Martha Grimes

The Man with a Load of Mischief by Martha Grimes is a 1981 publication.

Confession: I have most of the books in this series in print just gathering dust on my shelf… mainly because reading print is hard on my eyeballs. But I remembered loving the series, so decided it was past time to stop procrastinating and start the series over again, reading them all in order… no excuses!

This first installment starts off with a bang- two bangs, actually, in the quaint English village of Long show more Piddleton. Two random people turn up dead, murdered in the most bizarre ways, and absolutely no one knows who they are… which leads to the call to Scotland Yard.

Enter Detective Richard Jury, who is basically a good old-fashioned detective, pounding the pavement, interviewing everyone but he gets more "help" than he knows what to do with when Lady Agatha Audry attempts to insert herself into the investigation at every turn. The only good thing about that is that Agatha’s nephew, Melrose plant, a nobleman who shunned his title, much to his aunt’s dismay, turns out to be a great help, and is a pretty good detective in his own right.

The premise is a little outlandish, but I do love those quaint English villages brimming with secrets. The characters are very well-drawn, and Grimes nails the atmosphere and paints a vivid landscape. The wild beginning aside, the plot is clever and keeps you guessing till the end.

While the story has a ‘cozy’ vibe to it, be aware that is does have an edge, and some language you won’t find in most cozies. While I don’t think I’m quite as enthusiastic about this one the second time around, I am glad I finally decided to dust the bunnies off and reacquaint myself with Richard Jury, Melrose Plant and his extremely annoying, (and hilarious), Aunt Agatha! show less

Has anyone checked on Martha Grimes? Is she ok? Because I know she is capable of writing clever, charming characterization and reasonably logical and consistent plotting. While we're at it, has anyone checked on the editor at Grove Atlantic, or the reviewer at Kirkus? Because this book doesn't make any damn sense. Is it AI? Maybe she wrote a few sketched scenes, an outline of sorts, or maybe they just fed in all the other books. I'm angry I read this garbled, incomprehensible mess. I don't show more know who or what wrote this book, but I can't believe it was Martha Grimes, and I can't believe anyone would publish it like this. show less

It's been way too long since I read a new Richard Jury book. So long that I had forgotten that all the titles in this series are names of pubs in London. And yes, this one is named after a pub called "The Knowledge". It's a little pub set up just for London's cabby population, especially the black cab drivers, who pursue their vocations as cab drivers proudly and purposefully. They know London inside and out and backwards and can never get lost in their city. These drivers practice for show more months before they even attempt to qualify as a black cab driver. They know all the landmarks, shortcuts, long cuts, etc. that there are to get anywhere in the city. And this little pub is perfect for them because it's on a street with no name, and completely impossible to find. The story starts, as do all of Martha Grimes' Jury novels, with a unique character. In this case a black cab driver by the name of Robbie Parsons who has just dropped a very stylish and obviously rich American couple named David and Rebecca Moffat at a fashionable casino/art gallery called The Artemis. They no sooner step out of Robbie's cab and they both are gunned down in the street. From this explosive beginning, Richard Jury sends his motley crew from Lands End, as well as some new quirky characters like a 10 year old waif and ball of fire by the name of Patty Haigh on a manhunt that takes two of them all the way to Nairobi and back again. And as always, the suspense and action is salted throughout with Martha Grimes' knife-edge wit. It's a laugh-out-loud powerhouse of a book that's as fresh as a mountain rainstorm. Bring on some more Martha. I can't wait. show less

OTT

As far as I am concerned, Martha Grimes and Richard Jury can do anything that they want to, but I must say that this twenty-fourth Richard Jury mystery seems to be a bit of a swan song written to give all the old characters one last run. The motive for the murder is convoluted and very dark. The Africa jaunt is preposterous. The ride past the named pubs linked to old cases is pure nostalgia. The last scene at the concealed pub is plain cruelty. Regardless, though, Richard Jury is an show more unlikely man and that's why we like him so much.

I received a review copy of "The Knowledge: A Richard Jury Mystery" by Martha Grimes (Grove Atlantic) through NetGalley.com. show less