Elegy for Eddie (Maisie Dobbs Series #9)
4.1
73
5
1
Paperback
USD
14.39
$14.39
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780062049582 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | HarperCollins Publishers |
| Publication date: | 10/30/2012 |
| Series: | Maisie Dobbs Series , #9 |
| Pages: | 368 |
| Sales rank: | 61,350 |
| Product dimensions: | 5.10(w) x 7.90(h) x 1.00(d) |
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Elegy for Eddie (A Maisie Dobbs Novel)
4.1 out of 5
based on
0 ratings.
73 reviews.
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The Maisie Dobbs series, now with nine entries, has taken her from World War I, where she served as a nurse, to the cusp of the Second World War. In this novel, there are three themes which can tend to confuse the reader until the author brings them together and makes sense out of what at first appear to be separate subplots.
To start with, a delegation from Lambeth, scene of Maisie’s childhood, visits her to engage her services as an investigator to find out how a young man died in a paper factory. The other two plot lines, one more personal to her than the other, has Maisie questioning her own motives and standards as well as her relationship with her lover; and the last involving the stealth campaign of Winston Churchill to prepare Great Britain for the possible war with Nazi Germany.
The book is equal to its predecessors in characterization and human interest. Obviously, it is more political in tone than its forerunners, given the time in which it takes place: the depression era and rise of Adolf Hitler. While Maisie’s introspections may be overdone, they certainly are in keeping with the character.
Recommended.
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Maisie Dobbs displays an incredibly annoying ability to not understand that othef people are allowed to have their own lives apart from her, without letting her know what they are doing at every minute. Her conviction that she is being "lied to" because some of her acquaintances have facets of their lives that they cannot (or do not want to) share with her is wearing quite thin. I realize her calling card says Psychologist and Inquiry agent, but I didn't realize her brief included inquiring into everyone else's lives, whether bidden or not.
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Winspear is never heavy handed with the history she blends into her Maisie Dobbs series. Strong characters and steady plots bring the era alive with significant if sometimes relatively obscure historical, political and social recollections. "Elegy" with its troubling and morally ambiguous theme (unresolved for the protagonist) typifies the books in the series--well-written, thoughtful, credible and appealing characters, always a pleasurable and worthwhile read.
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“Everything good has a dark side, even generosity. It can become overbearing, intimidating, even humiliating – and no one likes to think someone else is pulling the strings….”
Elegy For Eddie is the ninth book in the Maisie Dobbs series by British-born American author, Jacqueline Winspear. Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and private investigator, is asked to investigate the supposedly accidental death of a simple man with an uncanny gift for dealing with horses. Eddie Pettit was well-known and loved amongst the costermongers of Covent Garden, former associates of Maisie’s father, Frankie, and they are sceptical about the circumstances of Eddie’s death.
As Billy Beale and Maisie try to discover a motive for his death, they learn that Eddie had certain special talents that were not apparent. Maisie discovers two other deaths that were ruled suicides but which strike her as suspicious, and Billy’s investigations land him in the hospital. His wife Doreen’s slowly-recovering mental health suffers a setback, and Maisie is taken to task for her need for control. Her relationship with James Compton takes a new direction, Maisie accepts counsel from an unexpected quarter and discovers a few surprising things about her father, her best friend’s husband and her lover.
This instalment is set in April 1933, against a background of increasing Fascism in Germany that signals the possibility of another war. Winspear touches on the power of the press, the subtle use of propaganda, and the balance between freedom of information and the need for national security, as well as the position of women in society. Winspear develops her main characters more fully and her plot takes a few unexpected turns. Another excellent Winspear mystery.
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The “Eddie” in the title is Eddie Pettit, born to an unmarried teenage mother in 1887 while she was mucking out a stable – a job that just barely keeps her out of the workhouse. All his life, Eddie had a special gift for working with horses. And now in 1933, Eddie dies in a freak accident at a printing plant. But Eddie’s friends, the fruit sellers in Covent Garden, don’t believe his death was an accident and come to Maisie Dobbs, daughter of their friend and former costermonger Frankie Dobbs, to investigate his death.
