A Duty to the Dead
A Bess Crawford Mystery
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4.2 • 274 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
“Another winner....Todd again excels at vivid atmosphere and the effects of war in this specific time and place. Grade: A.”
—Cleveland Plain Dealer
“Readers who can’t get enough of Maisie Dobbs, the intrepid World War I battlefield nurse in Jacqueline Winspear’s novels…are bound to be caught up in the adventures of Bess Crawford.”
—New York Times Book Review
Charles Todd, author of the resoundingly acclaimed Ian Rutledge crime novels (“One of the best historical series being written today” —Washington Post Book World) debuts an exceptional new protagonist, World War I nurse Bess Crawford, in A Duty to the Dead. A gripping tale of perilous obligations and dark family secrets in the shadows of a nightmarish time of global conflict, A Duty to the Dead is rich in suspense, surprise, and the impeccable period atmosphere that has become a Charles Todd trademark.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The winning first in a new WWI series from the bestselling mother-son Todds (A Matter of Justice and 10 other Inspector Rutledge mysteries) introduces Bess Crawford, a resourceful British army nurse who's injured when her ship is sunk in 1916. While convalescing in England, Bess is tormented because she's put off delivering a message from Arthur Graham, a dying soldier under her care for whom she'd developed strong feelings, to his family. Her own brush with death prompts her to travel to Kent and transmit Arthur's cryptic last words to one of his three brothers. Bess becomes further enmeshed in the family's affairs after she learns the obscure message may relate to Graham's half-brother, Peregrine, who was committed to a local asylum for a girl's murder years before. The more Bess seeks to sate her curiosity, the more she suspects that the truth about the murder was suppressed. Fans of independent women sleuths like Maisie Dobbs will welcome this new addition to their ranks.
Customer Reviews
How much do we owe the dead?
Bess Crawford, the tireless WWI nurse of Charles Todd’s series, is given the burden of delivering the words of a dying patient. She finds herself embroiled in the affairs of a strange family. I enjoyed the descriptions of the small village and they her nursing care, as well as the memorable characters. An enjoyable read!
Great read!!
I enjoyed the story immensely and I thought it was very well written! Great mystery and the best of the series!
Old fashioned style
This is a great book for an elderly crowd. It has a slow plot and language suitable for someone's grandmother. It's a wholesome murder mystery so to speak.