I came across these books one day a couple of years ago and pointed them out to my good friend, Lainey, who loves anything to do with the Great War.  She picked the first one up and went on to read the others and raved about them!  *LOL*  Finally, a few weeks ago, there was a sale and I managed to pick up this book and books 3 & 4. 

I'm glad to say that I quite enjoyed it!

Now there are a lot of words in this book.  The author likes words.  But that's not a problem because it translates the setting and feel of the book perfectly, I thought. The book is set in 1929, ten years after the end of the First World War, but the Great War permeates every nook and cranny of the story.

Maisie is a great character.  VERY competent and quite brilliant, she does have her faults though.  Just not too many of them.  *LOL*   I enjoyed traveling with her as she sought to unravel the mystery of The Retreat and as well, her trips back into her youth and time during the war.  I'd say a good third if not more of the book is taken up with what one would term her 'backstory', but it worked. 

In conclusion, I quite enjoyed my read, despite thinking at the outset that it just might be a very pedantic read - it wasn't at all. I actually fell a little in love with the characters and I'm looking forward to my next read in Maisie's world!

A Kent Village has secrets, secrets that draw Maisie Dobbs in via Billy Beale who is hopping down there. She discovers that there are more things, more strangeness in this town, secrets that people are willing to kill to keep.

Full of twists that are somewhat predictable but the trip was interesting, I liked Maisie and her progress.

Nick Bassington-Hope, a controversial artist who gets inspiration from those around him is found dead when hanging his latest exhibition. The police believe it's an accident but his twin sister doesn't believe it and engages Masie Dobbs to investigate. She discovers that Nick's wartime experience has coloured his paintings and that some of his topics have made enemies of him. There's also some issues with smuggling that ends up being interwoven into the plot. I did guess one of the plot twists fairly early on, but it's the finding out the motives of various characters and the ongoing seeing how Maisie develops held my interest