The Shattered Tree

by Charles Todd Book 8 in the Bess Crawford Mysteries series.

First published 2016

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In October 1918, stretcher-bearers bring Bess Crawford a badly wounded officer found near a shell-shattered tree. He wears a French uniform but speaks German in a moment of stress, raising questions about whether he is an Alsatian soldier, a deserter or an enemy agent. When he later disappears in Paris, Bess follows the uncertainty surrounding his identity and becomes caught between military suspicion and a private history of divided loyalties.

The changing border of Alsace-Lorraine gives the mystery its historical tension. Language, birthplace and uniform do not provide simple proof of allegiance in a region claimed by both France and Germany. As the war approaches its end, Bess must decide whether the wounded man is dangerous or merely trapped by identities that governments insist must be exclusive.