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Lovejoy has heard of more nutters who have claimed to be in possession of the one, true Holy Grail than he has had hot dinners. He's not too impressed with the eccentric clergyman making the latest claim - especially when the good vicar turns out to be one of the finest forgers Lovejoy has ever met. But when the vicar and his lady companion end up dead it becomes clear that someone else is after the old man's artefact. To solve the mystery and protect a precious piece of history, Lovejoy show more puts his life on the line and acquires a surprising new partner... show lessTags
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https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-grail-tree-by-jonathan-gash/
This is the Lovejoy of Gash’s original conception, fanatically obsessed with antiques and fatally attractive to women, who he treats badly. In fact he hits one of his girlfriends on page 2 (though in fairness she hits him first). If you pick this up expecting the gentle humour of Ian Le Frenais’ writing and Ian McShane’s acting, well, you’ll be surprised.
At the same time, I think the writer is fully aware of Lovejoy’s flaws and shows us what a monster he is, through his own lack of self-perception. And the actual plot of the book is a murder mystery, where Lovejoy is motivated by righteous rage when a friend is killed and the police write it off as an accident. I show more found the actual mystery resolution a bit opaque, but there is a fantastically well written climactic scene in Colchester Castle, where Lovejoy and his charming newly hired apprentice Lydia take on the villain, Lydia making her first of many appearances here.
There’s also a fair bit of lore about the Holy Grail – this book was published in 1979, three years before The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, but after at least two of the three BBC documentaries that it drew on (from 1972, 1974 and 1979). Not to go into details, but it had me checking Wikipedia for the career of Hester Bateman, one woman for whom Lovejoy has the highest respect.
Anyway, the protagonist’s extreme sexism means that the book has aged very badly. show less
This is the Lovejoy of Gash’s original conception, fanatically obsessed with antiques and fatally attractive to women, who he treats badly. In fact he hits one of his girlfriends on page 2 (though in fairness she hits him first). If you pick this up expecting the gentle humour of Ian Le Frenais’ writing and Ian McShane’s acting, well, you’ll be surprised.
At the same time, I think the writer is fully aware of Lovejoy’s flaws and shows us what a monster he is, through his own lack of self-perception. And the actual plot of the book is a murder mystery, where Lovejoy is motivated by righteous rage when a friend is killed and the police write it off as an accident. I show more found the actual mystery resolution a bit opaque, but there is a fantastically well written climactic scene in Colchester Castle, where Lovejoy and his charming newly hired apprentice Lydia take on the villain, Lydia making her first of many appearances here.
There’s also a fair bit of lore about the Holy Grail – this book was published in 1979, three years before The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, but after at least two of the three BBC documentaries that it drew on (from 1972, 1974 and 1979). Not to go into details, but it had me checking Wikipedia for the career of Hester Bateman, one woman for whom Lovejoy has the highest respect.
Anyway, the protagonist’s extreme sexism means that the book has aged very badly. show less
Reread 4/2/21-4/7/21
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Modern Arthurian Fiction
237 works; 16 members
Author Information
46+ Works 4,280 Members
Jonathan Gash, best known as the creator of the character Lovejoy, is the pseudonym of John Grant. Grant was born on September 30, 1933 in Bolton, Lancashire, England. He was educated at the University of London and the Royal College of Surgeons and Physics. In the mid-1970s, Gash began writing to relieve some of the stress of his career as a show more physician. The first Lovejoy novel, The Judas Pair, won the Creasey Award for the Crime Writer's Association of Great Britain for best first crime novel. A number of other novels, Lovejoy's and otherwise, have followed. (Bowker Author Biography) Jonathan Gash was born John Grant on September 30, 1933 in Bolton, Lancashire, England. He was received an M.B. and a B.S. at the University of London, a M.R.C.S. and a L.R.C.P. at the Royal College of Surgeons and Physicians and has also earned D.Path., D.Bact., D.H.M., M.D. and D.T.M.H. He achieved the rank of Major in the British Army Medical Corps and was posted to Germany. In 1955, he married Pamela Richard, and they had three daughters. Grant had served as a general practitioner in London, a pathologist in London and Essex, a clinical pathologist in Hanover and Berlin, a lecturer in clinical pathology and head of division at the University of Hong Kong, and a microbiologist in Hong Kong and London. He was also the head of the bacteriology unit at the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London, from 1971 to 1988. He is a fellow of the International College of Surgeons and of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine. Jonathan Gash is the author of The Lovejoy Novels, whose first was "The Judas Pair" (1977). It won the Creasey Award from the Crime Writer's Association of Great Britain for the best first crime novel of the year. Some of the other titles in the Lovejoy series are "The Vatican Rip" (1981), "The Gondola Scam" (1983), "Jade Woman" (1988), "Lies of Fair Ladies" (1991), "The Grace in Older Women" (1995), and "A Rag, a Bone and a Hank of Hair" (1999). He also has a series that features Dr. Clare Burtonall with the first being "Different Women Dancing" (1997). He has also written "The Incomer" (1982) under the pseudonym Graham Gaunt and "Mehala, Lady of Sealandings" (1993) under the pseudonym Jonathan Grant. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1979
- People/Characters
- Lovejoy; Reverend Swan; Tinker Dill; Lydia, Lovejoy's apprentice; Dr. Thomas Haverro
- Important places
- East Anglia, England, UK
- Epigraph
- "It is naught; it is worthless," saith the buyer. Then having bought he goes, laughing." -Proverbs 20:14
- Dedication
- TO the Chinese god Kuan Ti, guardian of antique dealers and pawnshops, this book is most sincerely and respectfully dedicated. He is also the god of war.
A story for friends in Tripoli, for Tom in clink, Susan, and the Berwick lifeboat men. - First words
- Antiques, women and survival are my only interests. It sounds simple, but you just try putting them in the right order.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)I don't think they'll ever learn to be honest and fair-minded, like me.
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- 206
- Popularity
- 158,121
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.40)
- Languages
- English, Finnish, German
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 18
- ASINs
- 4