Maisie takes on the job, only too glad to be of help to her father’s pals, whom she’s known since she was a little girl. And when her assistant, Billy Beale, winds up in the hospital after a beating sustained while asking questions about the case, she’s pretty certain that her clients’ suspicions about Eddie’s death are on target.
Elegy for Eddie is a pivotal book in this award-winning series, a turning point for its protagonist. Maisie is still becoming accustomed to newfound wealth – which came to her when her mentor and friend Maurice died and left her most of his considerable estate. Maisie is always willing to use her money to help others, but in Elegy for Eddie, she’s confronted with the accusation, from a very credible source, that she may be using gifts to control other people’s lives. Maisie also realizes that she must decide what her relationship is to be with her lover, James, who wants a traditional marriage, meaning Maisie gives up her work.
The Maisie Dobbs books are wonderful … it’s one series I collect in hardcover. I just want to own them. Elegy for Eddie is number nine, and it’s just about time for me to go back to #1 and read some of the early ones again. It’s that kind of series.
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Several of Maisie's old acquaintances come to her office to ask for her help. They believe that their friend Eddie was murdered. Maisie sets out to find any clues surrounding death that might lead to this conclusion.
I haven't read any Maisie Dobbs books before this one. But I do enjoy a good who-done-it or mystery novel. This book was okay, but it certainly wasn't great. The story seemed to meander slowly along without anything happening for long periods of time. Her indecision about her boyfriend and her previous life were irritating and didn't seem to fit with the story at all. I won't give any spoilers, but I wasn't thrilled with the conclusions either. They didn't seem to wrap up like a normal who-done-it should. This might be a typical Maisie Dobbs novel, I don't know. But it left me wishing I'd read a different book and not wasted my time. It wasn't awful, but with so many great books out there it's hard to waste your time on one that is only okay.
I received this book free of charge from Edelweiss in exchange for my honest review.
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Potential spoiler although I'll try not to say too much. I found the book to be a little slow, and I was disappointed as a key crime against Billy received no closure; key elements were not researched. There wasn't a cut and dried ending. I like the series, but this book seemed to focus too much on the politics and Maisie's ... self-introspection, which adds to the stories and Maisie's growth, but it was just too much this time. I suppose Maisie's past and current status, neither fish nor fowl, makes it difficult to commit to anything other than her business which she can control. It would be a difficult world to navigate, gender, class, academics, finances, etc. as she doesn't fit in her "place." She is called to task for her control issues, and I enjoyed those dialogues as the character is just a little bit too controlling and "mother knows best." I'm not sure why the series even involves a male companion as Maisie just sort flits along from man to man albeit slowly; I feel like I'm observing Goldilocks although she made a decision by third time.
All in all, for my likes, it wasn't the best in the series. Like Anne Perry's current writings, it seems as though the writer is taking a breather and just coasting.
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I have read all of the books in this series and this one was good. I could not give it a higher rating because I felt that it moved very slow.
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I have been a fan of the Massie Dobbs series since the very first book. Ms. Winspears latest began with a great beginner. However, I was somewhat disappointed with the ending. Still a fan though and hoping that Massie stays with her friend, James. Actually, Ms. Dobbs is ahead of her time by being a private female investigator and having a love life. This makes the series very interesting. Looking forward to the next book in the series.
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good mystery, long on the introspection of the heroine
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This is the ninth novel in the Maisie Dobbs mysteries that take place in the aftermath of WWI. It is now 1933 and there is rumors of another war on the horizen.The story begins when some local market sellers seek out Maisie's help in a finding out what really happened in a suspicious death. This request sends the now wealthy Maisie back to her poor Lambeth roots to investigate the death of a "slow" but well-loved man named Eddie Pettit. As Maisie investigates more, she realizes that Eddie may have been in over his head involving matters of national security.Although this is only the second Maisie Dobbs novel I have read, I once again had no problem in understanding the plot and characters. These are great mysteries due to the time era, the issue of class and the compelling character of Maisie. This particular book focuses quite a bit on Maisie and her discovery of some possible flaws and issues she must deal with within herself.This is an excellent series and the ninth novel was well worth the read.
