Death of a Flying Nightingale

A Nightingale Mystery

by Laura Jensen Walker

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Pub Date Sep 10 2024 | Archive Date Sep 28 2024

Level Best Books | Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles

Historical Fiction | Mystery & Thrillers | Women's Fiction

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Description

Three very different young women serve as air ambulance nurses bravely flying into WWII combat zones risking their lives to evacuate the wounded. Irish Maeve joined the RAF after her fiancé was killed; streetwise Etta fled London’s slums in search of a better life, and farm girl Betty enlisted to prevent the wounded from dying like her brother.

Newspapers have given these women a romantic nickname: “The Flying Nightingales.” Not that there’s anything romantic about what they do. The horrific injuries they encounter on a daily basis take their toll, so when one of the Nightingales is found dead, they wonder: Was it an accident? Suicide? Or something else?

After another nursing orderly dies mysteriously, they think: Someone’s killing Nightingales. The friends grapple with their loss all while keeping a stiff upper lip and continuing to care for casualties as they’re being strafed by the Luftwaffe.

Inspired by true events this novel is a tribute to a group of overlooked heroes who kept calm and carried on, while the fighting raged about them. These courageous women proudly did their bit for King and country and found solace and camaraderie in the lasting friendships forged in war.

Three very different young women serve as air ambulance nurses bravely flying into WWII combat zones risking their lives to evacuate the wounded. Irish Maeve joined the RAF after her fiancé was...

A Note From the Publisher

eBook: 9781685125691

Advance Praise

“Laura Jensen Walker honors The Flying Nightingales, the overlooked volunteer air ambulance nurses of World War II, in this riveting and affecting murder mystery. Walker deftly mixes the fear and terror of war with the humanity and courage of this remarkable Band of Sisters—creating a touching and heartfelt celebration of three “ordinary” women—who achieved the extraordinary.”

--Susan Elia MacNeal, New York Times bestselling author of the Maggie Hope mysteries and Mother Daughter Traitor Spy

“A compelling tale of courageous young women in World War II, Death of a Flying Nightingale depicts the lives of nursing orderlies who escorted soldiers with horrific injuries home to England. Told through the eyes of three young women who risked their lives in their jobs and also at the hands of a murderer at home, the reader will soar and weep alike reading Walker's well-told story.”

--Edith Maxwell/Maddie Day, Agatha Award-winning author of historical and cozy mysteries

“With a gripping plot and a tender heart, Death of a Flying Nightingale transports the reader to Down Ampney Airfield in the throes of WWII and what a trip it is! Laugh and cry with these three splendid women, marvel at their bravery, cheer on their sleuthing, and simply luxuriate in the company of a writer who does both romantic and unflinching brilliantly.”

--Catriona McPherson, multi-award-winning author of In Place of Fear

“Walker does a splendid job of bringing the little-known Flying Nightingales to life in this novel. You'll applaud the grit and determination of the young women who risked their lives for the war effort. Bravo!”

-Joyce St. Anthony, author of the Homefront News Mysteries (Front Page Murder and Death on a Deadline)

“Brave beyond measure, those Flying Nightingales. Their service and sacrifices in the war forgotten all too soon. It is incredible to meet these young women now—to be there for their journey every step of the way. I didn’t want to leave them when the story ended.”

--Major General Meri K. Eder, U.S. Army Retired, Author of The Girls Who Stepped Out of Line - Untold Stories of the Women who Changed the Course of World War II