“As I have said many times, my dear, each case has a way of shining a light on something we need to know about ourselves.” 

In Birds of a Feather, the intuitive Maisie Dobbs is asked to locate the whereabouts of a missing woman. As the search begins, Maisie finds much more than she bargained for, including a connection to horrors of World War I. What lies ahead is a beautifully heartbreaking tale about the lingering effects of war. 

What makes Jacqueline Winspear a superb mystery writer is that her stories are much more than a “whodunnit”. This second book of the Maisie Dobbs seriesnot only includes elegant prose and suspenseful pacing, but examines the complexities of life, loss, and despair. Haunting, but without cheap thrills, Birds of a Feather will resonate with readers long after the last page.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language: 15 religious exclamations; 3 mild obscenities

Violence/Gore: Several reports of violence, including talk of murder, suicide, explosions that lead to death and injury; a man is injured from a fall and receives non-life threatening injuries; a woman is caught stabbing what she believes is a person; a character finds a dead body after a non-detailed scene of violent death; a description of a murder, complete with blood and gore, is included.

Sex/Nudity: A sexual affair is implied; a secondhand account reports an abortion has taken place

Mature Subject Matter:

War, murder, death, troubled family relationships, drug use.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Several characters drink and smoke; a character is dependent on cocaine