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As Hitler comes to power in Germany Maisie solves the murder of a simple man in her childhood surroundings. Her struggle with commitment to her lover and the philosophical question of the ends justufying the means complicate the mystery
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This is a Maisie Dobbs mystery set in England after WWI. Dobbs learns about the threat of Hitler and measures that many English leaders are taking to prepare for war. In this story, Maisie investigates the death of a gentle horseman. Eddie was born in the stable with horses and now he tends these gentle animals. Eddie is a simple and slow man, but he can draw. His drawing and simplicity end up causing his death. Winspear highlights the ending of dependence on horses, the coming of war with Germany, the loyalty of the downtrodden, and the life of the wealthy. In this book, Maisie realizes that she may not want to marry, but a possibility still remains in the end. The story is well written with the reader feeling sympathy for the poor people of England.
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Set in 1933, the vein of stories tracing back to World War I seems to be at an end with this latest entry in the Maisie Dobbs series. Although this book briefly references the horrors of the first world war, it is evident that Winspear is heading the series toward the inevitable collision with the second world warl. Churchill appears, though only in passing, and is warning of the coming horrors of Fascism. I wonder if Winspear will continue the series in a strict chronology or if she will at some point soon just jump ahead to sometime in 1939 or so. Maisie is ideally situated to play a clandestine role in the battle against Hitler, and Winspear has been setting this up for quite a while now. I do wonder if Maisie is ever meant to be content and happy with her life and I fear hugely for Priscilla's boys. As always the sense of being transported to a distinct time and place is fulfilled by Winspear's detailed, sensitive writing.
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If you are a fan of Jacqueline Winspear¿s mysteries set in London between the World Wars, when you read her last book (A Lesson in Secrets), you might have thought Maisie Dobb¿s life was getting all neatly bundled up¿love interest, check, financial well-being, check, good mental state, check, clear career goals, check. Perhaps overly settled. I almost thought things were getting a bit too comfy for Maisie, Winspear¿s sleuth. Where¿s the excitement in that? I shouldn¿t have worried. Jacqueline Winspear has written Elegy for Eddie (on sale March 27, 2012). Without any soap opera antics, just Winspear¿s impeccable, nuanced character development, Maisie is at sea again in a variety of ways¿all those comfortable expectations you were left with at the end of Lesson are unraveling¿and she¿s solving a mystery of a completely new sort. The Eddie of the title was an unusual man. Most people thought he was ¿slow,¿ but those who knew him well saw a lot more to him. He had remarkable talents, both obvious and hidden. He was best known for his mystical ability to quiet horses. That he was born in a stable doesn¿t quite explain this skill, although that¿s what the gossips say. When he dies in an "accident," the cockney costermongers of Maisie's childhood feel justice hasn't been done and they come to see her. Winspear¿s own love for horses comes out beautifully in this novel. And her elegy for a man who today might be labeled ¿special needs¿ is sensitive and deeply moving. Winspear never slips into clichéd ideas. That her idea for Eddie arose from the story of a real man, or the little fragment she heard about him, makes this even more touching.I was struck in the first part of the book by the absence of the shadow of World War II¿or so I thought. A Lesson in Secrets focused largely on this looming threat. But here again in Elegy, Winspear shows the insidious influence of both the World Wars, the one behind these characters and the one they will soon face. She draws with a sure hand the web of disaster closing in on England and America, and the corrupting effect of war¿s threat, even on men of good intentions. Here are ¿villains¿ whose crimes you may have to overlook and ¿heroes¿ whose secrets you may grow to despise. Winspear has tied together a page-turning mystery with a level of moral complexity rarely seen in the genre.
