetables on the streets of London—Eddie Pettit was a gentle soul with a ne...more

ebook, 368 pages

Published March 27th 2012 by Harper (first published January 1st 2012)

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May 22, 2012 Hannah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-reads, mysteries

Our latest installment in the life and times of Maisie Dobbs finds Maisie trying to strike the right balance between her working class roots and her new-found prosperity - a seemingly hopeless endeavor.

At the heart of this mystery is the quest to find out what happened to Eddie Petitt- an autistic, horse-whispering costermonger who was an old friend of Maisie and her dad back in the day. Was his death an accident, or did gentle, innocent Eddie have unknown enemies?

As Maisie seeks to ferret out t...more

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Aug 04, 2012 Emily rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

This installment seemed more of a placeholder or set-up for whatever's coming next than a story in its own right. There was a still a mystery to be solved, one that connected to Maisie's own childhood, but the whole book presented itself as a lead-up to bigger, more ominous events to come. The Nazi threat is growing and those few who are willing to read the "tea leaves" are understandably concerned about the possibility of another war, but the trade-offs get into awfully gray areas ethically. Is...more

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Aug 28, 2012 The Library Lady rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

You want to read perfect mysteries set between the wars? Read the immortal Dorothy Sayers.
The reason I bring Sayers up here (aside from the fact that anyone who loves mysteries should read her) is that her books crackled with everything Winspear's do not: characterizations that are more than superficial, well written dialogue (Winspear's writing if anything gets more stilted and stiff with each book) and above all, humor.

Even at his most fluffy, Lord Peter Wimsey is a heckuva lot more real than...more

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May 01, 2013 Rebecca rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: drama, family-story, mystery, historical

Maisie Dobbs is a detective and psychologist in the interwar years, mostly dealing with cases reflecting the long shadow of World War I--or possibly anticipating the advent of World War II. In this episode, some old pals of Maisie's costermonger father approach Maisie to ask her to investigate the death of a much-loved but mentally challenged man who could do anything with horses. He died in a paper mill in what looked like an accident, but the costermongers think there was more to it--but can't...more

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Apr 21, 2013 P.d.r. Lindsay rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-mysteries

I’ve really been enjoying the Maisie Dobbs series. Author, Jacqueline Winspear, managed to find an original twist on the Holmes/Poirot intellectual, thinking, crime solver detective and her first novel, ‘Maisie Dobbs’, won the Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger. The later novels have all gone on to be best sellers and win other prestigious awards. The books stand out with their original style and thoughtful tone, enjoyable and different reading. Set in England, mainly London, the novels giv...more
I’ve really been enjoying the Maisie Dobbs series. Author, Jacqueline Winspear, managed to find an original twist on the Holmes/Poirot intellectual, thinking, crime solver detective and her first novel, ‘Maisie Dobbs’, won the Crime Writers’ Association Debut Dagger. The later novels have all gone on to be best sellers and win other prestigious awards. The books stand out with their original style and thoughtful tone, enjoyable and different reading. Set in England, mainly London, the novels give a vivid glimpse of England in the 1920s and 1930s, a fascinating place. Ms Winspear’s research is usually spot on and full of those neat little details which make readers feel they are experiencing the historical era.

Maisie Dobbs, as an investigator, studies body language, uses psychology, intelligence, logical thinking and Jungian insights to solve the problems she faces. She was taught this by her mentor, Maurice Blanche, one of those ‘new-fangled’ late 19thC psychologists who developed theories from observation and intuition. In the earlier novels we follow Maisie’s life story as she grows up from housemaid to university student to WWI nurse. Shattered by the loss of her fiancé during the war she allows her mentor to persuade her to follow in his footsteps as an investigator and learns to observe and consider people’s problems, with compassion. Murder and mayhem are not always what she becomes involved in but certainly she has to deal with some of the nastier aspects of human life.

