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Summary

Maisie Dobbs begins a new chapter of her life in the latest from Jacqueline Winspear. In her last, much darker adventure, Maisie is still mourning her husband and unborn daughter. She retreated to a region of the world facing civil strife, and immersed herself in a murder investigation, nursing and even some spying. In this 12th novel she has returned to her native England, more herself but still processing the events that changed her life. However an old associate in the police force has been seconded to Whitehall, and he and his new colleagues know that danger is approaching from Germany’s borders. They ask Maisie to travel to Germany – to the heart of the new Nazi regime – to retrieve a scientist they believe imprisoned in the now infamous Dachau camp. To do so, Maisie must pose as his daughter, learn German, and how to shoot a pistol. Initially unsure but feeling it is something she must do, Maisie readies herself to leave – and then the man she blames for her husband’s death makes a request of her – one that opens wounds that had just begun to heal, and shows her just how much steel she can summon when in duress. Fans of the BBC television series Foyles War will love Maisie Dobbs, a thoughtful, introspective heroine who tries to be at peace with her past, while using the lessons it taught her to build a brighter future. Winspear builds tension very subtly throughout, yet the story moves at a quick pace; and though this latest novel is much more a historical adventure than mystery (those familiar with Canadian and British WWII history will no doubt recognize the character based on Lord Beaverbrook), toward the end the author moves Maisie’s character back into familiar investigative territory, promising further mysteries down the road.