It's a lovely Sunday, kind of cool but still a nice day. I finished an excellent thriller this morning. I'll provide my review and also the synopsis of the next book in line. I also got two books in the mail on Thursday, a new author for me. I'll provide the synopses for those as well. And I'll also continue with my ongoing look at my favorite authors.
Just Finished
"All The Pretty Girls is the first book in American author J.T. Ellison's Taylor Jackson mystery / thriller series. I had previously enjoyed the first book in her Samantha Owen mystery series. It's been awhile between books but I think I preferred this one. Homicide Lt Taylor Jackson, of the Nashville homicide squad is involved in a couple of cases. She has an excellent team of detectives and also is dating FBI profiler Dr John Baldwin and one of the cases she is helping with heavily involves him. (There is a teaser case that floats through the story and I think it might come up in later books. My guess only)
One of the cases involves the Southern Strangler, someone traveling around the South, abducting young women. They are killed brutally, left on the highway somewhere else and another taken. The killer is leading Baldwin and another FBI agent, Grimes, on a wild chase. Taylor is involved because one of the bodies turns up in Nashville. Reporter Whitney Grimes also becomes involved as the killer communicates with her via email.
Taylor is also asked to assist on a rape case, the Rainman, as the Lt investigating has been attacked and they want to keep it all quiet. The story moves between the two cases, between Taylor's investigations, Whitney's attempts to find out who the killer is and also with Baldwin's work. It's a fascinating, tensely woven story. Lots of action, great characters (I really like my intro to Taylor and Baldwin, but her team is also peopled with good, solid investigators and I look forward to exploring them more)
Overall, the whole story was very satisfactory. I had my suspicions who might be the Strangler and the Rainman; partially right in one case and totally wrong in the other. Ellison writes comfortably, the story moves along quickly and smoothly. All in all, an excellent thriller (4 stars)"
Currently Reading
"When Cordelia Naismith and her survey crew are attacked by a renegade group from Barrayar, she is taken prisoner by Aral Vorkosigan, commander of the Barrayan ship that has been taken over by an ambitious and ruthless crew member. Aral and Cordelia survive countless mishaps while their mutual admiration and even stronger feelings emerge."
New Books
"Slow Burner was the first spy thriller by a writer who has managed, in one successful novel after another, to fuse the excitement of Ian Fleming with C.P. Snow's acute knowledge of the Whitehall country. Here he introduces that suave, likeable Security chief, Colonel Charles Russell. A vital atomic secret has leaked out. Russell prefers to play fair, but, surrounded by intrigue and treachery, he knows very well how to play rough books."
"Secrets of a revolutionary new invention are leaking out to a foreign power ... and Richard Wakeley, an eminent, an eminent lawyer, is called in to plug the gap...
Gervas Leat is the ruthless industrialist with his vast financial resources in the new invention, Professor Wasserman is the brain behind it, Margaret Leat, as an outsider, probably knows more of the jealously guarded secret than anyone else, and Lowe-Anderson, Leat's secretary, has a private grudge against life.
Out of this tangle of human emotions and conflicting loyalties Richard Wakeley has to expose the one responsible for the fatal leak...
His mission takes him from the roof-top Ministry offices in London to the banks of the Grand Canal in Venice... where mayhem lies in wait for the unsuspecting traveller - here death is the reward of the traitor!"
My Favorite Authors - Martha Grimes
Martha Grimes is an American author. She was born in Pittsburgh in 1931. Oddly enough, she is best known for her British mystery series featuring Scotland Yard Inspector Richard Jury. I've enjoyed exploring this series of 25 books so far. Grimes has also written other series and standalones. I'll highlight the books I've enjoyed so far.
Martha Grimes
"Around bleak Dartmoor,
where the Hound of the Baskervilles once bayed, three children have been
brutally murdered. Now Richard Jury of Scotland Yard joins forces with
a hot-tempered local constable named Brian Macalvie to track down the
killer.
The trail begins at a desolate pub, Help the Poor
Struggler. It leads straight to the estate of Lady Jessica, a
ten-year-old orphaned heiress who lives with her mysterious uncle and an
ever-changing series of governesses. And as suspense spreads across
the forbidding landscape, an old injustice returns to haunt
Macalvie...with clues that link a murder in the distant pass with a
killing yet to come." (3 stars)
"Detective Richard Jury is back in the 16th novel in Martha Grimes' extraordinary New York Times bestselling series--now enmeshed in a series of strange crimes and disappearances, and an age-old tragedy that consumes his sidekick Melrose Plant...." (3 stars)
"When a dismembered corpse is found in the compartments of an antique secretaire a abattant, Marshall Trueblood, recipient of the precious piece of furniture, is the first to protest: "I bought the desk, not the body, send it back." Who would want to kill Simon Lean, the greedy nephew of the wealthy Lady Summerston? Leave it to Superintendent Richard Jury of Scotland Yard to suggest a connection to the murder of brassy Limehouse lady named Sadie Driver, found dead near Wapping Old Stairs...if that stone-cold body on the slipway is really Sadie. Not even her brother, Tommy, on a visit from Gravesend, can swear to it." (3 stars)
"New Scotland Yard superintendent Richard Jury is convinced it's more than coincidence when two beautiful young women are found strangled to death with their own scarves -- one in Devon, the second outside a fashionable Mayfair pub. Both women were as strikingly similar in life as they were in death. Neither had enemies that Jury can find. Now, somewhere in the night, a killer is biding his time, beckoning Jury and Devon's local divisional commander, Brian Macalvie, down an elusive trail of tragic family secrets and even more fatal lies...." (4 stars)
"A very entertaining mystery. I've enjoyed every Inspector Jury mystery I've read and this was no exception. The focus at the beginning was on Jury's friend Melrose Plant who goes to the Lake District to help Jury with an investigation. He is a likable, interesting character and a very good investigator. The story was interesting, flowed very nicely and I liked all the main characters, especially Adam and Lady Cray. Very entertaining and enjoyable." (3 stars)
"The Old Fox Deceiv'd is the 2nd book in the Inspector Richard Jury mystery series by American author Martha Grimes. I have read 3 or 4 others in the series already but had decided in the past couple of years to start the series in order, hence now finishing #2.
