A Cruel Deception: A Bess Crawford Mystery

Set in 1919, bestseller Todd’s sluggish 11th whodunit featuring British nurse Bess Crawford (after 2018’s A Forgotten Place) finds Bess trying to figure out what direction her postwar career should take while serving in a Wiltshire surgical clinic. She’s summoned to London to meet with the chief of nursing, Mrs. Minton, whose son, Lawrence, is in Paris as part of the British delegation attending the peace conference. A friend has informed Mrs. Minton that, despite Lawrence’s contrary assurances, he hasn’t been attending meetings. Bess agrees to travel to France and look into Lawrence’s circumstances. When she finally tracks down Lawrence in a small village, she discovers he’s addicted to laudanum and plagued by somnambulism. During one encounter while he was sleepwalking, Lawrence cries out not to be judged, because he “tried.” The source of his guilt is disclosed only toward the end, making it anticlimactic and giving Bess less time to do actual sleuthing. This is a subpar entry in a generally superior series. Agent: Lisa Gallagher, DeFiore and Co. (Oct.)