A Maisie Dobbs Mystery!
A Novel Bunch book club will be discussing Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear, next Wednesday, the 25th, from 2:00-3:30. First in a series, published in 2003 it received the New York Times Notable Book of the Year and was Agatha Award winner for Best First Novel 2003!
The novel begins in 1929 with Maisie starting her own private investigation business and goes back and forth from her childhood in domestic service in 1910, to her education by Maurice Blanche (a good friend of Maisie’s employers, Lord and Lady Compton) Maisie’s inquisitive mind is discovered when she’s caught reading in the Compton’s library and Lady Compton is so taken with her that she arranges for her education, while still serving as a maid in the household! Under Maurice’s instruction, Maisie matures into an intelligent, perceptive woman and able to start her own investigative agency! Maisie’s first case begins as a simple case of infidelity, but emerges into a mystery involving a convalescent home for war veterans, called “The Retreat”
Jacqueline Winspear is adept at conveying the historical context surrounding her storyline, developing in depth, contrasting characters and adding a psychological atmosphere to her mysteries. Once you’ve read the first in the series, you’ll want to read all of Maisie Dobbs’ adventures!