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    Among the Mad: A dramatic case for psychologist and sleuth Maisie
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    Among the Mad: A dramatic case for psychologist and sleuth Maisie
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    Among the Mad: A dramatic case for psychologist and sleuth Maisie
    Ebook346 pages5 hours

    Among the Mad: A dramatic case for psychologist and sleuth Maisie

    By Jacqueline Winspear

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Christmas Eve, 1931. On the way to see a client, Maisie Dobbs witnesses a man committing suicide on a busy London street. The following day, the Prime Minister's office receives a letter threatening a massive loss of life if certain demands are not met - and the writer mentions Maisie by name. Tapped by Scotland Yard's elite Special Branch to be a special adviser on the case, Maisie is soon involved in a race against time to find a man who proves he has the knowledge and will to inflict destruction on thousands of innocent people. In Among the Mad, Jacqueline Winspear combines a heart-stopping story with a rich evocation of a fascinating period to create her most compelling and satisfying novel yet.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAllison & Busby
    Release dateOct 18, 2012
    ISBN9780749013820
    Unavailable
    Among the Mad: A dramatic case for psychologist and sleuth Maisie
    Author

    Jacqueline Winspear

    Jacqueline Winspear is the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Consequences of Fear, The American Agent, and To Die but Once, as well as thirteen other bestselling Maisie Dobbs novels and The Care and Management of Lies, a Dayton Literary Peace Prize finalist. Jacqueline has also published two nonfiction books, What Would Maisie Do? and a memoir, This Time Next Year We’ll Be Laughing. Originally from the United Kingdom, she divides her time between California and the Pacific Northwest.

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    Reviews for Among the Mad

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    • 5/5
      Maisie Dobbs, psychologist/investigator, witnesses a random suicide on the streets of London. Then, she is summoned to join a high-powered team to assist in finding the writer of a threatening letter to the government, in which her name was specifically mentioned. Due to some characteristics of the letter, Maisie wonders if the suicide and the letter have a connection.I have enjoyed all of the Maisie Dobbs mysteries, but this one is my favorite after the first one. There is a great deal of psychology involved, especially relating to the minds of WWI veterans. I found it sad, yet interesting and educational. It makes me wonder about our veterans of today. Are their needs being met?Maisie's intelligence, tenderness and attitude creates such a wonderful character. Her supporting characters offer accuracy to the timeframe in regard to employment, friendships and the government, let alone adding to the continuing story line. And last, but not least - the narrator, Orlagh Cassidy, was superb.Originally posted on: Thoughts of Joy
    • 3/5
      I really like this series but I didn't care for this latest book quite as much as some of the others. Don't get me wrong, I still recommend it but I think readers are supposed to come away from the book with more compassion for those with mental illness, but that didn't work for me because the mentally ill characters weren't very likable.
    • 4/5
      Jacqueline Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs series is a particular favorite and this, the sixth novel, did not disappoint. Admittedly, I have struggled to connect with other author’s historical mystery series, but that has never been the case with Maisie Dobbs; they seem to get better with each new addition.The setting takes us to familiar territory for fans of the series. The time period is the holiday season of late December 1931 and January 1932 in and around the city of London, England. In this installment, an expert in chemical weapons threatens to use his knowledge to punish the government for neglecting homeless, ill, disabled and unemployed veterans living as the unseen of the city. Maisie Dobbs, a former World War I nurse in France, and currently an investigator and psychologist, confronts difficult issues including a legacy of untreated mental health conditions experienced by World War I veterans, the inhuman treatment of women in mental health institutions, the emotional toll of war on a nation and its people as a whole and individually, and the effects of chemical war weapons, including during their research and development.As always, Maisie confronts her own demons resulting from her wartime experiences as Winspear examines the human need for home, love, companionship, friendship and the healing power found in our human interactions. Winspear takes the genre of historical mystery and raises it to do much more than entertain, but to examine who we are and why we do what we do. I highly recommend reading this novel if you enjoy well written, interesting mysteries, which take the readers deeply into examining the human condition and for anyone who enjoys the time period of World War I and/or the years between the World Wars. Finally, this book and the series as a whole, is very British….so if that is to your liking as it is to mine, then Maisie Dobbs and Among the Mad might be for you.
