A Duty to the Dead by Charles Todd (Aug 17, 2010)

"A Duty to the Dead" is an original and a great read. Lara and I started reading this together to help Brendan sleep. We got hooked after only a couple pages. The reader will have trouble putting it down until you have finally reached the end.

The setting was fun and interesting, the characters have depth, and the mystery is defiantly intriguing. Each chapter ends with a “Duuu Duuu Daaannn.” The author makes the reader think ahead, without being convoluted or confusing. Best of all, the story was fun, exciting, even exhilarating waiting for the next event to unfold. I hesitate to give much of a plot summary, because I don't want to spoil anything for other readers. But to give the basic outline, the story opens on the hospital ship the Britannic, where Bess works as a nurse. We learn that she was entrusted with a message to deliver to a (dead) soldier's family. The message and its reception leave Bess with an unsettled feeling and the mystery begins to unfold, complicated by the very unusual family dynamics of her hosts in Kent. This was a wonderful book, and Lara and I could not put it down. I am hoping to see more of Bess when Lara finished book number two. Five star indeed.