Lauraine Reads: Maisie Dobbs

Spring is here, spring is here. Well, almost. But no matter; any time is good reading time. I had the crud earlier and spent the entire week reading. Between going through the tissue boxes and racking up the pages, it was a memorable week.

A trusted friend recommended a new author to me, now doesn’t that sound familiar? I, of course, said I’d try the first one. Author? Jacqueline Winspear. Title of book number one? Maisie Dobbs. I am now starting book ten in the series, if that tells you anything. I have raved about her to all my friends and now I’m telling you.

The novels are set during and following WWW1, mostly in and around London. Maisie is sent out by her beloved father to be a maid in one of the big houses and along with her many heavy duties, sneaks into the library at night to educate herself. She is discovered and the woman of the house decides to help her, as long as she can keep up her maid duties. Maisie eventually becomes a nurse and serves on the front lines in France.

The gallant young girl caught my attention, along with learning more about life in Europe during and following the War. I realized I am lacking in WWW 1 knowledge and also an understanding of the class system in England. Reading novels like this is my favorite way of learning, because the people and how they act and react is really what history is about. Maisie Dobbs becomes a sleuth, for a simple term. She calls herself a Psychological Investigator and solves crimes the cerebral way, as do some of my favorite other crime solvers.

The Maisie books are so well written that I had to look up Winspear’s web site and learn more about her. She is a California author who spent part of her life in Great Britain. I have book eleven waiting on my Kindle and book twelve on pre-order. I’ve never gotten so deeply involved in a series as this, although I have read many through the years.

New on the home front: my latest installment in the Song of Blessing series, Harvest of Hope, hit the shelves the end of February. Holding a new release for the first time is always a deeply appreciated feeling. I have the best readers in the entire world and am so grateful they keep wanting more books from me. You can follow me on Facebook and on my website, laurainesnelling.com. And in the meantime, happy reading and writing from Lauraine.