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This book is every bit as good as the other books in the Maisie Dobbs series, if not better, in my opinion. The Maisie Dobbs novels are always a bit bittersweet, and this one is no exception.Maisie is approached by some childhood friends to look into the death of their mutual friend, Eddie. Eddie was a simple man with an innocence they all loved. However, in the last few weeks of his life, he was worried about something. His death appears to be an accident but it is doubtful. What had Eddie gotten himself involved in that led to his death?As Maisie investigates, she also has to deal with the threat of another war, her relationship with James and its challenges, and facing her need to control the lives of her friends and employees.This is a complex, somewhat sad, yet satisfying read. It is very well done, as usual. Heartily recommended for fans of the series.(I received this book through Amazon's Vine Program.)
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Thank you to Harper for providing me with a review copy of this novel.I am a huge fan of this series and have read all of the books published to date thanks to Book Girl Jen's Mad for Maisie reading challenge last year. In this outing we see that WWII looms ever closer on the horizon and we get an inkling as to what it will mean to the beloved characters in this series. When a man from Maisie's youth dies under somewhat mysterious circumstances she is called on to investigate the death by her father's friends. As Maisie has known the man personally she feels a particular responsibility to discover the truth. The case soon becomes complicated and Maisie learns that there is a lot more at stake than the death of just one man. Although I love the mystery aspect of each story I often find myself frustrated with Maisie's actions in her personal life. I was just getting over the shabby way she treated her former suitor Dr. Andrew, who even though she gave him the brush off, doesn't seem mind using him whenever she has a need of his medical expertise. Now she is reverting back to the same pattern with her new love James. I wanted to throw the book when she was contemplating encouraging him to move to Canada and take up farming without her. When Maisie's assistant is almost killed, she seems to take offense when James shows concern for her safety. The hinted at parting of James and Maisie at the end of the book did not leave me hopeful for their future.I will keep reading the series because I love the world and characters Winspear has created. I just wish that there could be a novel where Maisie could find a little peace happiness in her love life but I see that it is not to be. With the onset of another war the future looks more bleak than ever for Winspear's characters. It will be interesting to see where Maisie's planned travels will take her in the next novel.
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The BBC's Downton Abbey caused quite a stir (I myself was late to the party, watching both seasons on two marathon weekends), and increased interest in the post-WWI world in Great Britain. But readers have for years been immersing themselves in the same era with author Jacqueline Winspear's fascinating Maisie Dobbs' novels, set in London at the same time.Maisie was a young maid in Lord and Lady Compton's home (think Anna from Downton) who was caught by Lady Rowan in the library late at night reading. Lady Rowan realized Maisie's intelligence and potential and arranged for her to be schooled by Dr. Maurice Blanche, a well-renowned psychologist and private investigator.Maurice became Maisie's mentor, and Maisie was able to rise above her station and eventually became a nurse serving in France during WWI. Maisie was severely wounded and returned home to recuperate, and eventually take over Maurice's private investigation business.After Maurice died, he left his home and much of his fortune to Maisie. Overnight, she became a wealthy woman. She also fell in love with Lady Rowan's son and heir, James Compton. Maisie is a woman who owns her own business, has enough wealth to own a home and an apartment in London, and is able to financially help her friends and colleagues.In the newest novel, Elegy For Eddie, Maisie is visited by men she knew as a child, fruit peddlers from Lambeth. They ask her to investigate the death of Eddie, a forty-six-year-old man with the mind of a child. Eddie had a job running errands for workers in a newspaper plant and was killed when a bolt of paper crushed him.Maisie knew Eddie and the single mother who raised him. She took the case, and it brought forth many feelings to the surface for her. The class system in England was fairly rigid, and it was unusual for anyone, particularly a woman on her own, to move up. Maisie was living a life about which she felt increasingly uncomfortable.When she stays at James' family estate, she doesn't like the staff waiting on her. Ringing a bell for the next course of dinner feels unnatural to her. While she loves James, she begins to feel that the life he leads is not one she wants.Now that Maisie has money, she uses it to help her employees. She purchases a home in a good neighborhood and rents it to her loyal assistant