Betrayal at Ravenswick by Kelly Oliver
When men have been absent from the workforce, drafted into wars, who steps forward to pick up the slack and keep the world turning? Women. Despite their aptitude and success in what are traditionally considered “men’s professions,” women have been repeatedly underestimated. Fortunately for the world of espionage, a predisposition to underestimation make women the perfect spies.
In Kelly Oliver’s mystery novel Betrayal at Ravenswick (Level Best Books), one woman uses her sharp wit and the medical knowledge she’s learned as a volunteer at the hospital to assist England’s effort to squash the German empire, becoming wrapped up in a domestic murder case in the process.
A HISTORICAL MYSTERY WITH A STRONG FEMALE LEAD
Poor Fiona Figg has just walked in on her husband, Andrew, canoodling with his secretary in his office, but with the weight of the First World War looming over Europe, a philandering spouse is the least of her worries.
German spies and sympathizers have invaded the countryside of England, and if the Entente forces want to win this war, they’re going to need to convince the United States to join the fight. Enter Dr. Vogel, a physician known for his expertise on poisons and female maladies. But Dr. Vogel isn’t a doctor. In fact, he’s not even a man — he’s the alias of one Fiona Figg.
Recently divorced, Fiona is going undercover. Her first assignment will take her to Wickham Bishops, home to the Ravenswick Estate where Mrs. Edith Wilkinson, widow of the esteemed Lord Elliot and recently remarried, offers lodging to war refugees and visiting dignitaries. Fiona has been tasked with studying a visitor named Frederick Fredrickson — a journalist known also as the Great White Hunter and a person of interest to the London War Office.
DECEPTIVE DISGUISES MAKE FOR EXEMPLARY ESPIONAGE
Disguised as Dr. Vogel, Fiona becomes fast friends with Lady Mary Elliot, Mrs. Wilkinson’s daughter-in-law, whose husband, Lord Earnest Elliot, has been seen getting inappropriately close to a war widow from town. Impassioned by her own husband’s recent infidelity, Fiona feels compelled to help Mary uncover the truth, but in midst of their scheming to recover a letter from Mrs. Wilkinson that Mary believes contains evidence of her husband’s affair, the Countess of Ravenswick dies.
Was her death from natural causes, as much of the family suspects? Or was she poisoned? Fiona suspects foul play. But in insisting the family open an investigation, Fiona opens herself to speculation and scrutiny — two incredibly dangerous lenses through which one can be looked at as an undercover agent.
Now, the War Office is insisting that Fiona stay away from the murder investigation, instructing her to keep her efforts focused on Fredericks. But Fiona has pieces of the puzzle that could mean the difference between life and death.
AN EXPERTLY DESIGNED AND BRILLIANTLY EXECUTED PUZZLE
A truly masterful and mysterious web — as one mystery wraps up, an even bigger one appears offering more questions than answers. Oliver leaves her readers gasping on the final page, cursing the dastardly villain and marking their calendar for the release of the second Fiona Figg mystery, High Treason at the Grand Hotel.
Perfect for fans of Downton Abbey and readers of Jacqueline Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs novels, Betrayal at Ravenswick feels at once cozy and fatal. No one ever said a spoonful of poison would help the medicine go down.
For more on Kelly Oliver, please visit her website.