‘Elegy for Eddie’ is set in April, 1933. It’s an onion novel with many layers for the reader to uncover and enjoy. Maisie has to face her own problems and their roots as well as go back into her past and Eddie’s. For the reader there is the knowledge that WWII is looming, and Ms Winspear uses that reader knowledge to add to the sense of foreboding, particularly at the end of the novel. It’s clever writing.

Maisie receives a visit from costermongers of Covent Garden, men she knew as a child, who want her to investigate the death of a simple lad, Eddie Pettit. Eddie was a gentle and kind man with a special gift for understanding horses; everyone looked out for him and cared for him. He has been killed in a violent accident, but there is something not quite right about the accident. His death seems senseless, for who would want to kill Eddie, and why? Maisie Dobbs remembers Eddie and his mother as part of her past and willingly takes on the investigation.

She returns to the Lambeth streets she knew as a child and begins to trace the threads which led to Eddie’s death. They are many and seem unconnected but Maisie and her assistant, Billy, begin to find the pattern. The pattern leads to a Press Baron, and a politician, Winston Churchill. Even the husband of her beloved friend, Priscilla, is involved. More deaths follow, Billy is badly beaten up. It seems that Eddie’s death must be kept as an accident. He was a victim caught up in something which threatens to involve the whole country. Maisie has to choose, should she reveal what she’s uncovered? It’s nationally important. Yet there are good reasons for keeping the accident as an accident for the Press Baron is one of a few powerful people who can see war looming on the horizon. His methods are unscrupulous but his motive is pure.

At a personal level Maisie has to understand herself. She has to face her failing to see clearly in her own life, realise that her actions, her wish to help others, are causing problems. It’s all part of her inability to accept the wealth Maurice left her and be comfortable about it. She manages, with her usual honesty and integrity, to arrange a satisfactory solution about Eddie and perceive and understand the painful solution to her own needs.

I’d recommend that readers start with ‘Maisie Dobbs’, the first novel, and read on from there. However each novel in the series stands alone and readers meeting Maisie Dobbs for the first time in this novel will not be bewildered. Just don’t expect a quick read suitable for the beach. These books are meaty stuff and deserve a respectful, leisurely but thorough read.

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Apr 08, 2013 Colleen rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: whodunnit

It's interesting. Maisie Dobbs could be a neat character but she's one of the most exasperating "detectives" in this genre. She's not someone I would want to work with or befriend and she is annoying in almost every chapter. This is unfortunate because I was very enthusiastic from the first few books, but the more I have gone through this series, the less I like her. However, I still read them and this series is taking a turn for the better from the last book (which I strongly disliked).

Much le...more

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Mar 07, 2013 Gwen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I'm rereading some of the Maisie Dobbs books in preparation for the newest installment in the series (Leaving Everything Most Loved), coming out in late March. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book the second time around, even knowing what was going to happen. There's a bit too much exposition and explanation (presumably for new readers...?): explaining to Sandra (who works for Douglas Partridge and should maybe know these things) how Douglas and Priscilla met, and yet another retellin...more I'm rereading some of the Maisie Dobbs books in preparation for the newest installment in the series (Leaving Everything Most Loved), coming out in late March. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book the second time around, even knowing what was going to happen. There's a bit too much exposition and explanation (presumably for new readers...?): explaining to Sandra (who works for Douglas Partridge and should maybe know these things) how Douglas and Priscilla met, and yet another retelling of Maisie's backstory.

As with my rereading of The Mapping of Love and Death, I was struck at how alone Maisie still feels, despite the addition of James, the Beales, and Priscilla's family into her life. "Maisie felt at once alone in the room. Beyond Priscilla, there was no one she could call upon to talk about, well, anything really. There were no long-standing friendships and no new ones either. She had enjoyed evenings at the flat when Sandra was with her--a bit of laughter as they listened to the wireless, or a deeper conversation if Sandra wanted to discuss an aspect of her academic work. At once Maisie felt bereft of the sort of sisterly confidence so freely enjoyed by Evelyn Butterworth's friends." (158-159)

