Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel
    Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel
    Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel
    Audiobook11 hours

    Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel

    Written by Jacqueline Winspear

    Narrated by Orlagh Cassidy

    4/5

    ()

    Switch to ebook

    About this audiobook

    Maisie Dobbs investigates the mysterious death of a controversial artist—and World War I veteran—in the fourth entry in the bestselling series

    London, 1931. The night before an exhibition of his artwork opens at a famed Mayfair gallery, the controversial artist Nick Bassington-Hope falls to his death. The police rule it an accident, but Nick's twin sister, Georgina, a wartime journalist and a infamous figure in her own right, isn't convinced.

    When the authorities refuse to consider her theory that Nick was murdered, Georgina seeks out a fellow graduate from Girton College, Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and investigator, for help. Nick was a veteran of World War I, and before long the case leads Maisie to the desolate beaches of Dungeness in Kent, and into the sinister underbelly of the city's art world.

    In Messenger of Truth, Maisie once again uncovers the perilous legacy of the Great War in a society struggling to recollect itself. But to solve the mystery of Nick's death, Maisie will have to keep her head as the forces behind the artist's fall come out of the shadows to silence her.

    Following on the bestselling Pardonable Lies, Jacqueline Winspear delivers another vivid, thrilling, and utterly unique episode in the life of Maisie Dobbs.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateAug 22, 2006
    ISBN9781593979973
    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.

    More audiobooks from Jacqueline Winspear

    Related to Messenger of Truth

    Titles in the series (5)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    Historical Mystery For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Two Poems

      Jul 1, 2023

      I The teenaged girl is searching for a placethat goes through, the holeto put the tampon inside. When she finds itshe asks her mother, Is this where the penis would go?Yes, her mother explains.Then I will never have sex. II Sweltering New York City.

      5 min read

    • Article

      When the HEART MELTS

      Feb 23, 2022

      When the HEART MELTS
      8 min read

    • Article

      Notes On A Scandal

      Nov 16, 2022

      Dear Perusers, To be perfectly honest, I'm buggered. Mind you, an elder statesman like my good self can expect a bit of aggro at the festive season - and I've had more challenges than our tinted PM, God love him. The lezzo lynch mob have been up my b

      3 min read

    • Article

      Cricket League

      Sep 1, 2022

      First prize 10 and under Tang Li, age 9 Palmetto Bay, FL My name is Anisa. I was in Hawaii on vacation. I enjoyed sipping refreshing drinks, overlooking the turquoise ocean, and dancing with others, before I overheard that the priceless Fire Ring wa

      10 min read

    • Article

      The Family Plot

      May 7, 2020

      The Family Plot
      10 min read

    • Article

      Cast Out

      Jul 10, 2021

      Verity pushed back the quilts, rolled off her straw mattress onto the floor, felt for the poker, and stirred the ashes. The embers glowed. She wouldn’t have to go fire-borrowing again. Her chilled hands were clumsy. One glowing bit of wood rolled fro

      21 min read

    • Article

      I'll Be Seeing You

      Mar 1, 2023

      I'll Be Seeing You
      25 min read

    • Article

      All My Tomorrows

      May 10, 2022

      It was Misha’s first day minding the shop, and already she’d broken the fifth rule. Always lock the door immediately. When you had the most valuable merchandise in the universe, you had to take the utmost precautions. She hadn’t meant to disobey. It

      13 min read

    • Article

      It Happened to Me…

      Apr 18, 2024

      It Happened to Me…
      9 min read

    • Article

      Cold Calling

      Jan 18, 2021

      Two or three phone calls per week. Every week for six months. All more or less the same. “Hello Mrs Redmond, this is Martin/Tim/Alice/Marmaduke [I’m serious], I’m calling from your internet provider to let you know that your broadband server has been

      6 min read

    • Article

      A tender THREAD

      Jan 5, 2022

      A tender THREAD
      9 min read

    • Article

      Performance

      Nov 10, 2022

      “Wait here,” the guard said as he shut the door behind him, leaving me by myself. The floor inside the lab was polished, and the air smelled of disinfectant, and yet the room felt unclean. Leaves shook on a tree outside the window, making shadows on

      18 min read

    • Article

      The Last Friend on Earth

      May 4, 2023

      It was as if Doreen Saunders had been waiting for me, passing the time until my arrival. She might as well have been sitting in a rocking chair, knitting needles clicking, jam tarts cooling on the side, the door wide open, waiting for the next visito

