Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear

Gentle Eddie Pettit, who could calm any horse, is killed in an accident at a paper factory where he ran errands. Psychologist and investigator Maisie Dobbs is asked to look into the accident by friends of her father. Maisie grew up poor in Lambeth, Eddie’s neighborhood, but education and an inheritance have her moving uneasily between the worlds of rich and poor in 1930s England. When her employee is attacked near the factory and she learns that a friend of Eddie fell off a bridge, her suspicions deepen. Through her lover James Compton she meets John Otterburn, owner of the factory and a newspaperman who is doing his bit to draw attention to Hitler’s rise in Germany. Struggling to see a future with James and being reminded that giving away her money to friends in need isn’t always helpful, Maisie does a lot of soul searching in this mystery, the ninth in a series starting with Maisie Dobbs. As her books are set in England after World War I among the rich and poor, they might appeal to fans of Downton Abbey. I listened to the audiobook, beautifully narrated by Orlagh Cassidy. Learn more about Maisie on the author’s website.

Brenda