World War II is ramping up – France falls, and the Germans are pushing the British Expeditionary Force to the sea at Dunkirk. Against this backdrop, Maisie Dobbs and her assistant, Billy, take on a pro-bono case for a local pub owner. His fifteen-year-old son, Joe, has secured a position in a protected occupation, which could keep him safe from the army. But he dies anyway, of a fall from a high place after complaining of severe headaches. These headaches are probably caused by fumes from the strong fire-retardant paint that he and others employed by the Yates painting firm are applying to airfield buildings around the countryside. This investigation will lead Maisie into ties to a local crime family. As always, there are interesting backstories involving recurring characters, which is one of the real pleasures of this series. Her friend, Priscilla, having named her three teenaged sons after the brothers she lost in World War I, stands to lose these sons as well. One is old enough to serve and is training to be a fighter pilot in the RAF. The middle son, still too young, goes off without telling his parents to sail to Dunkirk with his friend Gordon on the yacht owned by his family. They have answered the call for all privately owned small and large boats to help save those stranded there. Meanwhile, Billy, a maimed veteran of the earlier war, has his own son overseas in France and he is among those at Dunkirk. Maisie is pursuing adopting Anna, the young evacuee that she and her family are sheltering in the Kent countryside. While I write this, we are having floors refinished in our house, so I feel young Joe’s headache coming on! 325 pp.
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