    • 4/5
      Another great mystery...but I wonder about the next book and if Maisie might be getting a beau?
    • 4/5
      I galloped through this one--it was definitely suspenseful and held my interest. However I don't really remember it anymore so I would have to say I found it less emotionally involving than some of the others. Still, a good read.
    • 4/5
      Another riveting Maisie Dobbs mystery, this time starting with the suicide of a wounded WWI vet just as Maisie approaches him.
    • 5/5
      Outstanding - continued excellence with the character building of Maisie Hobbs and friends. This book also introduced new characters who I am guessing will make appearances in future episodes. The actual mystery in this novel was well done and as always, done with an historical realism that is second to none. Favorite series.
    • 5/5
      As Maisie Dobbs and her assistant, Billy Beale, walk down a London street on Christmas Eve, they narrowly escape serious injury when a man commits suicide by blowing himself up. Maisie is soon called upon by Scotland Yard to help with an urgent investigation. The government has received an anonymous threat warning of mass destruction. There is reason to believe that the letter writer is somehow connected to the Christmas Eve suicide bomber. With very few clues to the identity of either the suicide bomber or the threatening letter-writer, Scotland Yard needs to find a different approach for this investigation. Maisie describes herself as Psychologist and Investigator, and her psychological skills provide the most hope for the prevention of a great tragedy.Jacqueline Winspear successfully weaves social commentary into a suspenseful novel. As in all the books in this series, Winspear calls attention to the psychological trauma of war, the failure of society to re-assimilate veterans, and the failure of the government to compensate veterans for their sacrifices and to provide adequate treatment and care for the psychologically wounded. By using Maisie's voice to analyze these issues, she provokes something deeper than a fleeting emotional response. Maisie's character is anything but emotional.Character is as important as plot in the Maisie Dobbs novels. Maisie's character grows and develops throughout the series, as do the personalities of supporting characters. While it's certainly possible to enjoy this book as a standalone, I would strongly encourage reading all of the books in this series in order.
    • 4/5
      I loved how the different strands of the story - Maisie's personal life, her work associates, and her case - all interweave and illuminate the central idea of mental illness and how we manage or don't manage it and where it often has its roots. Laid on top of these very real concerns is an exciting thriller with echos to the chemical warfare horrors of WWI.
    • 4/5
      A Maisie Dobbs murder mystery. pub. originally 2009, in paperback 2010. Mad ex-scientist works up to threatening mass murder. Excellent: one of the best in this series so far. A real page-turner.
    • 4/5
      Maisie Dobbs is helping Scotland Yard try to find who is making treats to some of England's leaders. Maisie tries to prevent a man from blowing himself up and this ties into the letter received by Scotland Yard with the treats. The letter mentions Maisie's name and this is why she is brought into the case. This book is timely as it also looks at how veterans are treated after war, even though this is World War I. I love how Maisie thinks in solving the crime and goes out on her own to find the truth.
