The Case of William Smith

An amnesiac Holocaust survivor steps into a mystery that only Miss Silver can solve

 

William Smith is not sure what his name is, but he doubts it’s William Smith, the name the Nazis gave him when he wandered out of one of their hospitals in 1942, to be herded, along with so many others, into one of their nightmarish camps. They did their best to kill this man without a name, but he survived because a man with no identity has nothing to fear.

 

Now, the war over, he is back in England, ready to make a new life. But even a man with no past cannot escape history. William Smith is about to find himself enmeshed in a terrifying mystery, which only Maud Silver, the staunch, old-fashioned detective, can solve. He may yet learn his name, but it could cost him his life.

 

“Miss Wentworth’s plot is ingenious, her characterization acute, her solution satisfying.” —The Scotsman

 

“Miss Silver is marvelous.” —Daily Mail

 

“You can't go wrong with Miss Maud Silver.” —Observer

 

Patricia Wentworth (1878–1961) was one of the masters of classic English mystery writing. Born in India as Dora Amy Elles, she began writing after the death of her first husband, publishing her first novel in 1910. In the 1920s, she introduced the character who would make her famous: Miss Maud Silver, the former governess whose stout figure, fondness for Tennyson, and passion for knitting served to disguise a keen intellect. Along with Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple, Miss Silver is the definitive embodiment of the English style of cozy mysteries.