Martha Grimes has been my favorite mystery writer, although I have become more interested in other writers more recently (e.g. Deborah Crombie). I do agree that this book has less of the complexity than earlier books had and I also agree that the introduction of the steamy love scenes with DI Aguilar seemed odd. I still think there is more to that than we know that will turn up later. I thought the book picked up in the last third and that earlier events then made more sense. I also don't understand peoples' confusion over who the murderer was and what the motive was. I have an opinion, but I agree that all this wasn't clearly spelled out. That doesn't bother me just as things were up in the air a bit in the previous book. That plot also continued in this one. I do agree with the people that say that it makes it hard for people who haven't read the earlier books, but that previous plot wasn't critical to this one other than that character, trying to make a contribution to Jury's case. The fact that she brings in characters from earlier books can be frustrating, but knowing specifics about them usually isn't critical. I am grateful I keep notes on characters from books, especially from hers, because I know that she does that. In fact, a few books back (I can't remember which one), as she started to reference earlier books, I just started in and read them all again from the beginning. That was great fun! Now, having said all that, I still did enjoy this book and am glad that I read it and look forward to what happens next. ( )

It saddens me to read Martha Grimes these days - she's completely discarded the notion of plotting or character development. But her ability to evoke an atmosphere still charms. ( )

First of all, I don't like books that end in cliffhangers. To me, it smacks of desperation on the author's part; as if they feel that their writing isn't good enough to make the reader come back for more after a self-contained story. What little resolution there was in this book was vague and not particularly gripping, and I'm not sure whether it was my general lack of interest that made me skip parts or whether there were some giant plot holes in the story. All in all, not a book I would recommend when introducing anyone to the Richard Jury series, but somehow it still managed to hold my interest just enough for me to want to know the outcome of this. The comfortable familiarity with the characters means that if there is a sequel to this, I will probably read it, albeit reluctantly. Al least this one had no superhero dog. ( )

I enjoyed this story, however, was a bit confused on who the murderer was. I'm a regular Richard Jury mystery fan, but disliked the inclusion of the sexy love affair that Grimes included this time. Didn't seem relevant. I'd rather enjoy eating dinner with Melrose Plant. ( )

Confusing timeline -- was it the 1980s? -- but the ending is great. I had to go back nearly a third into the book to find the killer's motivation. ( )