Billy and his family after they lost a daughter to illness. She hired Sandra, who lost her husband, and let her move in with her. She also paid for Sandra to further her education.When Billy is seriously injured investigating Eddie's death, Billy's wife blames Maisie for putting her husband in danger. Maisie feels guilty, arranges for Sandra to help care for Billy's children, and gets him the best medical care.A doctor confronts Maisie about her 'helping' her employees. She asks Maisie to consider whether her help is "affecting their lives, making decisions on their behalf that they might not have made for themselves, or might come to at a different time." She suggest that Maisie may have been trying to get others conform to Maisie's view of the world.Maisie's best friend Priscilla tells her that by coming to the rescue of everyone, she could be causing people to resent her, as Billy's wife does. She explains that people don't like being beholden to someone, and that Maisie is depriving her friends of the "opportunity for them to be proud of something they've achieved.''This book in the series doesn't have much action, it is much more introspective. We see Maisie coming to a fork in the road of her life. She has to decide whether she wants to move forward with her relationship with James, and how to deal with her new station in life and her control issues.Maisie is an independent woman living in a turbulent time. This story is set in 1933, and England, weary from the losses of so many men in WWI, is now facing the possibility of another war. Hitler is causing problems in Europe, and Eddie's death may be tied to a newspaper publisher who is using his pow
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In this latest installment in the series, Maisie is hired by the costermongers of her childhood to investigate the death of one of their own. What seems like a simple task eventually reveals a conspiracy involving the highest levels of society. While the mystery itself is not that complicated, the appeal of this books lies in Maisie's efforts to reconcile the girl she was with the woman she has become. She wrestles with questions of morality and independence, juggling the expectations of others with her dreams for herself. I enjoy watching her struggle to deal with her new-found affluence, attempting to help those in her life that are less fortunate without creating resentment or hostility.This series is a masterful look at England in the post-WWI years, and has given me a much better perspective on the war-weariness that made so many willing to turn a blind eye to the dangers of the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. Following as they do the struggles of women in this period, these books highlight the sad realities of a generation of women faced with a shortage of men to marry and forced to make their own way in a world not yet ready to accept that necessity.
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I've read them all, I've reviewed most of them. And the more I read Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs books, the happier I am that I decided to grab that first book on a whim. Deep characters, twisting plots ... Winspear has created a world so immersive that it's easy to lose track of how much time you have spent reading. I've spent many a sleepless night with one of her books, constantly saying to myself "One more chapter and I"m done."Elegy for Eddie is no exception. What starts off as a simple case - Maisie is asked by some coster monger friends of her father's to investigate the suspicious death of a young man who had a way with horses - quickly turns into something much, much more. In the course of her investigation, Maisie even comes in contact with Winston Churchill himself!Winspear's knowledge of the era shows on each page, as the reader is surrounded by historical details and attitudes. And while we are searching for the truth behind Eddie's killing, we're also treated to some character development, as Maisie DObbs herself grows and changes a lot in this book. We've seen changing relationships before, but there's something about the change that takes place in this book that intrigues me. I'm certainly looking forward to future developments on this front (and I did that all without spoiling anything!).One thing that I've been looking for in the books for a while now that I haven't seen - early on, there were hints of Maisie's "intuitive" abilities, hinting that there was something more there. In fact, in An Incomplete Revenge, there was a lot made of her gypsy background, and I always thought that the series was going in that direction, but recent books have made little mention of it. That's the only real loose end that I've seen in the books, which makes me thing it's either something that Winspear decided not to pursue or that it's coming in a future book. I'm happy either way.I have recommended the Maisie Dobbs books to everyone I know who reads mysteries or enjoys books set in the 30s and 40s. The descriptions are spot-on regarding historical setting and attitudes, and the characters are fascinating and very deep. With this quality of writing, I don't look for this series to end any time soon, and for that I am truly thankful.
