Elegy For Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear

Elegy For Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear is the ninth follow-up book in the Maisie Dobbs series. The setting is London, England, during the period between the World Wars. The main character is Maisie Dobbs, a female private investigator who solves crimes, and has a personality that could easily make her way onto a television series.

Book Description

“Early April 1933. To the costermongers of Covent Garden—sellers of fruits and vegetables on the London streets—Eddie Pettit was a gentle soul with a near-magical gift for working with horses. So who would want to kill him . . . and why?

Maisie Dobbs's father, Frankie, had been a costermonger, and she remembers Eddie fondly. But it soon becomes clear that powerful political and financial forces are determined to prevent her from learning the truth behind Eddie's death. Maisie's search for answers on the working-class streets of Lambeth leads her to unexpected places and people: to a callous press baron; to a has been politician named Winston Churchill; and, most surprisingly, to Douglas Partridge, the husband of her dearest friend, Priscilla. As Maisie uncovers lies and manipulation on a national scale, she must decide whether to risk everything to see justice done.” – Elegy For Eddie

My Thoughts

As someone who is just now being introduced to the series, I was a little bit wary of starting with this book. Jumping into a series and not reading the first books can be off-putting, but Winspear writes beautifully, and is able to still tell the story marvelously without having to read the previous books in the series. The only drawback to starting with the ninth book in the series (and liking it) is that I now want to read the previous eight books.

Although Winspear does tell an excellent story, some of the plotlines are a bit too predictable. This doesn’t make for the novel to be any less liked by me, I just had hoped it would be a bit more mysterious. I won’t give any of those predictable plotlines away here though, because you may not see it coming and that would be a shame for you to not be surprised by it. For spoilers, check out someone else’s review.

The characters, setting, and overall story were very enjoyable. I found myself getting lost in the story after just a few minutes of starting it, and I did enjoy it right up to the ending. If mysteries or crime novels are your thing, this is a book I think you’ll enjoy. I highly recommend it.

* Thank you to the publisher of Elegy For Eddie, Harper Perennial, for providing me with a copy of this book for review. All opinions expressed are my own.