Status
Call number
Series
Genres
Publication
Description
Fiction. Mystery. HTML: Governess-turned-sleuth Miss Silver looks into the case of a Holocaust survivor who may have enemies to elude. William Smith isn't sure what his name is, but he knows it isn't William Smith. That was the name the Nazis gave him in 1942, when he was herded, along with so many others, into one of their nightmarish camps. They did their best to kill him, but he survived. Now the war is over and he's back in England, ready to start over. But even a man with no past can't escape history. William may yet learn his real name�??but it could cost him his life in this suspenseful mystery starring an investigator who "has her place in detective fiction as surely as Lord Peter Wimsey or Hercule Poirot" (Manchester Evening News).
User reviews
For the next seven
I found this story positively entrancing. It was almost as if I was waking up from a long bout of amnesia just like the title character, getting little tidbits of fresh information and new insights at regular intervals. I was absolutely torn between wanting to finish the book as soon as possible to find out how everything works out and not wanting to finish it so that I could enjoy every last bit of the narrative for as long as possible.
This is the first Miss Silver mystery I've read. Miss Silver is a Miss Marple copy and not as memorable, so in that aspect, I
Wentworth did the whole "missing person turns up alive after the fog of war" bit in an earlier book, but it's rendered much more plausibly here, with a solution whose entirety is not nearly as obvious as it was in the previous tale. The characters are for the most part eminently likable, and the villains suitably villainous.
Oh! And Miss Silver is here, too, and a good thing since this is a billed as "A Miss Silver Mystery". As usual, Wentworth takes her time introducing her mousy little governess-turned-detective, but once she's on the case the solution isn't far away. More prominent is Detective Inspector Frank Abbott, who we've met in previous cases. His role here is the one thing that strained credulity just a bit. Still, it's nothing that brisk mental shake and a cuppa couldn't dislodge, so no real quibbles from me.
One of the best Miss Silver mysteries! The plot has several twists and though convoluted is never confused. My only complaint is that Miss Silver herself is in it so little.
He’s found work at Tattlecombe’s Toy Bazaar as a toy designer and maker. He has impressed Mr. Tattlecombe to the extent that when
Katharine Eversley applies and is hired for a job at the store. The two grow close, working along-side each other and William finds himself wanting to know more about who he really is, as he wants to ask Katharine to marry him. There is something about her strikes a memory, but not enough to solve William’s identity problem.
An encounter with Inspector Frank Abbott, introduces Smith to Miss Silver, a lady who can investigate his earlier years and find out his true background. She can also help find out who is trying to kill him. There have been a couple of strange accidents that have happened.
A story of greed, family murder, memories and some romance thrown in. Another enjoyable read in the Miss Silver series.