    • 5/5
      2009, MacMillan Audio, Read by Orlagh CassidyPublisher’s Summary: It's Christmas Eve 1931. On the way to see a client, Maisie Dobbs witnesses a man commit suicide on a busy London street. The following day, the prime minister's office receives a letter threatening a massive loss of life if certain demands are not met – and the writer mentions Maisie by name. After being questioned and cleared by Detective Chief Superintendent Robert MacFarlane of Scotland Yard's elite Special Branch, she is drawn into MacFarlane's personal fiefdom as a special adviser on the case.Meanwhile, Billy Beale, Maisie's trusted assistant, is once again facing tragedy as his wife, who has never recovered from the death of their young daughter, slips further into melancholia's abyss. Soon Maisie becomes involved in a race against time to find a man who proves he has the knowledge and will to inflict death and destruction on thousands of innocent people.My Review: Among the Mad is perhaps the best of the Maisie Dobbs novels I’ve read to date. These just keep getting better! The novel looks in depth at the devastating lifelong effects of war on the psyche as well as the body, and at some of the horrid chemical gases used in combat to obliterate human life. Stephen Oliver is one such brilliant mind, employed in the war for his scientific knowledge, but all but destroyed by what he witnessed. Too, the novel looks at the treatment of the mentally ill through Billy Beale’s wife’s malaise since the death of their young daughter – Doreen’s experiences illustrate some of the inhumane treatments employed to shock those suffering from melancholia back into reality. And it is a pleasure to observe Maisie, working with Scotland Yard as well as the Secret Service, hold her own in a man’s world. Highly recommended!
    • 4/5
      I'm not much of a mystery reader - I'll be the first to admit that, after reading mysteries for years, they become a bit predictable for me.The exception to that, however, is a well-researched historical mystery, and Jacqueline Winspear offers this decadent, perfect combination of mystery, fantastic heroine, and historical accuracy that is hard to resist.I've only read a few of the Maisie Dobbs stories (and oddly out of order, so don't let not having #1 stop you from reading them!) and they are really, really easy to get into and very hard to put down. I feel like I'm cheating on my homework every time I picked this book up - even though my homework was done! just because I was enjoying myself so thoroughly.I really enjoyed the plot of Among the Mad. I'm reviewing this for a book tour, and took a chance and let the tour host pick my title for me, and I am thoroughly pleased with how that Russian Roulette turned out.If you haven't experienced the Maisie Dobbs stories, I recommend you do so as soon as possible - even if you aren't a mystery lover. I think you'll find there's a little bit of everything for everyone in these books.
    • 4/5
      There are so many bad mysteries out there, that it is a treat to come across a series as intelligently written as Jacqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs books. In this latest editions (#6 in the series), Maisie witnesses the suicide of a disabled war veteran on Christmas Eve. Just getting over the shock of this event, she is called to Scotland Yard to assist in a case to find the author of threatening letters to members of the British government. The writer of these letters then proceeds to use deadly chemical weapons to kill - first animals, but then a member of the government.As the team races against time to find the killer, Maisie uses all her psychological skills that readers have come to enjoy in the previous volumes. The author also makes a powerful statement about the use of chemical weapons, the treatment of war veterans, and the callous attitudes of those who send men into war in the first place.This book will keep the reader on the edge of his or her seat and at its conclusion will leave us looking forward to the next installment.
    • 4/5
      Maisie Dobbs in 1931 witnesses the suicide of a man who apparently had been injured during WWI. She tries but is unable to prevent the tragedy from happening, and starts reliving the horrors of her time during he war.Because of her efforts she is drawn into a rapidly advancing chemical warfare attack on the city of London - first 6 dogs are targeted, then 50 birds, 1 man - all the while the authorizes are warned by demands asking for better treatment and pensions for ex-soldiers.Maisie while working with Scotland Yard on this investigation, is also endeavoring to aid Billy's wife Doreen and get her the best mental health care possible as well as her friend who is spiraling near to alcoholism.The book paralleled the different types of mental illness - those resulting from war, depression, and alcohol dependency and yet it flowed so effortedlessly because of Maisie's character's involvement in all the aspects of the story. Seeing the mental health issues described from the 1930 POV in comparison to the 21st century - the reader can see that there has been improvement in the medical handling but that there is still room to go. I've read the first in the series and now this one - definitely need to go find the others.
