Media Monday #7 - Secrets Edition

Masterpiece Theater - Downton Abbey  I love period films and enjoyed this new series.  There is no shortage of family secrets.  Since the final show ended with the announcement that England was now at war with Germany, I am hoping that they have a second series to see how the lives of the Crawley family and their staff change with the coming of WWII.

Miracle in the Woods - An enjoyable "Hallmark" type movie.  Two estranged sisters are at odds over their recently deceased mother's will and discover a long held family secret.

A Lesson in Secrets (8th in the Maisie Dobbs series) - I LOVE this series.  Shortly after her mother's death, Maise enters service with the Rowan family.  One day the bright Maisie is caught in the library, the forward thinking Lady Rowan introduces her to Maurice Blanche who becomes her mentor.  Maisie balances her household duties with studies and is eventually enters Cambridge.  Maisie leaves college to enlist as a nurse during WWI.  After the war, she returns to complete her education and continues her mentoring relationship with Maurice, eventually becoming his assistant and a private investigator in her own right.  In this eighth book, Maisie is asked by the British Secret Service to investigate St. Francis College for any activities not in the best interest of Britain.  A member of staff is murdered, several others are hiding secrets and the popularity of the Nazi Socialist Party is increasing among the social elite as harbingers of the coming WWII become apparent.

This series is best read from the beginning as the backstory, challenges and changes faced my Maisie are what make this series so interesting.