How much of these feelings, though, come from Maisie herself? As she admits about her relationship with James, "perhaps their relationship was best enjoyed without scrutiny. And it occurred to her that she was so used to turning everything over in her mind, as if each thought were an intricate shell found at the beach, that she had never truly known the value in simply accepting things as they were." (128)

Then again, the relationship with James--or any relationship, really--cuts into the independence Maisie has so carefully crafted for herself: "And she realized that her annoyance came, not as a result of any serious discord in her relationship with James, but from a thwarted desire to be back under her own roof where she did not have to face--endure would be a good word, she thought--the rituals of life in the mansion as its de facto mistress...if the courtship continued as those in their circle thought it would, her life would be dominated by the household's rituals from dawn until dusk, and in truth she wasn't sure if she could warm to it, though she enjoyed being with James. Most of the time." (45-46) "Though she hated to think about it, she wasn't sure what had happened in the relationship, but this feeling of suffocation, which began as just a passing sensation, was growing." (82)

But after a mutually agreed-upon separation, she and James still share...something. "Upon her return to London, she felt a growing warmth in her heart for James. They began to establish something neither had expected at the outset, when they came together with the excitement of new love. They no longer had a courtship, though they continued to present themselves as a couple, yet they had something more than friendship. Neither one was seeing anyone else, and it seemed to suit them both. They did not argue as they had, and found much to laugh about, to talk about, and they enjoyed a certain companionship that could not easily be pigeonholed. When she tried to explain to Priscilla how things were, her friend sighed and responded, 'Sounds awfully like a marriage to me, Maisie. You slip into step with one another, you have someone to talk to, to be with, to socialize with, but neither of you gets crabby if one wants to do something else for a change...'" (319-320)(less)

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Jan 25, 2013 Debbie rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, oldbooks-historicalfiction

I finished the last (for now) Maisie Dobbs book today. I've enjoyed spending the month with Maisie and her cohorts in 1930s England, a setting that's mostly unfamiliar to me. Maisie Dobbs, a former lower housemaid who was given an education by benevolent employers and served as a nurse during WWI, is now a private investigator in London, solving mysteries with the aid of her paid assistant, her mentor, her friends and sometimes even Scotland Yard.

Here are some things I like about this series (wa...more

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Jan 04, 2013 Claudia Gray rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As I first worked my way through this novel, I thought it struck some discordant notes -- most particularly in the characterization of James Compton, who seemed to go from a highly supportive, independent partner for Maisie to a more controlling and elitist figure. However, after reading it through to the ending, I realize how many of the elements that I thought rang false are instead clues. Maisie keeps feeling as though she's "suffocating" in this book and cannot share this with James; yet it...more

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Nov 28, 2012 Patty rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Elegy For Eddie
by
Jacqueline Winspear

My " in a nutshell" summary...

An old friend dies...it's up to Maisie to determine why!

My thoughts after reading this book...

I am positive that I have read just one Maisie Dobbs book in my life and I really did not love it. When I mentioned this to my sister she was in shock. She devours every Maisie Dobbs book as quickly as they come out but...until this book I just didn't get it.

This book, however, changed that feeling for me! Maisie is spunky! She is a woma...more

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Oct 26, 2012 Cheryl rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Maisie is one of my favorite heroines, and Jacqueline Winspear one of my favorite authors. Long after I've read one of her books, some parts - and even exact phrases - stay in my mind and filter back in. I like that Maisie (unlike Kinsey) is ageing as the books come along. In this novel, Great Britain is ageing too, and drawing closer to 1939. Maisie is dealing, emotionally and intellectually, with the gift of wealth that Maurice left to her - for a girl who started out as a skivvy, in service i...more