    • 3/5
      I didn't enjoy this Maisie Dobbs as much as previous books. Ms. Winspear loves to dwell on the casualties of war, especially from the Great War, but this book seems to dwell a little too much. And there is no clear resolution to the case either, so that detracts from it considerably. In this book Maisie finds herself working with Special Branch and Section 5 and there's a little more espionage in this one than previously. Her group is trying to uncover a particularly sadistic killer who has nothing left to live for, and doesn't care what happens to him. The book is set around Christmas in 1931. It's a particularly gloomy Christmas season in London that year and the tone of that is reflected in this book. I just wish that Maisie would lighten up a wee bit. It would make the books much more enjoyable.
    • 5/5
      Maisie Dobbs, now in 1931. Top notch.
    • 4/5
      Set in London between the wars, Among the Mad is the sixth book in the Maisie Dobbs Mystery Series. The early 1930's is an interesting time period in England's history and an excellent place for Winspear to set loose Maisie, a self sufficient, independent women, highly over educated for the time period and unafraid to plunge right into the thick of things. Among the Mad focuses on the story of soldiers recovering from the physical and psychological repercussions of war, the government's role and responsibility for their care and protection, and the shortages and economic hardship that face the majority of the population, in stark contrast to the lifestyle of the upper class; all of which draw interesting parallels to today's current events. On top of this intricately woven social commentary Winspear overlays a suspenseful story of madness and terrorism. A book for lovers of detailed period pieces this is not a traditional mystery, as much of the story is told from the view point of the terrorist, but more of a psychological suspense. Would be appropriate for Young Adults.
    • 4/5
      Maisie Dobbs is hired as a consultant to Scotland Yard when it gets a threatening letter that mentions her name. It isn't that Detective Chief Superintendent "Robbie" MacFarlane believes for a minute that Maisie would harm anyone ... but he does believe her special skills and insights might help in the investigation.Readers are also given brief glimpses into the actions and mind of the letter-writer, whose threats will be carried out if the government doesn't do something -- and now -- to help the unemployed, especially veterans of the Great War. The plight of war survivors is a theme that has run through all the books in this series.What struck me most was the author's ability to imagine herself as one of the disenfranchised, to give a voice to both the hopes and despair of those who are often invisible, and to make readers sit up and take notice, to empathize. That's what makes Maisie Dobbs such a singular character in mystery fiction. And, while one of those characters is ready to kill to make those like himself more visible to the powers-that-be, Maisie's assistant, World War I veteran Billy Beale struggles to come to terms with his wife's psychiatric illness and the horrible hospital she -- also one of the disenfranchised -- is taken to for treatment. Among the Mad is not a lighthearted mystery, but it is a book that resonates today -- another economically depressed era during which returning war veterans are forced to fight again for the treatment they deserve. 02/25/2010
    • 4/5
      More than once while reading Among the Mad I felt a bit like Jan Brady bemoaning the ubiquitous perfection of her older sister Marcia. Fortunately, Maisie Dobbs isn't my sister because after less than one chapter of her ubiquitous perfection I was hoping she would be the first victim of the mad bomber. I'm not proud of this unrealistic hope but Maisie does try my nerves. I read Winspear's first Maisie Dobbs outing and finished it hoping that the author would exercise more restraint in future books. After all if anyone is likely to be a fan of this series about a World War I nurse turned investigator it's a mystery fan and WW1 buff such as me. And Winspear does get many things right in this series. The period details ring true. The role that the war plays in the lives of survivors seems more realistic than what is depicted in the otherwise enjoyable Ian Rutledge series. Maisie is a strong woman who doesn't need a man to save her, another point in her favor in my eyes. The trouble is that Maisie is a drag. A humorless, know-it-all apparently without fault unless you count her relentless good works. In the first chapter alone she's bought Christmas presents for her assistant's family, given alms to a beggar and attempted to save a man from suicide. And made me feel like trash for wishing this paragon had been turned to bits by a grenade. I blame her document case. Nearly every chapter features some business with Maisie and her document case. She's tucking pages into it, placing it in her car, drawing wax pencils from it or, my personal favorite, taking two sets of surgical gloves and masks from it. (I'm sorry to report that last one actually made me laugh out loud.) Like the world's oldest Girl Scout, Maisie is always prepared.A few human frailties and a sense of humor would broaden the appeal of this series. As would dialing down Maisie's superiority in comparison to, say, Scotland Yard.If I've hard on this book it's because I think the series has promise. Winspear has made Maisie less of a psychic than she was in the first book and the narrator for this audiobook, Orlagh Cassidy is excellent. What might easily have been two stars on the page becomes four stars under Cassidy's nuanced reading. She gives Maisie more depth than the mere words do. The central mystery is decent enough though more of a serial killer hunt for the needle in the haystack than a golden era whodunit. The characters beyond Maisie, however, aren't terribly well-drawn. It's all Maisie which makes her lack of faults become tiring. Still, if you enjoy period mysteries this series is worth checking out. My advice is to take advantage of Amazon's "Look Inside" feature and read a few pages. Some readers might find Winspear's attention to detail (Maisie doesn't rush into a call box to make a call; she goes to the box, opens the door, picks up the receiver, etc) a bit much. Others might find it just the ticket.
