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Aug 21, 2008

Ron rated it:

This is the third of the Maisie Dobbs mystery series about a female private investigator/psychologist in England between the two world wars in the late 20's and early 30's (see my extended summary of her background as part of the review of the book Maisie Dobbs).

Three case intertwine: (1) proving the innocence of Avril Jarvis, a very young farm girl accused of murder; (2) searching for the son of Sir Cecil Lawton, a pilot shot down behind enemy lines in WWI and never heard from again More...

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Mar 09, 2011

Hannah rated it:

#3 in the Maisie Dobbs mystery series, and this outing finds Maisie returning to Post-WWI France in a 2-fold mission to determine for a client that his son is, in fact, truely dead, and to help her friend to find out more about her brother's wartime activities.

While I liked this offering, I felt it was the weakest in the series so far. Maisie is beginning to grate. She's very unlikable IMO and has these strange new-agey powers that just don't mesh with the 1930's background. That More...

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Dec 11, 2011

Nancy rated it:

I've now read seven of Winspear's Maisie Dobbs novels and, although I enjoyed all of them, this was one of the most satisfying.

Set in post WW1 Britain, Maisie was a battlefront nurse, injured during the war. The series takes us through her maturation and professional development as a psychologist and investigator. The strength of the series is the author's gift for recreating time and place. It doesn't take much imagination to stroll through post-war London and feel the pain of the fam More...

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May 11, 2011

Joy H. rated it:

Added 5/11/11
This was a good cozy mystery. There were parts that dragged a bit, but, all in all, the story was a good one. I find that some of author Winspear's sentences are too wordy. For example: "Tavistock opened the gate into a no-man's-land dividing two houses, and then to the back where, between the two gardens, a Cross of Sacrifice rose toward the dark clouds, ever watchful over a small walled cemetery." Winspear also gives a good deal of attention to the clothes which the More...

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Mar 11, 2011

Pam rated it:

http://iwriteinbooks.wordpress.com/2011/...

The emotional and physical fallout from World War One had hardly the concrete closure it can hold, today.
The absence of technological identification, digital records or micro chips made it a bit open ended in the days after the conflict ended. Because of the confusion, so many families of all backgrounds, were left wondering if their loved ones could still be alive and well after the dust cleared.

Cecil Lawson’s wife went to her More...

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Feb 17, 2011

Diane rated it:

The third Maisie Dobbs novel, Pardonable Lies, is a bigger book, and delves more deeply into Maisie's past and her personal life. When a man asks Psychologist/Private Investigator Maisie Dobbs to help him fulfill a deathbed promise to his wife to find out if their son, who was declared killed during World War I was really dead, Maisie takes the case.

Coincidentally, Maisie's friend Priscilla has come for a visit and asks Maisie to find out the circumstances behind her brother Peter's wa More...

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Jul 18, 2010

Barbara rated it:

This is the third novel in the Maisie Dobbs series. Jacqueline Winspear has created a unique look at England after World War I through the eyes of a young woman. Maisie was born to a costermonger and his wife. When Maisie's mother died, her father put her into the service of a well-to-do household. Lady Compton realized the potential in young Maisie and sponsored her education and leap into higher society. Now a psychologist, Maisie's thoughtful approach means she helps people through their cris More...

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Feb 10, 2010

E.J. rated it:

Maisie Dobbs, female sleuth and former battlefield nurse, tackles three major cases in Pardonable Lies. Maisie is brought in by inspector Stratton of Scotland Yard to interview a young girl suspected of murder. Although evidence puts her at the scene of the crime Maisie believes in the girl's innocence. Sensitive to the loss of her own mother at a young age Maisie strives to find the truth before young Avril Jarvis is separated from her mother permanently with a life prison sentence. Upon More...

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May 26, 2010

Shelly rated it:

While the writing was par for Winspear I heartily disliked the content of the story-line. Just fed up hearing about it in EVERY venue of Life! Live your life any way you want, it's called Free Agency and we ALL have it. Even me! That's why I'm allowed to say I don't agree! And as long as you are not standing up and telling me I have to say it's okay for you to make those choices I won't stand up and tell you those choices are wrong and will only bring you and yours unhappiness. I am DONE validat More...

