Publishers Weekly
★ 01/18/2021
Set in the fall of 1941, bestseller Winspear’s outstanding 16th Maisie Dobbs novel (after 2019’s The American Agent) initially focuses on fleet-footed 12-year-old Freddie Hackett, who earns a few bob a week running government messages across London. One night, while racing across the city to deliver a message, Freddie witnesses a murder, but no one believes him, even when a body matching his description of the victim is pulled from the Thames—until Maisie’s compassion for his plight prompts her to begin an investigation. Forensically trained Maisie has been vetting prospective agents for the Special Operations Executive to assess young recruits’ psychological fitness for dangerous overseas assignments, and in Freddie she recognizes what would now be called post-traumatic stress. Could his psychological state have led him to imagine the violent encounter? The body is eventually identified as a Frenchman, and later, when a French SOE recruit dies mysteriously, Maisie discovers a connection between the two victims that stretches back to the previous war. Maisie and her loving family of supporting characters continue to evolve and grow in ways sure to win readers’ hearts. Winspear is writing at the top of her game. Agent: Amy Rennert, Amy Rennert Agency. (Mar.)
From the Publisher
Over 16 novels spanning three decades, Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs has lived. In real life, her quiet bravery, compassion and dogged pursuit of the truth would have made her one of the Greatest Generation, a lesson in survival under the grimmest circumstances. The lessons are hard-won in The Consequences of Fear, set in the fall of 1941 but no less relevant today…. Fans and newcomers to the series will root for Dobbs and the other well-drawn characters.” — Los Angeles Times
“Exceptional…. An intriguing series that entertains and inspires…. Winspear’s latest novel reminds us why we love Maisie Dobbs.” — Washington Post
"Once again, Ms. Winspear brings a vanished era to life with clarity and insight. Maisie Dobbs—businesswoman, widow, single mother of an adopted little girl, lady-friend of a dashing American diplomat—continues to mature and impress in her admirable mission to balance the scales of justice." — Wall Street Journal
“Fresh and compelling…. Winspear’s sense of place is acutely evocative of wartime England’s fears and hopes. Dobbs remains a particularly strong and well-crafted character, with a compelling back story; the same can be said for her devoted friends, family and colleagues.” — Seattle Times
"Gripping." — Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Outstanding…. Maisie and her loving family of supporting characters continue to evolve and grow in ways sure to win readers’ hearts. Winspear is writing at the top of her game.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
“Fast-paced . . . Winspear never sugarcoats the horrors of war, and alongside the camaraderie shown by these characters and the Londoners surrounding them she delivers terrible truths that must be endured. . . . also recommend it as a less- weighty read-alike for Anthony Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See.” — Booklist, starred review
"A fast-paced tale of mystery and spycraft whose exploration of inner doubts and fears makes it much more." — Kirkus
“Like Winspear’s other novels, this one explores the characters’ minds, examining not only the facts but also the human psyche. VERDICT: A must-read for Maisie Dobbs fans, this is an excellent fit for readers of historical and thoughtful mysteries.” — Library Journal
Seattle Times
Fresh and compelling…. Winspear’s sense of place is acutely evocative of wartime England’s fears and hopes. Dobbs remains a particularly strong and well-crafted character, with a compelling back story; the same can be said for her devoted friends, family and colleagues.
Wall Street Journal
"Once again, Ms. Winspear brings a vanished era to life with clarity and insight. Maisie Dobbs—businesswoman, widow, single mother of an adopted little girl, lady-friend of a dashing American diplomat—continues to mature and impress in her admirable mission to balance the scales of justice."
Washington Post
Exceptional…. An intriguing series that entertains and inspires…. Winspear’s latest novel reminds us why we love Maisie Dobbs.”
Minneapolis Star Tribune
"Gripping."
|Los Angeles Times
Over 16 novels spanning three decades, Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs has lived. In real life, her quiet bravery, compassion and dogged pursuit of the truth would have made her one of the Greatest Generation, a lesson in survival under the grimmest circumstances. The lessons are hard-won in The Consequences of Fear, set in the fall of 1941 but no less relevant today…. Fans and newcomers to the series will root for Dobbs and the other well-drawn characters.
starred review Booklist
Fast-paced . . . Winspear never sugarcoats the horrors of war, and alongside the camaraderie shown by these characters and the Londoners surrounding them she delivers terrible truths that must be endured. . . . also recommend it as a less- weighty read-alike for Anthony Doerr’s All the Light We Cannot See.