    • 3/5
      I was less impressed with this book than previous Winspear titles. It seemed like she wrote it very fast, and was more like a modern psychological suspense thriller than the other Maisie Dobbs books with their more subtle unravelings of complicated social and psychological issues.
    • 5/5
      This is my favorite of the Maisie Dobbs novels. It is much darker, but Ms. Winspear is obviously invested in the conflicts she explores. The story, set in 1931, is relevant to today because it seems we have made little progress in the treatment of those torn apart mentally and emotionally by the ravages of war.Maisie is, of course, solving a mystery while also extending a helping hand to an employee and to a friend. Along the way she gains more insight into her own character.
    • 4/5
      The Maisie Dobbs mysteries continue to engage and delight me. A very nice feature of any of these books is that they may readily be taken out of the context of the series. If you must read just one, this may well be a good choice. It is an an excellent stand-alone example of a historically based psychological thriller. Very nicely done.
    • 4/5
      Maisie witnesses a suicide and them becomes implicated in plot threatening London. One of the things I find so enjoyable about this series is the attention to period detail and how Winspear seems to encapsulate the scars left by WWI on the characters and British society. The wounds, both physical and mental, incurred by Maisie during WWI are still healing, although the book offers some hope in that direction - but it also foreshadows WWII with a cameo by Oswald Moseley. The mystery isn't bad either.
    • 3/5
      Although I enjoy the Maisie Dobbs series and will continue to read these book, I must say this was not one of my favorite installments. This book takes Maisie deep into the world of mental health care in the early 1930s. A disenfranchised war veteran who is able to make chemical weapons is threatening to attack the entire city within a matter of days and has, inexplicably, mentioned Maisie Dobbs in the first of several threatening letters. When dead animals that have apparently been gassed begin to show up, the race against the clock becomes all the more urgent.Thus Maisie is brought under the umbrella of the Special Branch and MI-5 and even has a tete a tete with the PM, all while racing to save the city. There wasn't enough mystery, to put it bluntly. Although Winspear has, as always, thoroughly researched the time period and how mental health was administered, it was fairly obvious from the beginning what was going on. There is some good character/plot development with the Beales, however. Fans of the series will enjoy this book, as I did, but it may not be the most memorable of Maisie's adventures.
    • 4/5
      The sixth installment in the Maisie Dobbs series. A madman has given London an ultimatum - address the needs of the poor and neglected, especially Veterans of the Great War by New Year's Eve -- or he will unleash chemical warfare on the unsuspecting populace. Ms. Winspear uses this as a jumping off place for various reflections on shell shock (PTSD) and other forms of mental illness. A shame that some 90 years after the events in this novel, mental illness should still carry the lingering disrepute in some quarters. Equally relevant to those concerned today with the treatment of modern era soldiers and their families.
    • 3/5
      I found out about the Jacqueline Winspear novels from a mystery book club and picked one up. It was a nice read so I bought another.
