An Irish Hostage
3 Stars

Despite her parents' concerns, Bess travels to an isolated village in Ireland for the wedding of a young nurse she served with during the Great War. Upon her arrival, Bess learns that the groom, who fought for England during the war, has disappeared and might be the victim of either Irish separatists seeking revenge or English spies looking for information. Will Bess be able to save him and perhaps herself?

To be honest, it is time for this series to come to an end. Now that the war is over, there is really no reason for Bess to be hieing all over France and UK solving crimes. The circumstances in this installment (as with the previous one) are very contrived, and the mystery itself is obvious.

While the information on the Easter Uprising of 1916 is interesting and the authors have obviously researched the events, the pacing is slow and Bess spends far too much time rehashing the internal divisions within Ireland.

On a positive front, there is finally some progression in the much hinted at romance between Bess and Simon. That said, it is all very subtle and needs further development. Hopefully, this will be forthcoming in the next installment.

On a final note, I was sad to learn of Caroline Todd's passing this year. She was a truly lovely person and there is a wonderful tribute to her here http://mysteryreadersinc.blogspot.com/2021/08/caroline-todd-rip.html ( )

Although this is book 12, it was my first in the series. I will have to go back and read the entire set.
Bess Crawford has been asked by Eileen Flynn to be a bridesmaid in Eileen's wedding to a former soldier, Michael Sullivan, in Ireland. However, since the Irish and the English are at odds due to Ireland's quest to be free, Bess's parents are concerned for her safety. When Bess arrives in Ireland, she is surprised that no one is awaiting her arrival. Worse, the groom is missing.
Eileen is distraught, and Bess agrees to help find Michael. However, they don't realize how much danger they are in, and who is working for them or against them in the town, perhaps in Eileen's own home?
Exciting series. ( )

As always, the Todd books start slowly because the plots can be complex and about complicated people and their interactions. Going to the wedding of a friend should be simple but not when you are an English nurse and the wedding is in Ireland. Bitterness about the Irish deaths during the Rising creates a very poisonous environment and sadly it will get much worse for this book and the decades of conflict that will follow. Bess and her family represent well the patronizing upper class of the English and despite some sympathy for the Irish cause always assume that the Imperial way is the best way. When WW2 was ending Churchill was still scheming for the re-establishment of the Raj in India until FDR sorted him out. As the Todd books show, it will be a long hard slog until resolved. Painful but well-portrayed pictures of these difficult times. ( )

Problems include logical errors in plot; noncredible reactions and decisions by characters; continuity errors; errors of syntax; spelling errors. Such renowned authors with such beloved characters - are there no good editors to support them as they deserve? ( )

Not as satisfying as usual. No clear cut crime and solution. Interesting look at the relationship between Simon and Bess. I look forward to hearing more about the growth in this area in future books (fingers crossed now that Caroline Todd has passed away). Good tension throughout. Hard to put down. ( )