The Consequences of Fear by Jacqueline Winspear

London, September 1941. Freddie Hackett, a message runner for a government office, witnesses an argument that ends in murder. Hiding in the doorway of a bombed-out house, Freddie waits until the coast is clear. But when he arrives at his next delivery address, hes shocked to come face-to-face with the killer.

Dismissed by the police when reporting the crime, Freddie turns to private investigator Maisie Dobbs. While Maisie believes the boy and wants to help, she must exercise caution given her work with the French resistance. When she spots the killer in a place she least expects, she soon realises shes been pulled into the orbit of a man who has his own reasons to kill reasons that go back to the last war.

About the Author.

Jacqueline Winspear was born and raised in Kent and emigrated to the USA in 1990. She has written extensively for journals, newspapers and magazines, and has worked in book publishing on both sides of the Atlantic. The Maisie Dobbs series of crime novels is beloved by readers worldwide.

Review.

First of all I must thank Allison and Busby for allowing me to work on a blogtour for this series, as it has been a personal favourite of mine right from the start. My husband even bought me the first book for Christmas once without realising I was already six books in!! This series was one of the first I found in my niche of women detectives in the interwar period and it certainly set the benchmark and has done ever since.

In ‘The Consequences of Fear’ we find Maisie working for the government to help recruit and train volunteers to work alongside the French Resistance during WWII. She also takes on a private case when a young boy Freddie comes to her agency to report a murder that the police won’t take seriously. Freddie is a ‘runner’ for the war effort - delivering messages throughout London during the blackouts and bombings. He comes across a man being murdered one night in the shadow of a bombed out street. Freddie waits until the coast is clear to deliver his message but the murderer is the one who answers the door! Only Maisie and Billy believe him, but it becomes all too complicated when Maisie discovers it might be related to her government work.

This story really grabbed me from the get go! Although, I am interested in this period, it’s not the military history I love, it’s all the social history. The reasons why people were determined to volunteer, the psychology behind it all. So Maisie’s work with the volunteers was fascinating. Jacqueline managed to portray the heaviness making these choices created in Maisie with aplomb. Imagine knowing you were sending people to their probable deaths. That must have played havoc with your emotions.

But, it was young Freddie’s story that stole my heart in this book. A young boy who was determined to try and look after his family by earning some money in the dangerous way. A young boy who tried to protect his mother and younger sister from a violent father. In some ways, I didn’t really care about finding about the reasons behind the murder I just wanted him to be believed by everyone! Obviously, the reasons behind it were interesting and teased themes of honour and revenge, and dealt with the uneasy alliances people / countries are forced to make during conflict.

I really enjoyed how Maisie has developed as a character - she is now a mother after adopting a young girl called Alice. She is dating an American diplomat, Mark, who comes and goes at all hours helping the war effort. But she still has that inner core of what is right and wrong and she won’t give up on the former. Her maturity and detective reasoning is on par as always. I do find that the Maisie Dobbs books have a more intellectual reasoning that some other series in this genre. I think it’s because of Maurice being her mentor at the start of the series. Obviously, though it’s the talent of the author that makes this happen, through the quality of her writing and plot. When I read these books I just become immersed into that world and I never really want to leave.

‘The Consequences of Fear’ is another triumph from Jacqueline. The narrative was enthralling from the start to the finish. The last chapter will having you smiling but also fear for what will happen to the characters in the next outing. If you are a Maisie Dobbs fan you will adore this book. However, you don’t really need to have read the books before this one to get a feel for what the series is about. How did we get to book 16 already?!! I just hope there is another 16 to come!