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Oct 16, 2012 Debbie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Maisie Dobbs series has been described by USA Today as ‘less whodunits than why-dunits, more P.D. James Elegy for Eddie, Jacqueline Winspearthan Agatha Christie’ (USA Today) I’ve followed this series since Maisie debuted as a newly discharged WWI nurse in 1919, through Maisie’s growth during the 1920s. I particularly appreciate that Maisie’s life – her circumstances, her friendships, her personality with both strengths and flaws—has not remained static but has developed naturally as it might...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Angela rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book started slow for me, but completely drew me in as it neared the end. I loved it, actually. It is interesting watching the relationship between Maisie and James Compton unfold--I don't "agree" with her thinking at times. I also wonder if her level of independence and autonomy is realistic for the time period. Her reluctance would make more sense to me as a result of trauma, as opposed to a feminist sort of career orientation. I also have to wonder how realistic her basic personal storyl...more

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Sep 20, 2012 Jayne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I like this series very much, the tone, the subject, the character. I have been anxiously awaiting this one as I discovered Maise just last spring and had read them all (listened to some) within a couple of months. I nearly always prefer books to CDs, but I love the voice and accent of Orlagh Cassidy who reads most of the books. I like this one, Elegy For Eddie ok, but I concur with many of the readers who felt annoyed with Maisie's abrupt turnaround about James. He had never been drawn as a ch...more

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Aug 27, 2012 Nicole rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I also found this one very frustrating. I appreciated, once again, the connection that Winspear makes between the case and characters, and Maisie's state of mind (and what she needs to learn). Unfortunately, though, I don't think Maisie is actually learning. She's too self-absorbed to learn anything new about herself (or, deeply consider when others try to help her), and she really needs a wake-up call. She's like a friend who is headed for a train wreck with no way to stop it. For instance, wha...more I also found this one very frustrating. I appreciated, once again, the connection that Winspear makes between the case and characters, and Maisie's state of mind (and what she needs to learn). Unfortunately, though, I don't think Maisie is actually learning. She's too self-absorbed to learn anything new about herself (or, deeply consider when others try to help her), and she really needs a wake-up call. She's like a friend who is headed for a train wreck with no way to stop it. For instance, what the hell is going on with James? Yes, Winspear got me involved in this character's personal life, and I'm annoyed; she's determined to be more prejudiced than Elizabeth Bennett could ever have been. Not to mention how false it was to have James suddenly ask her to stop working. Seriously? Is it that Winspear is helping Maisie in her denial of all things good for herself by having the male character say something so asinine that we might dislike him, too? I noticed that they never went back to that conversation since it was so stupid, so out of character (such that we know of James), and so much a retread of the whole Andrew Dene situation.

Yes, I want there to be some kind of happiness here. And I appreciate that she's essentially "living in sin"--something that must have been more rare and forward-thinking for that time. I don't think Maisie is doing so for the right reasons, though. As her one friend, Pris, aptly observed, they are exactly like a married couple. Things aren't always perfect. Moreover, her obsession with their class differences is a very annoying reverse-kind of snobbery. Her astonishment at finding out that Mrs. Otterburn was actually not an idiot--and even cared about women's rights, too!--suggests that she's even forgotten the lessons of her own patron her was not at all like the typical socialite of her time. Or, even Priscilla. Maisie isn't so much holding onto her past, as being contemptuous of others who have had more their whole lives. And now she wants to "travel" and ditch James some more? Yawn, boring mid-life crisis. Because she's afraid he'll break her heart? She needs to see the shrink, herself. I wish Winspear hadn't added the annoying touches to James's character as they were out of character (which I already said), and they give Maisie too many excuses. Personally, I think she could be confronted with perfection and still see fault.

