“The Consequences of Fear” by Jacqueline Winspear – The Interred Motive

 

Short Summary

Jacqueline Winspear has forced Maisie Dobbs through a number of war-time trials and murder investigations, cementing her as the best detective in Occupied Europe. In the latest novel of the Maisie Dobbs series, The Consequences of Fear, Maisie is pushed to investigate a dangerous murderer with deep-seated motivations going all the way back to the First World War.

Jacqueline Winspear Inserts a Killer in Maisie's Circle

Man's relationship with death changes drastically during wartime, becoming an expected companion in addition to being a harbinger of misery. When people die by the millions, the idea of murder loses its impact for quite a few people, but Maisie Dobbs certainly isn't one of them. In the sixteenth novel of the Maisie Dobbs series by Jacqueline Winspear, The Consequences of Fear, we see her take on yet another all-important case in the midst of the German Blitzkrieg.

Before moving on, I would like to point out each novel of the series acts a standalone work, and while there are references to previous books as well as recurring characters, the stories all remain self-contained.

The story opens in the month of October 1941, with London suffering from the Blitz and the rest of Europe crumbling under the Nazi war machine. A young message runner in London, Freddie Hackett, working for the government oversees two men having an argument which escalates into murder. When he finally arrives at the delivery address, he is greeted by none other than the murderer himself.

Not intent on letting the man get away with his crime, Freddie seeks out Maisie Dobbs' help, currently working in secret for the Special Operations Executive, tasked with assessing potential candidates who would join the French Resistance. She decides to help the boy as best she can, and soon the opportunity to do so arises when her world collides with the killer's in unexpected fashion.

Pretty soon she sees the danger the man truly represents for others, and that she has no choice but to get closer to the man in order to apprehend him. She races against the clock to uncover the true motive pushing the man to continue his murder spree, deeply-buried all the way back in the First World War... all while being forced to deal with the fallout of a power struggle in the upper echelons of British intelligence.

Culprit in Plain Sight in The Consequences of Fear

Whenever a murder mystery series spans many novels and keeps on going, it generally becomes more and more difficult for the author to come up with truly new, refreshing and interesting ideas; it's much easier to recycle old material and give the readers what they've grown accustomed to love. Though this might already be the sixteenth novel in the series, Jacqueline Winspear certainly hasn't lost her passion for it, nor does she seem to be running out of inspiration.

The murder mysteries taking place in Maisie Dobbs books are generally less about the ultimate resolution and the unmasking of the culprit, but about all the information we get to unearth in the process of getting there. I feel like this applies to The Consequences of Fear more than most of the other novels, largely since we know who is to blame quite early; the real mystery is in the motive.

Our journey takes us all the way back to the First World War and provides a fair bit of insight into the relations between French and English troops. More precisely, we get to learn about the rivalries between the two armies, and how they ended up spilling over into civilian life.

While in the hands of certain authors it can be a little boring to know who the culprit is from the start, Jacqueline Winspear puts the device to good use in order to build up the tension in certain passages. His danger to those around him is made rather clear from the get-go, and I couldn't help but constantly worry about what he had planned next.

Additionally, this allows us to get much better-acquainted with our antagonist than we would have otherwise, and the author makes the most of this opportunity to make a real person out of him. The more we learn about him and his past, the more sympathetic and understandable he becomes, and the more the complexity of his inner world is made apparent. He is definitely a worthy nemesis for Maisie.

Life on the Homefront

If you're already familiar with the works of Jacqueline Winspear, then you know that the murder mystery is really only part of the show. There is just as much, if not more attention given to the exploration of what daily life was like for Londoners back then.

The author takes us down to the bombed houses and the ruined streets, dragging us through the dilapidated courtyards and annihilated alleyways, taking us on one of the more detailed and impactful descriptions of London during the Blitz. Her prose is vivid and highly evocative, making it quite easy to close your eyes and picture yourself in the midst of it all. Though she has already touched on this setting in the previous book, it never feels like she's retreading old ground or recycling any previously-used material.

We also get acquainted with a large cast of secondary characters, many of whom aren't directly related to the main plot, but rather serve to complete the tableau of Britain under the Blitzkrieg. However, Winspear gives them all the attention they deserve in terms of characterization; they all feel like independent inhabitants of London, rather than simple cardboard cutouts fulfilling their purpose.

The relationships between the various characters also tend to take the centre stage on more than one occasion, giving us some interesting insights into the social dynamics which reigned at that particular point in time. While The Consequences of Fear naturally isn't a history book, there's no question in my mind that Jacqueline Winspear has done tremendous amounts of research on the subject.

Though the world around her certainly proves to be more interesting, Maisie herself is also given some attention, with her familial and romantic affairs rightfully progressing in their own ways. It's quite refreshing to see a character who evolves realistically over the course of many years; the changes incurred from her previous adventures are noticeable, and yet she remains the Maisie we know and love, still with much room for improvement left.

The Final Verdict

The Consequences of Fear by Jacqueline Winspear is yet another high-quality entry in the Maisie Dobbs series, seamlessly blending historical fiction and murder mystery during the difficult times of the London Blitz.

If you're a fan of the series so far, or are interested in the idea of a wartime murder investigation while also following a detailed excursion in WWII Britain, then this is definitely the book for you.

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Jacqueline Winspear Personal site Jacqueline Winspear is a mystery author hailing from the United Kingdom, best-known for writing the Maisie Dobbs Series, taking place after WWI and following the titular inspector's investigations across over fourteen books at this point. The first novel in the series, Maisie Dobbs, earned her numerous award nominations, Such as the Edgar Award for Best Novel and the Agatha Award for Best First Novel. Additionally, she was also a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize in 2015.