Points about the series - Inspector Jury works for the Murder Squad in Scotland Yard and finds himself sent around the UK to work on cases; his boss Superintendent Racer is a bit of a flash and doesn't like Jury; Jury regularly gets assistance from his friend, Lord Melrose Plant which adds a nice twist; and the story titles all are based on a pub in the locale of the mystery.
So there you go. A young woman is murdered in the town of Rackmoor on the North Sea coast. Jury is sent to assist the local constabulary, in the person of Detective Inspector Harkins who is somewhat upset by having London assist. Jury is assigned Sgt Wiggins, a hypochondriac but who actually is quite helpful to Jury. Melrose Plant happens to be visiting the local Lord and instigates himself into the investigation.
The woman is purported to be a long lost ward of the Crails (the Lord) and showed up maybe to claim an inheritance. This puts Lord Crails' son in the frame as a suspect. Gemma (the victim) was dressed in costume for the annual party of the Crails, a costume loaned her by Lucy Siddon, who thinks that she might have been the intended victim.
Into this scenario arrives Jury and Wiggins. They find themselves in an interesting town peopled with fascinating characters; Lucy Siddon for one, young 12-year old Bertie and his dog Arnold, who lives on his own, seemingly abandoned by his mother and others who might have an involvement in the murder. (Grimes does have a way with child characters; they are intelligent, independent and interact fantastically with Jury).
The case is a slow burn, with Jury, Wiggins, Harkins and Plant interviewing witnesses and suspects. The case brings Jury back to London to find out more about Gemma Plant and also to find out more about young Bertie. It moves along nicely and then finishes with a splash of well-crafted excitement as the story reaches its climax. All in all, I love the humor, the relationships, the characters and the overall story. Grimes is a great story-teller and mystery crafter. (4 stars)"
"The Man With a Load of Mischief by Martha Grimes is the first book in the Inspector Richard Jury mystery series. I've previously read 5 other books in the series but that was 3 or 4 years ago. I was glad to finally read the first book, especially glad as it introduced the core of characters who appear in many of the other books in the series (at least those that I've read)
Chief Inspector Jury of Scotland Yard has been assigned to a case in the town of Long Piddleton, where two murders are being investigated. Both bodies have been discovered in local pubs, The Man with a Load of Mischief and The Jack and Hammer. During the course of his investigation, Jury is accompanied by his hypondriac Sgt. Wiggins, more bodies are discovered. Jury's investigation introduces an intriguing cast of witnesses / suspects; from wealthy Melrose Plant, his precocious aunt Lady Agatha, antique dealer Marshall Trueblood, lovely poetess Vivian Rivington, and many others. I particularly enjoyed Jury's interactions with the Double children; they added a nice gentle touch to this murder mystery.
Set during the Xmas period, we get a nice feel for Jury's nature, personality and his manner of investigation. The case was intriguing and we continue to be fed new clues and information. Was the murder perpetrated by a stranger or someone local? The journey makes the solution even more enjoyable and satisfying. Having read some of the other books previously, but still many years ago, it was nice to meet those characters who appear in future books and often assist Jury with his investigations. Excellent story and mystery. Now to find book 2, The Old Fox Deceiv'd. (As an aside, if you are not aware of this, the titles of each book refer to pubs in the area of the particular mystery.) (4 stars)"
"I've enjoyed the Richard Jury mystery series by Martha Grimes very much. The first three or four books were read out of sequence but I've recently begun to read them in order. The Anodyne Necklace is the third book in the series and definitely one of my favorites. While it might not be overly deep and provocative, there is something about the story that draws you in and emotionally attaches you to the characters, whether Jury, his ever-present Sgt Wiggins and best friend Lord Ardry, AKA Melrose Plant, or the suspects and people involved in the case.
Jury is just setting out for a weekend vacation time with his friend Melrose when he receives a call from his boss and bane of Jury's existence, DCI Racer. Jury has been tasked to assist a local police force investigate a murdered body found in the woods near the tiny village of Littlebourne, a town near London. Bringing Wiggins along and asking Plant to come as well, to do some 'undercover' investigating, Jury heads to the town. What an interesting place and such interesting people. We soon discover that a crime, possibly related to the murder, has also taken place in London. Katie O'Brien, a young lady from Littlebourne, who traveled to London for violin lessons, had been struck on the head and is in hospital in a coma. (This is how the story opens). As well, there have been other incidents that make for both a fascinating town and that might also be related.
Thus begins Jury's investigation. And it will involve so many fascinating characters, Polly Praed, the local mystery writer, the Bodenheims (Sir Miles and family) who are the subject of Praed's murder plots, the Ashe family in London, a more rascally but lovable bunch you will never meet, the local Bobby, Peter Gere, but especially young Emily Louise Perk, an independent, stubborn, wonderful girl who will so influence both Melrose and Jury in this story.
The mystery is the crux of the story but it's the interrelationships and the characters that make it such a joy to read. I found myself becoming invested in so many of them and turning pages to find out how they would further develop. The story was such a pleasure to read, bringing out many emotions, sadness, happiness, anger... I so enjoyed the story, a lovely little gem. Oh and a nicely satisfying mystery as well, with an excellent ending. (5 stars)"
So there you go. It's a series worth trying. The complete list of Grimes' novels can be found at this link.
Have a great week. Stay safe.
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