# A Cruel Deception: A Bess Crawford Mystery - Paperback

[**Report copyright infringement**](https://reportcopyrightinfringement.com/)

by **Charles Todd** (Author)

**"As always, Todd's intense feelings for the traumatized survivors of war make one mother's son the broken hero of an entire generation of lost souls."** \-- **_The_** _**New York Times Book Review**_

  

**In the aftermath of World War I, English nurse** **Bess Crawford attempts to save a troubled officer** **from a mysterious killer in this eleventh book in** **the acclaimed Bess Crawford mystery series.**

The Armistice of November 1918 ended the fighting, but the  
Great War will not be over until a Peace Treaty is drawn up and signed by all  
parties involved. Representatives from the Allies are gathering in Paris, and  
already ominous signs of disagreement have appeared.

Sister Bess Crawford, who has been working with the severely  
wounded in England in the war's wake, is asked to carry out a personal mission  
in Paris for a Matron at the London headquarters of The Queen Alexandra's.

Bess is facing decisions about her own future, even as she  
searches for Lawrence Minton. When she finally locates him, instead of the  
intelligent, ambitious officer she expects, she finds a bitter and disturbed  
man who has abdicated his duties at the Peace Conference and is well on his way  
toward an addiction to opiates. Indeed, he tells her that he doesn't care if he  
lives or dies, he only wants oblivion. But what has changed him? What is it  
that haunts him? It seems the truth is buried so deep in his mind that he can  
only relive it in wild nightmares. When Minton goes missing, bent on suicide,  
Bess must race to unlock his past before he succeeds.

Reluctant to trust an officer in Minton's regiment, a man  
with secrets of his own, and uncertain of the loyalties of Matron's friends in  
Paris, Bess must rely on her own instincts and experience--and sometimes in  
desperation on a stranger who claims he never met Minton.

Could whatever happened to Minton in Paris somehow be  
connected to his war? And why did he not kill Bess when he had the chance--then  
later, viciously attack her without warning? What is destroying Lieutenant  
Minton? _Or is it who?_ And what horror will she have to confront, if she  
is to save him?

In this, the eleventh novel in the award-winning Bess  
Crawford series, _New York Times_ bestselling author Charles Todd delivers  
a rich and atmospheric portrait that illuminates the cost of war on human lives--the  
lingering pain and horror that no peace, no matter how earned, can assuage.

**Number of Pages:** 336

**Dimensions:** 0.9 x 8 x 5.2 IN

**Publication Date:** October 06, 2020

## Details

- **Price:** 26.99 GBP
- **Vendor:** BooksCloud
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books, Fiction, Historical, Mystery & Detective, Price Written on Book, Suspense, Thrillers, Women Sleuths

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 26.99 GBP | Out of stock |

## Images

- A Cruel Deception: A Bess Crawford Mystery

---

> Source: [Somiibooks](https://somiibooks.com/products/a-cruel-deception-a-bess-crawford-mystery-paperback)
> Updated: 2026-08-22