She started as a maid in an aristocratic Londonhousehold; studied her way into prestigious GirtonCollege at Cambridge; then became a front-linenurse in World War I. There she found - and lost -an important part of herself. Now she has set upon her own as a private investigator, one who haslearned that coincidences are meaningful. And Fatebrings her a case that will force her to confrontthe ghost that has haunted her for over ten years."A welcome addition to the sleuthing scene" -Elizabeth George, author of I, Richard"A rare treat for mystery fans" - Charles Todd
Maisie Dobbs
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'Readers sensing a story-within-a-story won't be disappointed. But first, they must prepare to be astonished at the sensitivity and wisdom with which Maisie resolves her first professional assignment' -- New York Times 'A fine new sleuth for the twenty-first century. Simultaneously self-reliant and vulnerable, Maisie isn't a character I'll easily forget' -- Elizabeth George 'The book is much more than a cosy mystery - it is also about women's growing emancipation and the profound changes to society after the First World War.' -- Mail on Sunday's You 20050403
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Jacqueline Winspear was born and raised in England, and now lives California.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful
By LindyB
Format:Paperback
I'd prefer to review this along with the second book, Birds of a Feather, simultaneously, because I thought that there were problems with the first book which the author had resolved by the second. In Maisie Dobbs, it seems to me as though Winspear doesn't wear her research lightly enough: she gives in to the temptation to cram in all the knowledge she's gleaned about the Great War period into a single book, even when it isn't particularly valuable to the plot.
The book could have benefitted also from a more alert editor: in the retreat, a man 'not yet thirty' is mentioned just a couple of pages before 'the youngest man she met must have been thirty'. Those kind of mistakes (paradoxically just like the over layering of period detail) create a barrier between reader and narrative.
However, I think that Winspear has created a wonderful character (even if she is a little 'too good to be true'). And the story she is given in the second book allows all the potential of the first book to blossom. In fact, it seems to me that Maisie's "back story" need not have been narrated. The hints to her past that one can glimpse from the second book are surely enough, and Winspear could have allowed us to gain more and more knowledge of her over a larger series of books.
The book could have benefitted also from a more alert editor: in the retreat, a man 'not yet thirty' is mentioned just a couple of pages before 'the youngest man she met must have been thirty'. Those kind of mistakes (paradoxically just like the over layering of period detail) create a barrier between reader and narrative.
However, I think that Winspear has created a wonderful character (even if she is a little 'too good to be true'). And the story she is given in the second book allows all the potential of the first book to blossom. In fact, it seems to me that Maisie's "back story" need not have been narrated. The hints to her past that one can glimpse from the second book are surely enough, and Winspear could have allowed us to gain more and more knowledge of her over a larger series of books.
38 of 41 people found the following review helpful
By A. Ross
TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback
By rights, I'm just the right reader for this book: I love mysteries (especially British ones), I find WWI fascinating, I find the interwar era and the whole "upstairs-downstairs" British class stuff interesting. And yet...while mildly diverting and obviously well-researched, this first book in a series about a plucky young female investigator/psychologist really didn't work for me. It's written as if the intended readership were 10-14 year-old girls, which is fine, but as an adult, it's hard to find Nancy Drewish escapades of a flawless heroine all that fulfilling.
The framework is a little unconventional (though not the disaster some reviewers make it out to be): the first part of the book introduces us to 20something Maisie Dobbs, just opening her business in London. Her first case is a classic assignment: a man who is worried his wife is cheating on him wants Maisie to check into it. As her investigation unfolds there are allusions to Maisie's past and a mysterious mentor, but nothing is spelled out. Suddenly, the story drifts back in time to 1910 or so, and we are reintroduced to a younger Maisie as she enters service as a housemaid for an aristocratic family. We follow dutifully along as her employers discover her reading Latin in the library and extend their patronage, allowing her to be tutored by their strange friend (and apparent spy) Maurice, and eventually supporting her bid to go to Cambridge (Girton College). Despite success at school, when World War I starts, she decides to join the Red Cross, and eventually serves as a nurse in France, where she witnesses the horror of war.
The final third of the book then shifts back the the postwar era, and Maisie's patron asks her help in a family matter. This all dovetails with her earlier case, as well as the war and the scars (psychic and physical) left by the war. The mystery isn't substantial enough to satisfy most fans of the genre, and anyone with any discernment is going to find the climax painfully bad. (All I'll say is that involves singing...) As a detective, Maisie isn't particularly compelling -- her technique is a mix of keen observation and psychology. However, she's even less compelling as a character. Maisie's one of those plucky underdogs designed to provoke maximum reader projection: born into semi-poverty, raised by single father, highly intelligent, uncommonly perceptive, always composed, humble, beloved by all, and possessing big violet eyes. She's the kind of character everyone likes to imagine they would be, had they lived in that time and been born into those circumstances. The supporting cast is fairly pat: vegetable-seller father (with a heart of gold), feisty upper-class patroness (with a heart of gold), prim butler (with a heart of gold), plump cook (with a heart of gold), Cockney handyman/sidekick (with a heart of gold), etc...