      6 min read

    • Article

      Descent

      Jun 14, 2022

      People got out in strange ways. No stranger, I suppose, than the ways they got in. One year an American military helicopter flew too low over an Italian ski village, killing two families headed up the lift. A woman at Hillcrest had Italian citizenshi

      22 min read

    • Article

      The Man I Should Have Married

      Dec 29, 2019

      The Man I Should Have Married
      11 min read

    • Article

      All Of Us Here

      Jun 4, 2020

      All Of Us Here
      6 min read

    • Article

      Ghost Girl, Banana

      Aug 21, 2023

      By the time I was 25, there were only two things I remembered about Mumma. The first was that she smelled of watermelons, the second was that we were happy. We’d taken our father’s name of course, but a name is only half a story. The other half exist

      6 min read

    • Article

      Une Affaire Dangereuse

      Feb 1, 2018

      Une Affaire Dangereuse
      10 min read

    • Article

      Four Of A Kind

      May 3, 2023

      Four Of A Kind
      4 min read

    • Article

      The Mr Darcy MYSTERY

      Nov 23, 2022

      The Mr Darcy MYSTERY
      6 min read

    • Article

      Diary Of A Somebody

      Jun 30, 2021

      appendage. Noun. 1. a thing that is added or attached to something larger or more important. That’s me! The appendage, my whole lovely life: daughter of an MP (Sir John Knott, MP for St Ives, 1966-83, and Defence Secretary); wife of one (Sir Hugo Swi

      3 min read

    • Article

      Wuthering SLEIGHTS

      Jan 31, 2024

      The phone went for the fourth time that morning, and I had a pretty good idea who was calling. ‘It’s me,’ said my sister Deb. ‘Look here, do you think I have to finish all these books?’ ‘Up to you. Why do you ask?’ The phone went silent for a moment,

      3 min read

    • Article

      Invitations

      Nov 22, 2018

      Invitations
      4 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Guide

      Jan 2, 2022

      Summer Reading Guide
      6 min read

    • Article

      Gossip Of The VICARAGE

      Feb 16, 2022

      Gossip Of The VICARAGE
      3 min read

    • Article

      When the HEART MELTS

      Feb 16, 2022

      When the HEART MELTS
      9 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Messenger of Truth