As for the mystery, the only interesting part was the conversation with Mr. Otterburn. That almost brought it up to three stars. Fascinating to think about what could be behind all politics. Like, is Soros influential in that way? Or, Adelson? It's interesting to think about. (Certainly, Fox News influences politics on the right.) I do like how the book is reflective of all time. I just was very annoyed with the slow pace of the overall mystery, and Maisie's complete lack of understanding of herself, leading her to poor personal decisions (and on behalf of those around her). It's getting to the point where it's looking like arrogance. I did like the description of Eddie and the tragedy that befell him, and how it was clear he was autistic as opposed to slow. His skill with the horses was beautifully rendered. Just Maisie--ugh.(less)

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Aug 20, 2012 Melissa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I purposely did not read my review of Winspear’s previous Maisie Dobbs novel, A Lesson in Secrets, because I didn’t want the disappointment I felt in that book to cloud my judgement of Elegy for Eddie. I have invested a lot of time into this series and want nothing more than for my love affair with Maisie and her world to continue for a long, long time. After A Lesson in Secrets, I had serious doubts. Thankfully, Winspear addressed my biggest complaint in Elegy for Eddie, focusing almost exclusi...more I purposely did not read my review of Winspear’s previous Maisie Dobbs novel, A Lesson in Secrets, because I didn’t want the disappointment I felt in that book to cloud my judgement of Elegy for Eddie. I have invested a lot of time into this series and want nothing more than for my love affair with Maisie and her world to continue for a long, long time. After A Lesson in Secrets, I had serious doubts. Thankfully, Winspear addressed my biggest complaint in Elegy for Eddie, focusing almost exclusively on Maisie’s development as a character.

The mystery Maisie is tasked with solving involves a man from her childhood in Lambeth, Eddie Pettit, a simple-minded man (who might be considered autistic in the 21st century) who has a way with horses. It takes her back to her humble Lambeth roots and throws her newfound life as a rich woman in an affair with a Viscount into sharp relief. Maisie is uncomfortable with the legacy Maurice left her, as well as uncomfortable with the position she holds as James’ lover. To all appearances, she has everything she should ever want but realizes that this life, especially that part with James, suffocates her. As a result, her relationship, the one that Winspear has failed to develop, goes from off the page bliss in the previous two books to on the page tension in this one.

The reviews on Amazon have been positive, with the one recurring caveat that Maisie spends an inordinate amount of time navel gazing. In comparison to previous books where inner thoughts about her personal life were restricted to a few sentences sprinkled throughout the book, the amount of introspection in the novel is shocking. It is, however, long overdue. All the self-reflection and conflict with Billy and his wife and James moves her forward as a character in a way that hasn’t happened since she had her breakdown in book three.

What does this mean for the Maisie? She and James have settled into a relationship that is basically a placeholder for each until they find the person they fall in love with. To paraphrase a comment Maisie made to Priscilla regarding their affair, she and James have shown each other they can love again. Maisie was confronted, by a few different instances, the most notable being the attack on Billy and the repercussions, by the fact that, in the guise of helping, she tries too hard to order everyone elses’ life. Her aid truly comes from an empathetic, caring heart, but the inheritance from Maurice has enabled her to go overboard (buying a house for the Beales; paying for Sandra’s college) and has put her friends in the position to never be able to repay her. Finally, her insistence on walking a “narrow path” and trying to account for every eventuality before it happens, as well as her lack of experience in the wider world made her realize her life is lacking in spontaneity, fun and travel. Hopefully, all of this introspection will allow Maisie to spread her wings a bit more.

Ironic that I have not addressed the central mystery in the mystery novel. In the end, it is less about the simple horse whisperer from Maisie’s past, but instead is about one man’s plan, through his media empire, to increase patriotism and remind the British people all they have to lose if it comes to war with Hitler. The man, Otterburn, is in cahoots with Winston Churchill, who at this point in British history was a political outcast, spending his time writing essays about I don’t now what, and if Winspear is to be believed, preparing the British people, mentally, for the war some were sure was on the horizon. James Compton is even involved in Ottoburn’s long-term plan. It seems far-fetched at first glance, but upon reflection, I admire the way that Winspear was able to weave characters we’ve been familiar with for a while (James, Priscilla’s husband) into the long road to war storyline.