The book isn't bad (except for the climax, which is terrible), it's just not very satisfying for adult readers looking for complex characters and a meaty plot. It suffers from feeling very much like a book designed to establish setting and characters for a series. I may read onward in the series (the next two are Birds of a Feather and Pardonable Lies), but may wait for the inevitable BBC TV series this will spawn.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I loved this book. On Amazon it is often compared to Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency and while I have not read those books, I have seen the TV series and yes, I can agree with them. It resembles that series BUT... at the same time not.
Maisie Dobbs grows up in a very strict social order and class system without any prospects beyond becoming a maid. But she has a very bright mind and the luck of working for a woman that wants to make a changes in society. She is given the opportunity to study and step out of the class where she was born. Then World War 1 breaks out and she lies about her age to become a nurse and help out. Not until the war is over, can she return to her studies and then continue being trained by a man that is doing something so modern as being an investigator and psychologist at the same time.
Some people have complained that there is only a mystery at the beginning and at the end of the book. Yes, that is true. At the same time, I as a reader wanted the story in between. The whole middle section tells Maisie's story so that the author can make a series out of this heroine. She builds up Maisie's backround so we know where Maisie is coming from, what she has encountered during the war and what people she knows. This needs to be done somewhere and why not after having started the mystery???
Since the book is set in 1929, cases can not be solved quickly and have to be done so without modern technology and often with the help of psychology. She is an Hercules Poirot and a Miss Marple and yet, entirely a person of her own, an loveable, attractive young lady with a broken heart.
Maisie Dobbs grows up in a very strict social order and class system without any prospects beyond becoming a maid. But she has a very bright mind and the luck of working for a woman that wants to make a changes in society. She is given the opportunity to study and step out of the class where she was born. Then World War 1 breaks out and she lies about her age to become a nurse and help out. Not until the war is over, can she return to her studies and then continue being trained by a man that is doing something so modern as being an investigator and psychologist at the same time.
Some people have complained that there is only a mystery at the beginning and at the end of the book. Yes, that is true. At the same time, I as a reader wanted the story in between. The whole middle section tells Maisie's story so that the author can make a series out of this heroine. She builds up Maisie's backround so we know where Maisie is coming from, what she has encountered during the war and what people she knows. This needs to be done somewhere and why not after having started the mystery???
Since the book is set in 1929, cases can not be solved quickly and have to be done so without modern technology and often with the help of psychology. She is an Hercules Poirot and a Miss Marple and yet, entirely a person of her own, an loveable, attractive young lady with a broken heart.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Maisie is great!
Another great story from Ms. Winspear who has become a firm favourite. Thankfully there are several more in the series yet to catch up on!
Published 1 month ago by B.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great
This is a great item and I would most certainly recommend it to others.
It is worth every penny paid for it.
It is worth every penny paid for it.
Published 2 months ago by ian
5.0 out of 5 stars
Maisie Dobbs(Maisie Dobbs Mystery 1)
I've recommended this book to all my friends,such compulsive reading. Personally,I'm not usually a murder/mystery type of reader,however,this book made me want much more.
Published 4 months ago by Claire Voyant
5.0 out of 5 stars
Maisie Dobbs
Couldn't put the book down.. Learnt a lot about the first world war and life in big houses in that time
Published 5 months ago by Caradog
4.0 out of 5 stars
Worth persisting!
This is the first in the series and was a little difficult to get into at first but I became hooked and immediately purchased the next one! Read more
Published 6 months ago by Elisabeth Daisy
1.0 out of 5 stars
Unbelievable twaddle
I read this book only because it was my Book Club choice. I found it completely unbelievable. Coster monger with local accent has daughter who speaks perfect English. Read more
Published 6 months ago by m
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great find
Some of the reviews for this book are unfair in my opinion. It is a well written, well researched novel set between the two world wars. Read more
Published 7 months ago by S. Farnaby
1.0 out of 5 stars
Bunkum
Under the pretext of "If you like this you may like..." I read this bunkum. Or at least read the first 50 pages. It was a thankless task.
I should've known better. Read more
I should've known better. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Catblack_uk
4.0 out of 5 stars
Light Reading
This is a nice pleasant read, with no bad language and no violence other than the stories from the Great War. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Mrs. A. L. Maddocks
5.0 out of 5 stars
Give Maisie a chance!!!
If I had previously read the reviews for this fabulous book I doubt that I would have even picked it up! Read more
Published 15 months ago by Mo Taylor
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