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Apr 17, 2009

Laura rated it:

As I was reading, I was thinking this might be my first 5 star rating in a while. The characters were intriguing, the plot drew me in, the details on life in the 1930s were fascinating. The writing was wonderful (and I normally don't notice the writing). The plot lines wrapped up one by one. Just one left dangling...

Then the book almost dropped to 3 stars, I was so angry about how that story line resolved. OK, I suspect if I went back to the beginning, the details needed to make More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Lynn rated it:

This is the third in the series and they get better as they go. While I found the first too heavy on backstory,this one moves along At the end of the audio-book, there was a ten minute interview with the author who said she had always done non-fiction.

She was stuck in a traffic jam in London when Maisie walked up out of the underground and appeared to Winspear almost fully realized. There were scenes that came to her while she was writing the first book, that she knew belong in the More...

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Jul 28, 2010

Nancy rated it:

I do enjoy this series, set in post WW I England. In this, the 3rd book, there is growth in Maisie Dobb’s character as she begins to wean herself from her teacher and mentor Maurice Blanche. Though intuition and psychology play a strong role in Maisie’s success as an investigator in the first two books, this one also delves into the supernatural with dream and psychic revelations. The after effects of the First World War again have a strong effect on the characters actions and there are some hi More...

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Jun 11, 2011

Jenn rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Sep 05, 2010

Stven rated it:

Maisie Dobbs, who was a nurse during the Great War (that's World War I for us 21st centurians), returns to France to learn the fates of two British aviators. She bills herself as a "Psychologist and Investigator," and in her England of the 1930s the "Psychologist" bit must come across as terribly modern. In the opening scene of Pardonable Lies the psychology part actually seems persuasive; in the rest of the book, my first encounter with Miss Dobbs, it seems more of an occa More...

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Jan 26, 2012

Andrea rated it:

I just love this series. There are some things that are predictable, yet other twists and turns.
I love the characters, the time period, the setting. Just can't get enough of this series! :)

For spoilers, please scroll:

I knew that the girl, Pacale would be the niece of Pricilla, and I knew that Ralph was gay. I loved hearing more of the story be More...

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Jan 31, 2010

Janice rated it:

I like this series better with each subsequent book, this being the third in the series. Maisie Dobbs served as a nurse in WWI, and is now living in England following the war. Having become both an investigator and a psychologist, Maisie combines her skills from both fields; being keenly aware of human behaviors, she is aware of every nuance as she interviews those involved in her investigations, and also observes and adjusts her own body language to obtain desired information or emotion from More...

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Jul 25, 2009

Hannah rated it:

i'm beginning to like maisie's character less. she's one stubborn mule. for someone who makes a living by being totally in touch with human emotion and understanding all the meanings that lie beneath everyday behaviors, she's as cold as ice. this is especially disturbing since there are two major upsets that happen for maisie in this book.

she has a breakdown when she revisits the site of the casualty clearing station in france. maurice prescribes lots of bedrest. maisie already wants More...

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Feb 17, 2011

Patti rated it:

This entry in the Maisie Dobbs series covers a lot of ground, including three cases and delving into Maisie's background at several pivotal points in her life.

One case is about a downed aviator--was he killed in a crash, or alive as his mother believed he was? Another case is about a young girl believed to have killed a so-called uncle, who may have been trying to become her pimp. The third case involves the search for the burying place of her friend Priscilla's oldest brother, kil More...

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May 18, 2011

Julie rated it:

“Two men dead in France, two grieving relatives unable to rest,” and a 13-year-old girl accused of murder are the three cases psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs tackles in the fall of 1930.
In the first case, she is asked by London police to help get Avril to admit to murder. In the second, she has been commissioned by Sir Cecil Lawton’s to determine if his only son was really killed when his plane went down behind enemy lines in WWI. Her third assignment is at the behes More...

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Mar 13, 2009

Colleen rated it:

This is the third Maisie Dobbs novel I've read and I'm not quite sure why I continue on with the series. I like them but I don't think they're great. And yet...I guess I just want to see what happens to Maisie (especially with WWII looming on the horizon). I love the time period (the 1930s) and all its detail. The author captures that well. What I don't like is...well, Maisie herself! She seems to know what people are thinking, as if she has supernatural powers, and she's smug about it. I More...

