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In 1929, Maisie Dobbs, having studied at Cambridge and under a sort of natural philosopher-turned-consultant, sets out her shingle as a "psychologist and investigator." When a man hires her to find out if his wife is cheating, Maisie finds out that the truth is less prosaic, and uncovers a very shady convalescent home for disfigured war veterans. The middle third of the book is taken up with an extended flashback showing how Maisie came from a lower-class background to being given an education by her employer and becomes a Red Cross nurse in battle-torn France. Then it's back to the plot, which coincidentally relates to Maisie's patron's son as well as her original client, and here the suspense and action are ratcheted up.

Maisie is a terrific character, a sort of female Sherlock Holmes and obviously an anomaly in her era. At first I found the book somewhat slow going and in places too heavy with exposition (for example, having Maisie silently defining some of the references in the book after they're mentioned). I worried that it would be a chore to get through, but as more of her life was revealed, her demeanor became more understandable. Then, as the pacing quickened and the setting changed, the pieces fell into place. I liked how Winspear gives Maisie natural psychological tricks, like mirroring others' physicality to empathize with them. Despite a few minor quibbles with the pacing, I was thoroughly entertained by this adventure, and am interested in seeing if, now that the character and setting have been established, further books featuring Maisie adhere more closely to the mystery formula.