Los Angeles Times
Over 16 novels spanning three decades, Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs has lived. In real life, her quiet bravery, compassion and dogged pursuit of the truth would have made her one of the Greatest Generation, a lesson in survival under the grimmest circumstances. The lessons are hard-won in The Consequences of Fear, set in the fall of 1941 but no less relevant today…. Fans and newcomers to the series will root for Dobbs and the other well-drawn characters.
Washington Post
Exceptional…. An intriguing series that entertains and inspires…. Winspear’s latest novel reminds us why we love Maisie Dobbs.”
Wall Street Journal
"Once again, Ms. Winspear brings a vanished era to life with clarity and insight. Maisie Dobbs—businesswoman, widow, single mother of an adopted little girl, lady-friend of a dashing American diplomat—continues to mature and impress in her admirable mission to balance the scales of justice."
New York Times Book Review on The American Agent
Everything in this series turns on the psychological traumas of war. That’s what gives Maisie’s sometimes prosaic cases their sturdy backbone and air of urgency—that and Maisie’s own dynamic character. Hang on to your helmet and carry on, girl.
USA Today on The American Agent
Winning.
null USA Today on The American Agent
Winning.
null New York Times Book Review on The American Agent
Everything in this series turns on the psychological traumas of war. That’s what gives Maisie’s sometimes prosaic cases their sturdy backbone and air of urgency—that and Maisie’s own dynamic character. Hang on to your helmet and carry on, girl.
Library Journal
03/05/2021
In Winspear's newest World War II—set "Maisie Dobbs" entry (following An American Agent), the British are deep into the Blitz in London and Maisie is navigating life with her newly adopted daughter, her work as a detective, and her top-secret government assignments. She is also balancing a romantic relationship with an American intelligence officer, Mark Scott. The mystery opens with a young man named Freddie who witnesses a murder in the middle of a bombing. The police do not believe his story, so Freddie, a messenger for different government agents, comes to Maisie for help, as he has delivered messages for her in the past. As Maisie and her assistant, the dogged Billy Beale, dig into the details of the case and Freddie's life, more shadows than facts are revealed. Maisie's work with the British government as it assists the Free French Forces further complicates the case at hand. Like Winspear's other novels, this one explores the characters' minds, examining not only the facts but also the human psyche. VERDICT A must-read for Maisie Dobbs fans, this is an excellent fit for readers of historical and thoughtful mysteries.—Kristen Stewart, Pearland Lib., Brazoria Cty. Lib. Syst., TX
MARCH 2021 - AudioFile
Narrator Orlagh Cassidy returns to transport listeners back to bomb-shattered London of 1941. The author’s attention to the details of time, place, and speech and Cassidy’s spot-on performance provide an engaging authenticity to this listening experience. In her investigation of a murder witnessed by a boy, Maisie Dobbs finds herself in a complex situation involving British and French intelligence agents. Dobbs struggles between her duty to serve her country and her dedication to her adopted child. Cassidy excels at performing the emotionally fraught dialogue, which shines a light on the external and internal scars of war and their ripple effects on family. Leveraging her talents for accents, pace, and intonation, Cassidy differentiates the many characters young and old. A deeply moving listening experience. E.Q. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2021-03-03
October 1941 finds Maisie Dobbs continuing her espionage work while Great Britain is locked in a do-or-die fight against the Nazis.
As she continues her secret work for spymaster Robbie MacFarlane while also running her detective business, Maisie’s affair with Mark Scott, her American counterpart, has reached an inflection point. Maisie is a mother, a nurse, a veteran spy, and a psychologist who sees that young Freddie Hackett, one of many speedy boys running messages around London, is at his breaking point. His father is a drunk who beats him; his mother is desperate to protect Freddie and her daughter who has Down syndrome. Now the police have blown off Freddie’s claim to have witnessed a murder. Since the killer turns out to be the recipient of the message he was on his way to deliver when he saw the crime, Freddie’s in a position to give an excellent description of him. Maisie, who’s found it harder and harder to vet people who may be sent off to work with the French Resistance, especially because so many of them will be tortured and killed by the Nazis, meets a French officer who fits Freddie’s description of the killer while she’s in Scotland reviewing a new group. But MacFarlane refuses to help her with the case because relations with the Free French require a delicate balance. Undeterred, Maisie uses her contacts to unveil a story of treachery and deceit dating back to the last war, knowing that all the balls she’s desperately juggling will come crashing down if she makes a mistake.
A fast-paced tale of mystery and spycraft whose exploration of inner doubts and fears makes it much more.