    4/5

    706 ratings50 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      I love being in England after the war, learning how their lives were changed by it. I try to imagine myself in her place - Maisie is so strong and so kind!
    • 4/5
      Maisie Dobbs is back to her "sleuthing" but, in this novel, she has to solve a murder - if it was a murder - while her life is hitting some bumpy roads. As usual, I enjoyed this book. I find that I really enjoy that this series takes place right after WWI having not read a lot of fiction that features that time period.
    • 4/5
      The fourth book in the Maisie Dobbs series. Another enjoyable book in one of my more recent favorite series. I continue to enjoy reading about the characters and life in England during the inter-war years, and feel that Winspear is a master at putting the reader in the time period. Compared to the first three books in the series, I feel that this story took a little while to really get moving, but that is a minor criticism and the book was still excellent.
    • 4/5
      Typically good Maisie Dobbs mystery. I like that she is always searching for her true self and that was really evident in this book.
    • 4/5
      In Maisie’s latest case, a young and controversial artist, Nick Bassington-Hope, falls from a scaffold just before his latest exhibit opens. His twin sister believes his death wasn’t an accident and hires Maisie. Just like the rest of the series, the case delves into the horrible events that the characters experienced during the Great War. This one was a bit more predictable, but still good. There’s also a side plot about her assistant Billy's young daughter getting sick. A few real people pop up in the story, like politician Oswald Mosley, as the British population feels a growing sense of dread regarding events in Germany.
    • 5/5
      Messenger of Truth by Jacqueline Winspear is Book 4 in Ms. Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs series.It is London in 1931. Controversial, brilliant artist, Nick Bassington-Hope falls to his death from scaffolding erected at a very prestigious Mayfair gallery. Though deemed an accident, Nick’s twin sister, Georgina, hires Maisie Dobbs to look into the matter.Once again the Great War and its social and cultural legacy in England play a pivotal role in the story.This is a brilliant series featuring Maisie Dobbs, Psychologist and Investigator.The time period is post World War I and the main location is London. Five Stars ***** for this title and this series.
    • 4/5
      This is the first one of the series that I have read - Maisie Dobbs in 1930 London.
      An artist Nicholas Bassington-Hope has fallen to his death within an art gallery and his twin, Georgina needs to determine whether it is an accident as the police have said, or more. So she is directed towards a fellow graduate from Girton College, Maisie Dobbs, psychologist and investigator.
      Really enjoyed reading this and the portrayal of the characters, so I will be looking out for another in the series. Thankfully it seems that they are stand-alone books.
    • 4/5
      Maisie Dobbs, book 4. I’m so used to reading e-books now that I ended up reading a Kindle edition from the library even though I had a hardcover edition available to me by midway through. Book 5 I have a friend’s autographed hardcover and it will be fun to read a “real” book again, and sans plastic library cover. I’m reading this series out loud to a friend.This one has the usual wit & humor, and the psychological insight, and suspense at times too.One incredibly sad happening the death of Billy’s daughter Lizzy due to diphtheria partly due to hesitating to seek out medical care because of financial worries The Great Depression is being dealt with now, as WWI was and is. My friend and I were disappointed that in earlier books the 1918 flu pandemic was barely mentioned. Given our current pandemic we’d been looking forward to seeing how these characters handled it. This book was interesting. I liked the art world aspect of it.These books so far have all been 4-1/2 stars for me. Rounding up or down is not an easy decision. I know I’m enjoying them more than I would were I reading them on my own. My friend and I tend to have the same sense of humor and similar sensibilities, and know what kind of personal meaning certain plot points and relationship issues have for ourselves and each other. Great fun! I would enjoy this series no matter what. Maisie is a great character as are all the regular more minor characters & guest characters and as are the locations described. The author is a fabulous storyteller.ETA: One of my favorite things about these books is the absence of black and white and the presence of shades of gray.
    • 5/5
      As I wrote in my review of the 1st novel in the Maisie Dobbs series, From the moment I met the character of Maisie Dobbs, I loved her and couldn't wait to see her succeed in the opening of her very own office on Warren Street, "M. Dobbs, Trade and Personal Investigations" and to learn her backstory. The year is now 1930, and readers of the series have known Maisie since Jacqueline Winspear introduced her to us as a woman that became a psychologist and investigator in the late 1920s following her service for England as a nurse on the battlefields of WWI France.After reading "Messenger of Truth" at the end of March-beginning of April of this year I was so deeply touched by Maisie's experiences as she investigates a case for client Georgina Bassington-Hope that I could not write my review right away. As time continued to pass regardless of the times I passed the title on the list I couldn’t write the review. I finally realized that in order to write about the novel I needed to read it again. It truly was a necessity for me as I felt the call to read the author's descriptions of this time period of Maisie's life again of both her personal growth and also her progression of solving the inquiry for fellow Girton graduate Georgina.Anyone that knows me well is aware how rare the occasion for me to re-read any book as there are so many novels that are always on my wish-to-read list and by the authors that I’ve yet to discover. That said, time spent with the writing of Jacqueline Winspear is always an enlightening experience. The series of Maisie Dobbs not only opens a view of history to life in England after World War I but conveys with exquisite writing the complexities of life from its beauty to its horrors and for me has touched some of the deepest parts of my heart and soul and at times putting into words thoughts felt but always left unspoken."Messenger of Truth" conveys Maisie’s humanity as well as recognition of her own fragility after recovery from a breakdown that occurred after she returned to the site in France of her most painful WWI memories. This story also shows that as part of Maisie’s recovery she becomes more determined to move forward not only in her personal life but to give her best to her investigations using all of her life experiences, the teachings of her father to those realized as a household maid for employer and suffragette Lady Rowan Compton, studies at Girton, and under the mentorship of Maurice Blanche. It is beautiful to read of the way in which she mentors her employee Billy Beale and a young woman named Sandra. I have found the character of Maisie Dobbs to be very insightful but particularly in this novel as she recognizes qualities of herself and accepts herself for who she has become and needs to be going forward. There is also insight to Georgina the journalist expressing herself with words and her twin brother Nick the artist expressing himself with the color, texture, and light of his art.To be sure Jacqueline Winspear is an artist of her own merit and talent with words and I am profoundly touched by perceptions shared through her writing. I look forward to reading more about Maisie Dobbs.
    • 2/5
      This book is even more slow-moving than book 3 in the series. It just was flowing slower than treacle.... I really was glad when I had made it through the book, even though I had truly liked the first 2 books in the series and thought book 3 was okay. It seems like the constant harping on the things that went wrong for everybody during the "Great War" is just a way to add extra pages to the story. Don't know if I will continue reading the series.... If I do it will be a long time before I continue!
    • 4/5
      I always enjoy Maisy Dobbs!
    • 4/5
      Months after her painful experiences in France and the rupture of her friendship with her mentor, Maurice Blanche, Maisie Dobbs is still recovering from her breakdown. She has returned to work before anyone thought she should, but she can't let go and relax; she needs to work.

