The Mapping of Love and Death

February 15, 2010
Set in 1932, bestseller Winspear's endearing seventh Maisie Dobbs novel (after 2009's Among the Mad
) centers on Michael Clifton, a young American cartographer during the Great War, whose remains turn up in a French field. Evidence suggests to Maisie that Michael, rather than dying in a shell blast, was murdered. Michael's parents arrive in London with letters from an unnamed English nurse that raise disturbing questions about the nurse's relationship with their son. The plucky inquiry agent embarks on a search for this woman, following a trail that leads to Chatham, home of the School of Military Engineering, which Michael attended. There she learns about the vital role that cartography played in the war. At times, subplots involving socialite James Compton, a frustrated suitor, and the family problems of Maisie's assistant, Billy Beale, slow the pace. As often in this winning series, the action builds to a somewhat sad if satisfying conclusion. 10-city author tour.

March 1, 2010
The sixth Maisie Dobbs mystery, set in England between the wars, is based on a true story about the discovery of a collapsed dugout from World War I containing the bodies of a cartography team and their equipment. The American parents of the dead cartographer hire Maisie to find the English Nurse, the young mans mysterious loverand possibly his killer, as the autopsy evidence points to his having been murdered shortly before the dugout collapsed. Only a few hours after having hired Maisie, the Americans are attacked and badly beaten, prompting Maisie to take it upon herself to discover their attacker. Maisie and her assistant, Billy, take on the case in their usual careful and contemplative style, even as difficulties in Maisies personal life challenge her concentration. Readers who preferred the earlier novels in the series will be pleased with this entry and those waiting for Maisie to finally find a love interest will have something to cheer about. A must read for series fans, especially because the ending hints that big changes are on the way for Maisie.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)

February 15, 2010
The long aftermath of murder on a World War I battlefield.

Sixteen years after he enlisted in the Royal Engineers and was declared missing somewhere in France, American cartographer Michael Clifton's remains and few possessions are dug up by a farmer in the Somme Valley, setting his parents on a quest to find the author of the surviving love letters signed only as The English Nurse, or Tennie. They appeal to London private investigator Maisie Dobbs (Among the Mad, 2009, etc.) for help, but a quick scan of the autopsy work convinces Maisie that she's involved not only in a missing-person case but a murder enquiry—Michael was bludgeoned to death with one of his surveying instruments. Then things start to happen in the present. Edward and Martha are nearly killed in their hotel room. Maisie is attacked on the street and her briefcase stolen. And Tennie remains elusive. Through it all, Maisie remains unruffled. Several likely beaux for her pop around, and she finds time to consult with two mentors, one on his death bed, the other urging her to close her eyes and see. There'll be another death, Upstairs-Downstairs snobbery, greed, romance, familial revenge and lots of tea drinking before Maisie wraps up the case and even becomes an heiress herself.

Undemanding fare, with perhaps too many characters whose tragic episodes in their past are exacerbated by family silences.

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Starred review from February 15, 2010
Mapping the human heart is more art than science. Winspear's seventh Maisie Dobbs novel (after "Among the Mad") finds the detective employed by the parents of a soldier and cartographer, Michael Clifton, who fought during World War I. Missing for 16 years, the bodies of Clifton and his unit are discovered in France. The postmortem reveals that while the unit perished during a shelling attack, Clifton was already dead from a crushed skull. The only clues found with the body are Clifton's deteriorated journal and love letters to an unnamed nurse. There's also the dilemma of the California land purchase, potentially lucrative, that Clifton made just before he enlisted. With no deed of sale or will apparent, the land is mired in legal entanglements. This case has long grown cold, but Maisie is too relentless an investigator to let it prevent her from bringing a murderer to justice. VERDICT An engaging plot coupled with captivating characters makes this the best Dobbs novel to date. Highly recommended for historical mystery aficionados who enjoy intriguing whodunits wrapped in a wartime love story.Susan O. Moritz, Montgomery Cty. P.Ls., MD

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