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The ¿Eddie¿ in the title is Eddie Pettit, born to an unmarried teenage mother in 1887 while she was mucking out a stable ¿ a job that just barely keeps her out of the workhouse. All his life, Eddie had a special gift for working with horses. And now in 1933, Eddie dies in a freak accident at a printing plant. But Eddie¿s friends, the fruit sellers in Covent Garden, don¿t believe his death was an accident and come to Maisie Dobbs, daughter of their friend and former costermonger Frankie Dobbs, to investigate his death.Maisie takes on the job, only too glad to be of help to her father¿s pals, whom she¿s known since she was a little girl. And when her assistant, Billy Beale, winds up in the hospital after a beating sustained while asking questions about the case, she¿s pretty certain that her clients¿ suspicions about Eddie¿s death are on target. Elegy for Eddie is a pivotal book in this award-winning series, a turning point for its protagonist. Maisie is still becoming accustomed to newfound wealth ¿ which came to her when her mentor and friend Maurice died and left her most of his considerable estate. Maisie is always willing to use her money to help others, but in Elegy for Eddie, she¿s confronted with the accusation, from a very credible source, that she may be using gifts to control other people¿s lives. Maisie also realizes that she must decide what her relationship is to be with her lover, James, who wants a traditional marriage, meaning Maisie gives up her work. The Maisie Dobbs books are wonderful ¿ it¿s one series I collect in hardcover. I just want to own them. Elegy for Eddie is number nine, and it¿s just about time for me to go back to #1 and read some of the early ones again. It¿s that kind of series.
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I like this series. However, I liked the earlier books better when Maisie was struggling than the well-to-do Maisie mixing with society. That she would be accepted into the homes of powerful society matrons as the mistress of Vicount Rowan in 1934 seemed a bit of stretch to me.The mystery revolves around the death of a childhood friend with limited mental ability. Four friends of Maisie's father hire her to find out exactly how Eddie died. In her investigation she discovers political coverups, the bullying of strong against weak, the attack on her associate Billie, and some truths about herself that have her re-evaluating her life.
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Maisie Dobbs is faced with the moral ambiguities and terror as WWII looms on the horizon of her life. This was a really good story. They have all been good, but this one is particularly so!
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This is the ninth book in the Maisie Dobbs mystery series and we find ourselves in the spring of 1933. Maisie has inherited her mentor Maurice's estate, making her a very wealthy woman and she continues to carry on her love affair with James Compton, the son of her former employer. However, Maisie is not comfortable either with her new found wealth or with a life with James among the upper crust of British society.Then a new case, involving the death of a young man from her old neighborhood of Lambeth falls into her lap. The young man has died in what seems like an industrial accident, but old costermonger friends of her father aren't so sure and hire her to get to the bottom of the causes of his death.In doing so, Maisie has to confront a murky world of power and politics as well as some not too pleasant truths about herself.As always these books are intelligently written and a pleasure to read. On a personal note, however, I would like the author to allow Maisie to be happy.
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This is my first Maisie Dobbs book. A friend reads Jacqueline Winspear religiously and had recommended the series, but somehow it just never caught my fancy. When this book came up for review I thought it was the perfect opportunity to give the series a try. I don't know what I was waiting for! Maisie is a smart, strong, independent woman and her adventures take the reader on a tour of period (in this case, the ramp up to WWII) London. Because Maisie comes from humble roots but has become well-connected, she travels between the classes, giving us a multifaceted view of her world.Reading previous entries in the series isn't necessary for understanding what's going on in Elegy for Eddie. But, this book made me curious to know more about Maisie and her path so I'm off to read the series starting at book one!
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