      The latest case comes to her through her Girton College past; another former student, journalist Georgina Bassington-Hope, consults a former professor about investigating her artist brother's death, and the professor recommends Maisie.

      Nicholas Bassington-Hope, explosively popular post-war artist, has died in a fall from the scaffolding he was erecting for his deep-secret masterwork, which no one has seen, and which no one even knows the final form of, though it is presumed to be a triptich. Police immediately ruled the death to be an accident, and Georgina has no evidence that it's not--except for a twin sister's intuition.

      Maisie finds herself investigating a large, confusing, artistic family, on the one hand, and an apparent smuggling ring on the other. Which are the real clues to Nick's death, and which the red herrings? Once again, the story revolves around the characters--of Maisie, her friends, her client, the dead artist, and their relatives.

      Intriguing and enjoyable as always, although parts of the mystery are quite weak in this one.

      I borrowed this book from a friend.
    • 3/5
      Just as good and bad as the others. New locations, etc. There was a death that made me experience relief, although I believe that the expectation was that most readers would feel sadness.
    • 4/5
      Enjoying this series on audio...
    • 4/5
      Maisie is asked to look into the apparent accidental death of a well known artist. The story is full of promising clues and competing motives. Maisie puts her well-honed intuition to work and finds the essential truths that underline this case.
    • 5/5
      After reaching a breaking point and finding some time to heal, Maisie has found her heartstrings being pulled in a new direction. Aware of Dene's affections, Maisie is finding more and more reason to question her own character and wants.

