Scan barcode
judyward's review
3.0
While I enjoy the Ian Rankin series more, I'm becoming a fan of the Bess Crawford series by mother-son writing team of Charles Todd. Set in the Spring of 1918, Sister Bess Crawford is a British nursing sister stationed in France in a forward aid station. Besides dealing with daily battlefield casualties, the Spanish influenza is killing thousands and there seems to be no defense against it. Working almost around the clock, Bess and the other medical staff, are beyond exhaustion when an orderly approaches Bess with a problem. There is an extra body in the shed where dead bodies are kept awaiting the burial detail. Bess is horrified when she realizes that the extra body is that of Major Vincent Carson, an officer who served in her father's regiment and he has obviously been murdered. Before Bess can report the crime, she is felled by the flu and almost dies. While the novel focuses on unraveling the mystery of what happened to Major Carson, the strength of this series is the atmosphere it evokes of the horrors of trench warfare, the overwhelming pressures that are placed on the overworked medical staff, and the pressures that World War I are placing on English society.
bettychuck's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
kathyanne's review
1.0
Little more than an adult version of a Nancy Drew; I needed something light after reading a very long novel, but boy did this disappoint.
perednia's review
4.0
Intrepid Bess Crawford is just behind the trenches in wartorn France, tending to the wounded, when the Spanish Influenza strikes in the spring of 1918. In the mdist of the chaos, an orderly notices something wrong with one of the many bodies. He didn't die of war wounds or the flu. His neck was broken.
The orderly informs Bess as someone he trusts. She promises to alert the proper people. She promises not only because she trusts the kindly older man who is the orderly and sees for herself that the dead man was murdered, but also because the victim was a family friend who served in her father's regiment.
But before she can get anywhere, the flu strikes her as well. In the near-fairytale atmosphere in which Bess Crawford exists, she is spirited out of France and convalesces back home as strings are pulled. For Bess Crawford has connections, most importantly her father, the Colonel Sahib.
This imposing figure and dearest family friend Simon are full-fledged confidants as she pieces together bits of information and visits various figures connected to the victim. These figures are representative of various strata in Britain's WWI class system, and as such provide a fascinating picture of people carrying on while the Great War goes on and on and on. Although Bess initially isn't quite believed, it's soon evident that the orderly, who died soon after she was taken ill, showed her something important.
Before long, more people connected with the investigation die. Bess knows the killer will target her, but her sense of duty demands that she continue. And if that means she has to take along with her a brash American officer recovering from his war wounds, that's what she will do. Even if he and Simon don't exactly take to each other. The killer gets closer and closer to Bess and her inner circle before the end, which is a classic case of the sleuth figuring it all out in the nick of time.
The world for Bess that the Todds have created is a genuine homage to the World War I era. The violence is off-screen, the characters do not directly express their feelings for each other (really, how thick are Bess and Simon to not have figured that out?) and duty reigns supreme, the plot unfolds in true tricky Agatha Christie style. The series also has other aspects of the historical era it depicts. There is no irony or nod to modern sensibility in Bess calling her father the Colonel Sahib. Women and lower class folk are expected to know their place. In one of the poignant stories told during the unveiling of the plot, a widower father who has lost several sons to the war doesn't understand why the widow of one of them won't come work the farm. Her son would grow up in fresh air but the workload would obviously kill her.
Downton Abbey fans would be well served by reading the Bess Crawford novels while waiting for a new season. Fans of Inspector Rutledge, the first series character brought to life by the Todds, will find a lighter version of the tone in that post-war series.
The orderly informs Bess as someone he trusts. She promises to alert the proper people. She promises not only because she trusts the kindly older man who is the orderly and sees for herself that the dead man was murdered, but also because the victim was a family friend who served in her father's regiment.
But before she can get anywhere, the flu strikes her as well. In the near-fairytale atmosphere in which Bess Crawford exists, she is spirited out of France and convalesces back home as strings are pulled. For Bess Crawford has connections, most importantly her father, the Colonel Sahib.
This imposing figure and dearest family friend Simon are full-fledged confidants as she pieces together bits of information and visits various figures connected to the victim. These figures are representative of various strata in Britain's WWI class system, and as such provide a fascinating picture of people carrying on while the Great War goes on and on and on. Although Bess initially isn't quite believed, it's soon evident that the orderly, who died soon after she was taken ill, showed her something important.
Before long, more people connected with the investigation die. Bess knows the killer will target her, but her sense of duty demands that she continue. And if that means she has to take along with her a brash American officer recovering from his war wounds, that's what she will do. Even if he and Simon don't exactly take to each other. The killer gets closer and closer to Bess and her inner circle before the end, which is a classic case of the sleuth figuring it all out in the nick of time.
The world for Bess that the Todds have created is a genuine homage to the World War I era. The violence is off-screen, the characters do not directly express their feelings for each other (really, how thick are Bess and Simon to not have figured that out?) and duty reigns supreme, the plot unfolds in true tricky Agatha Christie style. The series also has other aspects of the historical era it depicts. There is no irony or nod to modern sensibility in Bess calling her father the Colonel Sahib. Women and lower class folk are expected to know their place. In one of the poignant stories told during the unveiling of the plot, a widower father who has lost several sons to the war doesn't understand why the widow of one of them won't come work the farm. Her son would grow up in fresh air but the workload would obviously kill her.
Downton Abbey fans would be well served by reading the Bess Crawford novels while waiting for a new season. Fans of Inspector Rutledge, the first series character brought to life by the Todds, will find a lighter version of the tone in that post-war series.
melissasbookshelf's review
4.0
Really enjoyed this Bess Crawford mystery. The suspense and the crazy killer after Bess kept me turning the pages. Each book just gets better and better. Looking forward to the next one.
quietjenn's review
3.0
I don't think this is the strongest Crawford. It feels much more like an exploration of character than a real plot-driven mystery. But it's a testament to how much I adore Bess and her cadre of supporting characters that I didn't necessarily mind that, or the fact that the solution is quite an out-of-leftfield one that would irk me to no end in other circumstances.
lberestecki's review
3.0
My least favorite book of the series so far. I didn't find the mystery very compelling, nor did I find the supporting characters to be very distinct.
bethnellvaccaro's review
4.0
Another ridiculous, but fun read. Way too many coincidences and attempts on Bess's life, but I still loved it!
nonna7's review
5.0
The mother/son team that calls itself Charles Todd continues to surprise and please their readers. This is the fourth in the Bess Crawford series which features a young woman from a privileged army background (her father is a retired major who is still active in special projects with the war office). It is 1918, the Americans seem to have made a difference, but the war still goes on. In addition, the vicious 1918 flu has struck hard. During this period, an extra body shows up where it shouldn't be. Private Wilson, an older man who is known for his dedication to his work, tells Bess that he is concerned and isn't sure what to do. Before she can help, she is struck down by the flu and nearly dies. She recovers slowly at her parents' home. By that time, she is unsure if what she remembers is a dream or reality. However, after talking to her father and to Simon, his former Sgt Major, who is now his aide and lives on a cottage on their property, it seems that there is more than meets the eye. Soon others die as they search for the man with the cold blue eyes. This book takes the reader down a number of false paths. Plus, the imagery of the war, of French homes in ruins, of the sick and the dying is unforgettable. This is another fine addition to a fine series.