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Oct 08, 2009

Amber rated it:

Miss Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and investigator, can still not get away from the Great War - poor girl. Her newest assignment is to find out if a man's son really died in a firey plane crash during WWI or not. His wife had always been convinced that he hadn't died, especially because there had only been ashes for remains. As her deathbed wish, she asks her husband to find out.

Maisie is uncomfortable with the assignment, but does it as a favor to her benefactor and to get free legal More...

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Nov 04, 2010

Susan rated it:

I really like this mystery series. Love the setting and sense of place. Characters are well rounded and I like the way the author tells a story. This time we get to see Maisie grow as she confronts some ghosts from the past while on a visit to France. I had part of the mystery figured out but that didn't stop me from enjoying the story.

That being said, I didn't quite understand the psychic resolution. Did that come out of the blue or did I miss something at the beginning of the story? More...

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Nov 21, 2011

Patiencethomas rated it:

The is book 3 on the Daisie Dobbs series. Daisy is a psychologist as well as a private investigator. The story takes place in England post World War I and is well researched despite the fact that it was written within the last ten years. As Daisy seeks information connected to her assignment her life becomes in danger with numerous attempts on her life. She returns to France which has traumatic, dark memories from the war. I really appreciate the way in which the author, Jacqueline Winspear More...

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Jul 13, 2010

Bonnie rated it:

I'm not sure if it was because of the great job the reader did or whether I just liked the plot better, but I enjoyed this third Maisie Dobbs book better than either of the first two. Maisie is hired by a barrister to confirm the death of his son in WWI as his wife stipulated on her deathbed that he was to determine whether their son was really dead. For part of Maisie's fee the barrister agrees to defend a young girl accused of murdering her "uncle". Maisie's friend Priscilla asks M More...

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May 25, 2009

Rene rated it:

A book to keep you going until the last page. Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs is an appealing young woman with a traumatic past. The books are about her life post WW I as a psychologist and investigator or detective, trained by one of the most astute men in London. When she finds herself at odds with her mentor, her keen intuition and resolve permit her to find answers to the difficult questions asked her by her clients as well as reach a meeting of the minds with Maurice.

I highl More...

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Sep 15, 2011

Elizabeth rated it:

I felt this was a strong improvement from the second Maisie Dobbs book. Maisie goes to France for the first time since the War to investigate two servicemen killed in action. The plot here is more interesting and thoughtful, I think, although it has a contemporary feel to me despite the setting. I like the plot gimmick of taking the two (seemingly) unrelated mysteries and slowly revealing how they intersect -- obviously it's not very realistic, but that's also probably why we don't go around so More...

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Feb 28, 2011

Martha rated it:

Another Maisie Dobbs hit as far as I’m concerned. I was worried the mystery portion of the story was a little far fetched but Winspear made it work. Not only did the mystery work but this chapter saw Maisie start to really heal and grow. And Pris was back. Yippeee.

Maisie travels to France to find out what happened to not only Ralph Lawton but also her good friend Priscilla’s brother Peter. While in France Maisie finally has to deal with the aftermath of her experiences in the war. It w More...

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Aug 31, 2009

Sandra rated it:

These mysteries combine historical fiction and conventional mystery genres well. Maisie is a girl from the working classes forced to work as a maid in an aristocratic household. How she becomes an educated, supernaturally medium- like “detective” is part of the first story. The setting of the mysteries is the 30’s, but flashbacks fill in Maisie’s past, with good historical scenes of her experience as a nurse on the front lines during World War I. Both mysteries hinge on historical details. More...

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Aug 16, 2010

Julie at All Ears rated it:

Two of my favorite genres are historic fiction and mystery, so to discover a series that combines the two, and does it exceptionally well, is always a real find. Jacqueline Winspear has created a winner in her Maisie Dobbs series. Set in England just following World War I, Maisie Dobbs a psychologist/private investigator is given the task of finding Sir Cecil Lawton's son, an RAF pilot who was lost during the war. Maisie's life becomes even more complicated when she picks up 2 related mysteri More...

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Nov 11, 2010

Jim rated it:

In this third book of the series, Maisie Dobbs finds herself overburdened, taking on three cases at once. In each of the investigations she discovers hidden facts that change the nature of the questions to which she needs answers. The demands placed on her are not only physical and intellectual, but also emotional, and it is her emotions that try her the most.

Two of the cases require her to go to France, which brings a storm of emotional memories of her service as a battlefield nur More...

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