      When Georgina Bassington-Hope comes to Maisie with a case to find out if her beloved twin, Nick, died because of an accident or murder, Maise finds herself in a whole new world, and unsure of her status in it. Someone doesn't want Maisie to investigate the case. After her office is ransacked, Maisie is conflicted. Does she contact Scottland Yard, or doesn't she? Was Nick murdered or was it an accident?
    • 4/5
      I'm not clear why I found this such a difficult to get into, but it was easier to put it down than to pick it up. However, by the end, I found myself finally engrossed. It may simply have been that I read the first four books in pretty quick succession. I'll wait a while before trying to pick up #5.
    • 5/5
      The Maisie Dobbs series just keeps getting better. The mystery stands alone as Maisie investigates the murder or accidental death of an artist. At the same time, we learn more about the role of artists in creating propaganda during World War I, an interesting addition to the history that Winspear has shared in the earlier books in this series. Plus, the continued development of Maisie and her assistant Billy adds so much to the story. I am thrilled that I have so many books in this series ahead of me.
    • 3/5
      Again, I continue to enjoy this mystery series set in post-WWI England. I like Maisie's combination of being insightful about her clients and friends and pretty clueless about herself (even though I don't think she would see it that way). This mystery was a little weaker than the others I've read. I actually figured it out way before the end which I almost never do with mysteries. Still enjoyable, though, and I like this audiobook reader, Orlagh Cassidy.
    • 5/5
      This is the fourth book in the Maisie Dobbs series, and it's a winner. The setting is 1931 in London. This is a time in the UK when there is a lot of poverty and hopelessness. The Great War is over but for the few that did return jobs are hard to come by. A lot of walking wounded are out and about and everyone that participated in some way during the war is trying to start life anew with the great sadness of the war carried in all their hearts. Unemployment is high. Disease is running rampant. Maisie is asked by a young female journalist to try to find out what really happened to her twin brother who is a prominent artist. The police think it was an accident that he fell from scaffolding that he had erected to enable him to hang up his master work in the gallery that displays his artwork. Georgina Bassington-Hope does not believe it was an accident so she employs Maisie to find out what actually happened. It opens up a whole new world for Maisie as she must step into the world of art and priceless paintings in order for her to figure out what actually did happen to Nick Bassington-Hope. She places herself in some danger as she single-mindedly and doggedly follows the clues she uncovers. This series is wonderful and thought-provoking. Ms. Winspear has a way of making World War I and it's aftermath very real. One of my favourite series for sure.
    • 5/5
      Each Maisie book slows me down to appreciate the words and Maisie's slow unraveling of the truth. This one was particularly good. an artist fell to his death in his gallery and his twin believes he was murdered. As Maisie figures it out, she treats each character with consideration. Once again WWI plays a role. This time we learn what some soldiers did to the soldiers who showed fear.
    • 4/5
      An insightful look at the horrors of the Great War as they continue to reverberate years later. Maisie is asked investigate the accidental death of an iconoclastic realist painter of WW1 battle scenes. The bleak economic world of 30's England is contrasted poignantly against the lives of the rich and famous as she sorts it all out.
    • 4/5
      I usually love the books about Maisie Dobbs, but this one just didn't click. It was slow, confusing, and not a very well-thought through story. Maybe too many words and characters that were not that striking in their description, so it was hard to keep the people apart in the story. I expected better...
    • 3/5
      I like the Maisie Dobbs novels but I don't love them. And that's how I felt about this one. It's Okay but I did realise the solution, once the massive clue was given about 50% in.
    • 4/5
      Maisie books are just so incredibly sad and this one is no exception. The investigation doesn't really move on until the very end but what an end! I was deeply interested in Maisie's foray into the world of artists and the author's use of the trauma of WWI was all the more poignant as it was coupled with some heavy WWII foreshadowing. I'm really looking forward to seeing how Winspear writes about the rise of nazism in the next few books. A very good novel indeed.
    • 4/5
      In this 4th installment of Maisie Dobbs, we see the main character addressing not only the mystery of the death of an artist ruled an accident but suspicious in the eyes of his twin but we see Maisie acting to aid Billy as he and his family face financial and emotional difficulties.The conflicting comparison of the emotions of the Beale and the higher class Bassington-Hope family leads Maisie to examine her own feelings and the reader sees her growth not just as a woman but as an investigator. Great addition to the series.
    • 3/5
      I think the reason I haven't been enamored with Maisie is the new-age aspect of the stories, which thankfully seems to be diminishing with each book. In Messenger of Truth, in addition to solving the mystery of an artist's death, Maisie is recovering from her break with Maurice and struggling to find her own identity. I look forward to seeing what she figures out.
    • 4/5
      Some things were a little sad for me in this book, but the growth that Maisie goes through is just as interesting as the mystery.
    • 4/5
      This is the fourth book in the Maisie Dobbs series. This series gets better and better and as the character develops and takes further shape, we as readers are drawn in all the more to a great series.The central character is Maisie Dobbs, a former nurse during the Great War. Now, though Maisie is a private investigator working in London and owns her own business, car and home. A rarity for the 1930s, this book is set during 1931. During this page turner Maisie is asked by Georgina Bassington-Hope to investigate the death of her brother, a former soldier and artist who died tragically whilst he is setting up an art exhibition. Nick has experienced war. His way of coping with the events he witnessed, first as a front line soldier and then as a war artist, is to paint what he sees and this does not always bode well with those around him. As Maisie investigates she encounters secrets, war stories, smuggling and does eventually seek out the truth.Meanwhile, her associate Billy encounters a tragedy of his own and Maisie breaks off her relationship with her latest suitor.The author has captured the essence of a "modern woman", perhaps Maisie was a woman before her time as she sets out on the road to independence and maintaining that independence. Very well researched and despite being a fictional book based upon tragic life events and the aftermath.
    • 4/5
       The book “Messenger of Truth” in the Maisie Dobbs series was particularly interesting to me. It had a touch of family dynamics with loyalties and love and conflicting with passion and protection. Exploring the lives of artists, discovering smuggling activities, and further developing the strong characters in the series and Winspear does and excellent job developing and recounting these subplots. In this installment, Maisie and her assistant Billy embark upon another business contract where they are hired to find out the truth of an artists’s death. Is it murder or accidental death of the new clients brother? Billy’s family had challenges and sadness in this book and the gentleness of Maisie’s character is illuminated several times. The flash backs of the war are always touching and help us all remember the sacrifices made by all men and women who have fought in battle This book is filled with those pictures and thoughts as they are in others of the series. Read the books of the series in order if possible. I have not acquired them in correct order and I still am enjoying them; however, it tells a complete story if you read them in proper progression. This is a 4 plus light mystery told in a historical fiction manner.