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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
This one engulfed me... right until the murderer revealed his motive. Then I stopped caring because the "twist" was such a let down. Unimaginative. I loved learning about the Indian immigrant experience in England. I hate how Maisie seems to be the only pious/righteous character we meet along the way. Well, except for her father who had a small and insignificant side plot in this book. The other uninteresting plot centered around Maisie sniveling between James' marriage proposal and her own desire for independence. I think I would have enjoyed this book more without Maisie Dobbs... Where's the spin-off where Billy and Sandra solve mysteries?
At this point Maisie feels like a close friend. A friend who annoys me at times but for whom I have a lot of love and respect. This installment isn't groundbreaking by any means, but ends with many changes.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Leaving Everything Most Loved finds Maisie possibly solving her last case. Inspector Caldwell comes to Maisie with a Mr. Pramal, an Indian gentleman trying to find the killer of his sister Usha. It's been months since her death and the police have not been able to solve the case. Maisie will give it her best as usual. Britain in the 1930's was just beginning to see the influx of an ever changing cultural diversity. Maisie goes exploring in the Indian quarters and discovers the spices, the food, and culture that existed at this time, it was all very colorful. The novel was an interesting mystery, I only had one issue and that was the continued relationship with James. Maybe it makes her seem more human, but this story line just seemed to drag on and on. If Ms. Winspear continues this series I really hope she sticks more with mystery and less with the romance.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
My least favorite installation by far. There is astonishingly little story among page after page of melodramatic, repetitive introspection. Maisie needs to move on.
adventurous
I learned about the incorrigible Maisie Dobbs from Katie Gibson at Cakes, Tea and Dreams (one of my favorite recommended reading sources). I have no idea why, but mid-twentieth century Britain takes almost all of my attention these days. Murder mysteries solved by good-hearted people in mid-twentieth century Britain? A trifecta.
Probably not the best in the series. The story started out great, then stalled, then had a good ending. The history of Maisie and the other characters was repeated too many times which made the story move too slowly. That being said, there is a change in Maisie's life at the end, so hopefully the next book will pick up.
I read this on vacation and it was not supposed to be very demanding, but it was actually hard to keep reading. I think this series just isn't my thing.