It is the summer of 1918 and the Great War continues with
force, despite the talks of peace. For Nurse Bess Crawford
and the team at the forward aid station near the Front in
France, the incoming wounded still arrive just as
relentlessly as always. Yet, despite the horror and
carnage, Bess tries to give comfort to each soldier
there. In the midst of doing triage, an orderly asks Bess
to come and help with a dying soldier they could not
understand. After spending her youth growing up in India
where her father was serving as Colonel of his Regiment,
Bess instantly recognizes that the man is a Subedar, an
Indian Sergeant, but what was he doing so far from his
troops?
Speaking to him in Hindi, he is instantly comforted and
gives Bess a clear report and insists she passes on a
message. Then, with message delivered, he dies. After
sending a coded message, Bess feels relief to see
Regimental Sergeant-Major Simon Brandon arrive at her
station, so she can pass on the real message. News of an
officer, previously thought to have died and accused of a
number of heinous murders, seems to be serving in the war.
Could it really be Lieutenant Wade?
Wade's actions has put the honour of his regiment in
question and Bess is determined to restore it. Despite all
the obstacles, she hopes that she can work with Simon to
find this murderer and bring him to justice. Could this be
Bess' only chance to clear the stain on her father's
regiment? Yet, as she begins to track down some small
clues, Bess begins to wonder why his betrayal is so at
variance with people's fond and cheery memories of him.
Can he truly be so heartless or is something else at play?
What Bess uncovers shocks her family to the core. Would
that have been her own fate as well if a different decision
had been made?
A QUESTION OF HONOR is the fifth book in the Bess
Crawford
Mystery series written by Charles Todd, a mother and son
team. Charles Todd and his mother, Caroline Todd, each
brings their strengths as writers and superbly blend it
into an exciting and compelling mystery that reads very
well as a standalone novel as well as a very, very welcome
addition for their many numerous fans. The story
development is strong and interwoven with a deep
understanding of how people respond in difficult and
hurtful situations and the varying reactions to these
experiences.
Todd has created a very compelling and authentic look at
both the carnage of war as well as the major breach of
trust that happened to children of military families
serving in dangerous foreign posts whose families had sent
them to families in England to care for them. Seeking
to protect their children from danger, some parents
unwittingly send them to even more odious situations which
makes it an even viler travesty. In a sad twist of fate,
this situation also happened to Rudyard Kipling as
highlighted in the mystery, as well as happening to some of
the Home children sent out from London, England during the
blitz in WWII to be cared for in homes in the countryside
and in former colonies, like Canada.
In addition to highlighting this lesser known history,
Todd has created a group of very intriguing characters.
Bess is strong and brave in very tough situations and
totally caring and concerned for those she loves as well as
for the people she interacts with through her nursing role
or as she strives to find elusive answers for her quest.
Bess is a terrific heroine who I really like and I also
like how her mother reacts to hearing about the quest and
how she is able to bring about some interesting visits in
return.
The stalwart Simon Brandon is also a terrific character and
I liked the deepening of their relationship and regard for
each other as they strive to solve the clues and
information they have. Who knows what might be in the
future for Bess and Simon in the next book. Meanwhile, if
you love a good British based mystery, you need to look no
further than A QUESTION OF HONOR. Enjoy!
Bess Crawford enjoyed a wondrous childhood in India, where
her father, a colonel in the British army, was stationed on
the Northwest Frontier. But an unforgettable incident
darkened that happy time. In 1908, Colonel Crawford's
regiment discovered it had a murderer in its ranks, an
officer who killed five people in India and England yet was
never brought to trial.
In the eyes of many of these soldiers, men defined by honor
and duty, the crime was a stain on the regiment's
reputation, and on the good name of Bess' father, the
Colonel Sahib, who had trained the killer. A decade later,
tending to the wounded on the battlefields of France during
World War I, Bess learns from a dying Indian sergeant that
the supposed murderer, Lieutenant Wade, is alive-and serving
at the Front.
Bess cannot believe the shocking news. According to reliable
reports, Wade's body had been seen deep in the Khyber Pass,
where he died trying to reach Afghanistan. Soon, though, her
mind is racing. How did he escape from India? What drove a
good man to murder in cold blood? Curious to find answers,
she uses her leave to investigate. In the village where the
first three killings took place, she discovers that locals
are certain that the British soldier was innocent.
Yet the present owner of the house that was the scene of the
crime believes otherwise, and is convinced that Bess'
father helped Wade flee. To settle the matter once and for
all, Bess sets out to find Wade and let the courts decide.
But when she stumbles on the horrific truth, something that
even the famous writer Rudyard Kipling had kept secret all
his life, she is shaken to her very core. The facts will
damn Wade even as they reveal a brutal reality, a reality
that could have been her own fate.
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