As far as I’m concerned, The Mapping of Love and Death is an anomaly in the series, though I admit that it might improve on a re-read, especially with the knowledge of where Maisie is going. I feel that, with Elegy for Eddie, Winspear has finally committed to looking forward instead of back, with Maisie as well as with the world she lives in.

Other Thoughts:

This is the first mystery that has nothing to do with the Great War.
Maisie only mentions her work as a nurse once in the book. And Billy’s communication skills from the war play no part at all. Progress!
One of my favorite books is Coming Home by Rosamunde Pilcher. It’s always entertaining to count the number of times people have tea. I found myself doing the same thing in Elegy for Eddie. Seriously, what is it with the Brits and drinking tea?
I do hope that Maisie moves forward with the times, soon, and has Sandra and Billy start calling her by her Christian name.
If Maisie does go abroad, I predict she goes to Germany. I hope we go with her.
I’m still holding out hope for the drawing-room mystery I suggested in last year’s review.
Well, I read the book in a day and now I have to wait another year for the next book. That makes me a sad panda.
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Jul 23, 2012 Jenn Estepp rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sleuths-and-gumshoes

2 1/2.

Sigh. I really thought that my waning enthusiasm for this series had been defeated by the last few books, but it seems not. I found myself really frustrated with Maisie as a character here - frequently muttering to myself "Oh, get off your high horse, Maisie." She just comes off as super judgmental oftentimes, and even when minor characters challenge her on it - or tell her to stop interfering and trying to run everybody else's lives - she sort of acknowledges it but says "but, I'm right,...more

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Jun 20, 2012 Kathleen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorite-contemporary-authors, my-uk-etc-thing

Following Maisie Dobbs through World War I as a nurse and then after the war as a private investigator has been a journey of healing and self-discovery. This latest novel continues the process; Maisie has inherited great wealth from her mentor, enjoys sustaining relationships with her father, her best friend and the men and women of her youth. While the plot brings Maisie back to her roots and to dangerous connections, she also must acknowledge what others have been observing about her. Her need...more

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Jun 14, 2012 Jessie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's hard to believe this was already Maisie Dobbs #9. One thing I initially liked about the Maisie Dobbs series was the setting - post WW I England, which now feels a bit overdone but which, when the series started, was kind of new and in vogue. I kept coming back to the books, though, partly because the times - and Maisie - are always progressing and changing. Now, we're in the mid 30s, Hitler is on the rise in Germany, and we're faced with the build up to WW II - more familiar territory, but...more

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Jun 04, 2012 Tima rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Several of Maisie's old acquaintances come to her office to ask for her help. They believe that their friend Eddie was murdered. Maisie sets out to find any clues surrounding death that might lead to this conclusion.

I haven't read any Maisie Dobbs books before this one. But I do enjoy a good who-done-it or mystery novel. This book was okay, but it certainly wasn't great. The story seemed to meander slowly along without anything happening for long periods of time. Her indecision about her boyfrie...more

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May 20, 2012 Cathy Colton rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

An interesting Maisie Dobbs installment--better than the last one. Winspear takes Maisie in an interesting direction as she becomes more aware of ways that her war-time experiences have had a detrimental effect on her psyche. The novel poses some interesting questions about how a country should deal with a potential threat to its safety and sovereignty, how open the process of decision-making should be, and who gets to decide. From a post-World War II vantage point, it's easy to say that England...more

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May 19, 2012 Nancy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ww2, mysteries

I have thoroughly enjoyed Winspear's previous Maisie Dobbs books, but I found myself losing patience with Maisie this time around.

Perhaps she is like a friend that I need to distance myself from for a little while--I just don't feel like giving her the respect she probably deserves. But, she is annoying me. Big time.

She is so bright and so intuitive, but she is starting to feel like a bossy-pants and self-righteous know-it-all. I wish she'd lighten up a bit.

