Maisie Dobbs

I have been on a tour of mystery novels, primarily with female lead characters, for the past three or four years–beginning with the Phryne Fisher novels. And for the most part, it has been a satisfying journey–albeit one where the characters are more charming then deep. But that is where this series’ first book seems to be staking out different territory. . . .
Maisie Dobbs is the daughter of an honest, hard working laborer; she is also the daughter of a dead mother. When an opportunity arises for her to go to work as a maid in a local manor, she takes the plunge; when she discovers that there is a vast library, she begins getting up a 3 am in order to read. Then, one early morning, she is discovered by the Lady of the house, who does not dismiss her, but rather makes further learning possible.
Learning how she develops, watching her through her hospital work in war-torn France, and seeing how she takes over the practice of her former tutor is the framework for the rest of this captivating novel. This is, for this genre, a very special book. I can’t wait to start the next novel, Birds of a Feather. Unfortunately, it is way past my bedtime, so that will have to wait for tomorrow–oops, wait until later today!

“Maisie Dobbs” (MD) is the first in a series of thirteen crime fiction(?) novels by Jacqueline Winspear featuring her ace investigator, Maisie Dobbs. I became attracted to this series by a review I read this summer on the Crime Fiction Lovers blog of her current release, “In This Grave Hour” , which combines London, crime fiction, and WWll – three key elements of a perfect storm for me.

MD begins in the spring of 1929. Maisie has just opened a new office to ply her psychology and investigation skills. She sits, waiting for the phone to ring. Before too long and thanks to a referral by a friend she has her first client, a well-to-do gentleman who suspects his wife of improper behavior. Maisie follows the suspect woman to…..(wait for it)…..a cemetery! And soon after, a rather lengthy flashback takes us to Maisie’s humble origins. She was born in 1897, the daughter of a costermonger. A what? My trusty Kindle quickly replied to my query advising me that a costermonger was an old time deliverer of produce most often transported in a horse drawn cart. Mom died early, finances are tight, Dad worries for Maisie’s future.

Then the story takes on some of the elements of Pygmalion and Maisie becomes the project of Lady Rowan and her friend, the very wise Maurice. Lots of nice, cute, warm hearted things happen. Yet Maisie is a serious girl, the years advance quickly and Maisie is a surgical nurse at the front. As in WWl front, on a battlefield somewhere in France having lied about her age to enlist. And she encounters, once again, Dr Simon Lynch whom she met at a charming dance party only a chapter or two ago. End of flashback. Hints of sadness.

Back to the case. The situation has changed considerably and now attention is focused on the Retreat, a farm of sorts, a closed society of soldiers severely damaged by wounds from the War, many hideous facial disfigurements, others emotional wounds. The Retreat is supposedly modeled on a very successful effort by the French who have had some success in rehabbing their patients back into society over time. But something about the Retreat doesn’t feel right; because of Lady Rowan’s personal interest in it, Maisie investigates further. Not a big huge Hollywood climax, but more interesting flashback addressing some of those questions you will have but not all of them.

So I now have read the first and most recent of the series and have formed a rather good picture of where it is going. Clearly a mix of history, adventure, mystery, romance, and excellent story telling. Winspear’s prose is excellent and her stories are well plotted. I find the mystery component a bit weak, and this is usually the key determining factor for me. But Winspear’s stories are so well told that I will read several more at a minimum, probably in order since the stories do link in a chronological fashion. Save for the crime bit, MD would be a 5 but I must restrain myself and go with a 4 for now.. The second book is entitled “Birds of a Feather”. All are on Amazon Kindle and I am sure you can find paper editions of each via Amazon as well though I haven’t looked. I recommended the series to a retired neighbor lady a few months ago and recently she told me she read the entire series straight through and enjoyed it tremendously.

An aside – recently I completed The Great Course’s DVD of Secrets of Crime Fiction Mystery and Suspense. I jotted down a number of the numerous titles the professor cited and I plan to read a dozen or two of them. So far I have read and reviewed Ellery Queen’s Penthouse Murder, and shortly (approx 9/21/17) will finish the first of fifty-five Ed McBain 78th Precinct mysteries, “Cop Hater”the series was written from 1956 to 2005 and no, I don’t intend to read that whole series. If you have an interest in classic or older crime fiction you might want to check them out – available on Amazon.

Complex, creative, well researched, attention holding. These are words that I would use to describe Jacqueline Winspear’s introductory novel in her Maisie Dobbs detective series. In some ways it follows the patterns of several other authors of this genre, that is period-piece British murder mysteries. In this case it deals with the post-World War I period, near the outbreak of the Great Depression. And like other authors it explores the British class system which was undergoing sometimes turbulent changes during the 1st half of the 20th century. It also deals with the aftermath of the tragedy of WWI in which millions of boys and young men were slaughtered and maimed on the killing fields and in the trenches of northern France and elsewhere. Maisie Dobbs herself comes from a lower class, but through her intelligence, hard work, and good fortune migrates up the class ladder to become friends with enlightened nobility and the moneyed, but definitely not considered equal. Although I have enjoyed several authors’ works in this area, at least to my taste, I find Ms. Winspear’s work a cut above that of most of her worthy peers in complexity and attention holding ability. I am looking forward to reading more of her creations.

My girlfriend can’t put these books down. She hasn’t spoken to me in three weeks. I ran out of things to do (well, I ran out of money to do things) so I decided to read the first book. Two days later and I have started book 2. Jacqueline Winspear has created a wonderful, likeable and wholly plausible hero in Maisie Dobbs. The characters, plot and narrative keep the pages turning. In short, these are the rare books that make you want to get home from work early, light the fire, pour a glass of wine and spend all evening reading.

A perfectly good idea for a story spoiled for me by the use of American spelling. Each woolen and color jarred and took me out of the world of 1920s Britain that Ms Winspeare had tried to create.
Surely an author brought up in Britain within a British family, using British characters, locations, events, and essentially appealing to the British public, would have the insight to insist on British spelling?
I have no problem with American expressions and spelling within an American context and indeed would expect to find these there. Its about authenticity, verisimilitude and respect for the reader.
I doubt I can read another Maisie Dobbs story, set as they are in this strange, mid-Atlantic invention.

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