    • 5/5
      Winspear continues to write absolutely stellar mysteries featuring Maisie Dobbs. The stories are in the same vein as Agatha Christie -- more murders of the mind, requiring intellectual sleuthing, than "whodunits." Maisie -- and all the characters in the novel -- are so well fleshed out, and the place and culture so well set, each novel is a learning experience too. Even if you never touch mysteries, this is one series to pick up, and read through in order.
    • 5/5
      An excellent book! Even if you haven't read the earlier Maisie Dobbs novels, this one is worth it. Gripping plot, fascinating social commentary, and excellent psychological insights. Couldn't stop until I finished it!
    • 5/5
      These books just keep getting better. If you read series at all you know this is not an easy task. But Jacqueline Winsprear pulls it off each and every time. This is by far the most suspenseful of all the books and it keep me on the edge of the page the whole time. What’s most remarkable about this entry into the series if the formula was stirred up a bit. While still have all the great elements that I love about a Maisie Dobbs book there was a major change dropped into the mix. For the first time we are let in on the thoughts of our culprit. By way of his journal entries we get into the mind of the person planning nothing short of a terrorist attack on London. This not only added to the tension of the story but gave us insight into the wounded mind of a man destroyed by war.Here’s the thing that keeps me coming back to the books in this series, all the characters are so interesting and real. I love both the central characters and the new characters introduced for each new story. In this story we get to see Maisie start to really embrace life and put her experiences in the war firmly behind her and start looking for both joy and companionship. Realizing her loneliness and need for human connections she reaches out to Priscilla and her family. I can’t even tell you how much I love Priscilla. And I adore she has been given more depth with each new story. Here we see that Pris isn’t as “over” the war as she may have seen earlier. Back in London Priscilla must truly deal with the loss of her family and her fears of the future for her own boys.In contrast to Priscilla’s fears for the future is Doreen’s inability to let go of her horrible loss in the past. Doreen, Maisie’s assistant Billy’s wife, cannot get past the loss of their daughter. The Beale’s lost their daughter Lizzy in the fourth novel in the series Messenger of Truth. Where that story showed the inequity the lower classes had in treating illness this story showed just how awful some of the treatments towards the mentally ill were. Particularly, if you were poor. The treatment Doreen first received was just frightening.This story also bring to light the treatment of men and women damaged psychologically by war. Though the setting is 1930s England I’m sure there are some parallels to the lack of attention paid to mental illness as a result of war. Other comparisons can be made to today’s fears of chemical terrorism. It was so interesting to think there is nothing new under the sun. Where we may think worrying about terrorist with chemical weapons is something new, it obviously is something that has been around a very long time. Boy, did tht add to the suspense.I mentioned there were some wonderful new characters introduced. We met Detective Chief Superintendent Robert MacFarlane. (Boy, is that a mouthful-I tell you they sure know how to drag out the names of their Police officials) Let me tell you, Robert MacFarlane can go toe to toe with our Maisie. He even calls her on her habit of mimicking people in order to make them feel more at ease and easier for her to relate. While I hope there is not a romance between the two (something it seems Robert would like) because I am standing strong for team Stratton, I hope MacFarlance is around for awhile. He has broken down some of Maisie’s barriers. Maisie also has to deal with members of MI-5 and I can only hope we see more of that. I can see story lines coming as WWII looms in the near distance.This was a jam packed edition to the series with both the mystery (maybe the best so far) and the personal stories grabbing me and holding on to the end. I can’t wait to see what’s next. I have high hopes for the next in the series. I know I have said this over and over and over (and over and over-that’s five times over for each in the series so far) but this is my favorite so far. At first I hesitated saying this because I starts to lose it something to say it for each book. But they do just keep getting better. Winspear adds layers with each new story and Maisie, Billy, Priscilla, Stratton, and all the characters keep getting more endearing. So, yes this is my favorite so far and I won’t be surprised if I end up saying this again in my next Maisie review.