She has a devilish, darling best frie...more

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Apr 26, 2012 Cornerofmadness rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. In any long mystery series (this is book #9 I believe) there is always one book that lets you down. This is that book. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not a horrible book. As far as the mystery part of it goes, it was a good mystery but it was a weak Maisie Dobbs book in general. It was a two-part semi-failure for me for two reasons, the murders are political in nature and takes you to a place, without spoiling it, that you realize what the ending has to be (and it’s an unappetizing ending) before you...more In any long mystery series (this is book #9 I believe) there is always one book that lets you down. This is that book. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not a horrible book. As far as the mystery part of it goes, it was a good mystery but it was a weak Maisie Dobbs book in general. It was a two-part semi-failure for me for two reasons, the murders are political in nature and takes you to a place, without spoiling it, that you realize what the ending has to be (and it’s an unappetizing ending) before you get to it and secondly, Maisie’s personal life takes up a good third if not more of the book and it’s a mess.

As far as the mystery itself goes, it was a good one. Maisie is approached by a group of costermongers that she knew as a kid, through her father. A man that she knew as a boy has been killed horribly, Eddie Petit. Eddie was able to calm just about any horse and he did odd jobs as well. Eddie is a bit slow but an all around good guy. The men don’t believe it was an accidental death and want Maisie to look into it. It doesn’t take her long to agree with them and it seems like Eddie’s death might be tied into the supposed suicide of Bart, a news reporter.

As Maisie looks into this, things go badly for her partner Billy and it soon leads her to Otterburn, a political manipulator and newspaper owner. The more she uncovers the more political it gets especially with the rise of Hitler and beginning of Churchill’s career. And this is where I got a little bored with it because I hate politics but that’s more my fault than the book’s. But the mystery more or less resolves nearly fifty pages from the end and it ambles around in Maisie’s mess of a personal life.

This book could have been so much better without her personal life. Yes we needed to see her dealing with inheriting a lot of wealth AND dating James when she had started out years ago as a maid in his mother’s house. However, it goes on forever and it’s not interesting. In fact, it’s annoying. It’s repetitive and frankly why even bring James into this just to yank him back out if that is what’s going to happen? I could go on here but I think I’ve made my point. It was enough to move these books from the buy list to the get it at the library list.
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Apr 26, 2012 Nancy added it · review of another edition

Maisie is asked by old childhood costermonger acquaintances to find the reason for the death of Eddie Pettit, a gentle soul who was wonderful with horses. She discovers he was accidentally killed because, although he was slow, he could copy anything he saw, and he copied the planes of airplanes from the house of a newspaper owner for whom he was working. A reporter, Sebastian, encouraged Eddie to do this for a story he was writing. Sebastion is murdered - deliberately - by the newspaper owner's...more

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Apr 14, 2012 Janet Whalen-Jones rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Maise Dobbs confronts internal struggles about where she came from and who she is now in her latest case. The possible murder of a savant from the impoverished neighborhood of her childhood sends Maisie into a case that juxtaposes the world from whence she came and the rareified circles in which she now moves. The case itself is more of a backdrop for Maisie to deal with her own leap in class. Now contemplating marriage to James Compton, to the manor born, has Maisie confronting the possiblity o...more

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Apr 12, 2012 Charly rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

One of the best entries in the series: I read it in an evening. An interesting companion piece to Erik Larson's In the Garden of Beasts, it's set in 1933, the year Hitler became chancellor. The stakes feel higher, the connections were harder to foresee (although my complaint stands that the mystery per se is often left somewhat ambiguous), and the inner peace/mysticism/hocus pocus aspect was toned down. It raises important questions vis a vis freedom of the press, propaganda in wartime, and arms...more

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Mar 31, 2012 Larraine rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This novel came to me at the same time as the big Mega Millions lottery which, alas, I did not win! Maisie is still wrestling with her newly found wealth as well as her love affair with the "Lord of the Manor" - i.e. the place she worked as a young maid. If you haven't read the other books, you may have to catch up a bit, although the book does that for you to a certain extent.

