Set at a crucial moment of the Second World War, A Sunlit Weapon ensnares Maisie in a case involving female pilots, international subterfuge, and no less a target than American First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Jo Hardy, a young ferry pilot, is delivering a Supermarine Spitfire to Biggin Hill Aerodrome when she realizes her aircraft is being targeted by a gunman standing outside a farmland barn. Days later, she drives to the farm and discovers an American serviceman, a black GI, bound and gagged in the derelict barn. The GI insists that his friend, fellow soldier has been kidnapped and perhaps killed. But when US military police arrive, they are all too ready to suspect him for any murder that may have been committed and take the young man into custody. Two days later, a second incident results in the death of another ferry pilot, which draws Maisie Dobbs into the case. Unfortunately, Maisie's investigation risks a conflict of national interest with her husband’s work. A high-ranking political attaché at the American embassy, Mark Scott has been tasked with guaranteeing the safety of Mrs. Roosevelt during her imminent visit to Great Britain. In a case that questions loyalties and what it means to belong, Maisie is caught in a race against time to identify the connection between an unfairly accused American GI, a missing soldier, a dead pilot, and Eleanor Roosevelt’s arrival in London.
