Reviews

Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

zhuzhureads's review against another edition

3.75

Interesting take on a murder mystery novel. The use of psychology/therapy as a way to better the clients after their case was taken on is a clever twist on detective work. The pace felt a bit slow for me, and I wish there was a little more memorable moments about maisie, but I’m hoping the following novels will do just that. 

regh's review against another edition

4.0

I liked this book very much. It drew me right in. I would have given five stars if the heroine was not so very, very perfect. She never says the wrong thing, she never does the wrong thing, she is always right, she never hesitates, never doubts - a very boring heroine, saved by great atmospheric writing.

lmplovesbooks's review against another edition

3.0

I have been working on developing a taste for mysteries and this might be just the series. Maisie moves from a housemaid to the apprentice of a forensic doctor and investigator. Her first solo case occasions flashbacks to her youth and years serving as a nurse during the first World War.

sastarr's review against another edition

5.0

I am a sucker for WWII stories and this is one of the best cozy mysteries I’ve read in a while.

jmkummer's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

dawnmdavison's review against another edition

2.0

Not the right book for me. It wasn't enough of a misfit that I stopped reading it, but it was close. The mystery in this book takes a backseat to the backstory of Maisie--told in segments that come to dominate the book and made me forget she was working on a case at all. The structure was dissatisfying, and I wish instead I had learned bits and pieces about Maisie over the first few books in the series. As a detective/mystery novel, it falls into that category where the reader is not privileged to all the information the detective has and so cannot actually solve the mystery before or with the detective. That said, the information withheld was quite lackluster and only provided some detail to the why. The who was always apparent and, in the end, the why was quite shallow.
I was excited at the prospect of another historical mystery series with a female lead, but I won't be reading any more in this series.

kcronin18's review against another edition

4.0

Okay, I loved this book. I loved the characters. I loved the philosophy behind it. I loved the way it portrayed women. The mystery story itself wasn't great, but hopefully those will get better as the series continues. Good to read with [b:Eat, Pray, Love|19501|Eat, Pray, Love|Elizabeth Gilbert|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1269870432s/19501.jpg|3352398] strangely enough.

cabbott1's review against another edition

adventurous informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

puzzling_reader's review against another edition

adventurous informative mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

wasupe12's review against another edition

4.0

Nice easy read Its the 1920s in England and Maisie Dobbs is a female PI with a keen ability to understand the meaning behind the words and movements of others.

I definitely want to read more of Maisie Dobbs.