So what would you do if you suddenly had a lot of money? Maisie is wrestling with that. Her first impulse is to do good...more This novel came to me at the same time as the big Mega Millions lottery which, alas, I did not win! Maisie is still wrestling with her newly found wealth as well as her love affair with the "Lord of the Manor" - i.e. the place she worked as a young maid. If you haven't read the other books, you may have to catch up a bit, although the book does that for you to a certain extent.

So what would you do if you suddenly had a lot of money? Maisie is wrestling with that. Her first impulse is to do good works, but that can make people feel beholden and can hurt or even destroy a relationship. We all have that idea - help everyone we love be comfortable. Then again there are the expectations that come with giving that amount of money away. You have to tread carefully and realize that you are altering the very relationship that you value. However, there IS a mystery here, but it is, as always much more than it seems.

Maisie is approached by some of the "costermongers" of London since her father, now a groom at her former employer's country home, started out as one of them. (For those of you who don't know a costermonger is someone who sells something from his cart - fruits, vegetables, fish or other goods.) The men ask her to investigate the death of Eddie Pettit, a man who did odd jobs and was known by some to be "simple minded" and by others to "be in the moment."

As I read this I saw that Eddie was something of a savant - perhaps autistic - although he could communicate fairly well. He was known for his way with horses. Today he would probably be called a "horse whisperer." He is killed while making some deliveries at a factory that makes paper in large rolls. His friends don't think it's an accident.

Of course the investigation leads her to other things including a Canadian newspaper owner who is worried about the advance of Hitler, designs for airplanes and more. As always the story is a lot more intricate and involved.

In the meantime, Maisie has to come to terms with her own attitudes about her wealth and what she should or shouldn't do as well as her deepening relationship with James, the heir to his father's businesses as well as his title as well as the fact that the dowager countess loves her like a daughter and would love to see her marry James. But is she ready to give up her own hard on independence? Maisie is a modern woman, but it's still 1933, not 2012. As always, I really enjoyed this latest Maisie Dobbs. Now it will be at least a year before the next! (less)

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Mar 31, 2012 Jodi Rushton rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved this book in the series. I thought every part of it was believable even if as one reviewer noted there are people who really aren't brought to justice satisfactorily. The reasons for this are made clear though, and from what we know of the incredible complexities of war, I found the outcome to be completely believable. Especially when we are talking about England slowly but surely having to come to terms with the possibility of another war more insidious and frightening they could have e...more

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Mar 28, 2012 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I received a free advance copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway.

Maisie Dobbs has been detecting for a while now. The mystery series started out by dealing with the aftermath of World War I, but our heroine is pushing WWII territory now. In this novel, as in "A Lesson in Secrets," political trouble brewing and fears about Hitler are a theme. Another theme is knowing where you come from, a challenge for Maisie who feels close to her humble roots and is asked to investigate the death of Ed...more

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Mar 27, 2012 Diane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The BBC's Downton Abbey caused quite a stir (I myself was late to the party, watching both seasons on two marathon weekends), and increased interest in the post-WWI world in Great Britain. But readers have for years been immersing themselves in the same era with author Jacqueline Winspear's fascinating Maisie Dobbs' novels, set in London at the same time.

Maisie was a young maid in Lord and Lady Compton's home (think Anna from Downton) who was caught by Lady Rowan in the library late at night rea...more

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About Jacqueline Winspear

Jacqueline Winspear was born and raised in the county of Kent, England. Following higher education at the University of London’s Institute of Education, Jacqueline worked in academic publishing, in higher education and in marketing communications in the UK.

She emigrated to the United States in 1990, and while working in business and as a personal / professional coach, Jacqueline embarked upon a li...more

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The Mapping of Love and Death (Maisie Dobbs, #7)

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“And it occurred to her that she was so used to turning over everything in her mind, as if each thought were an intricate shell found at the beach, that she had never truly known the value of simply accepting things as they were.” — 5 people liked it

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Elegy for Eddie: A Maisie Dobbs Novel (Maisie Dobbs #9)

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