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!

Book Summary

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.