Scan barcode
kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
I adore Richard Jury with his accepting approach to the people he encounters and the cast of quirky friends.
cjeanne99's review against another edition
I was not engaged with the characters or the storyline. I may try another Richard jury book later - but after 8 days with this one - I’m giving up.
lulo49's review against another edition
5.0
I am really liking the Richard Jury mystery series and this one has been my favorites so far. It goes a bit deeper into the Richard Jury character, and has even more subtle British observations and humor. I'm also happier when there's lots less of the very silly Aunt Agatha! All in all a great, light, escapist read with engaging characters and settings.
jujudml's review against another edition
1.0
It's sad to think this is written by a woman - even if it is, yes, incredibly dated. Not only the women characters are unsufferable, but in this we had to deal with the sexualization of a child, and an apologetic attitude to it. Yuck.
dlmoldovan's review against another edition
4.0
This is another book that takes Jury to the U.S. The premise of the mystery is the suspicious, and at first glance unrelated, deaths of three women that Macalvie--the cantankerous policeman that Jury worked with on a couple of cases in the past--wants Jury's help to investigate. We have quite a few characters from past novels coming back besides Macalvie, and that is always a nice thing in my opinion. Some readers might find the cast and side stories distracting, but I think that once you get used to Grimes' writing style, you cannot help but become captivated by how well she develops her characters. This one definitely stumped me, and I have to say, I really was surprised by the ending. I didn't see that coming, but then, I almost never do with this author, which is why I like reading her. Well, that, and the wonderful descriptions--not only of the characters, but of the surroundings also.
nonna7's review against another edition
4.0
I've been a fan of Martha Grimes for a long time. When she wrote her book "The Horse You Rode In On," I went to that bar for a book signing since it is in Baltimore. That book was in both Baltimore and England. This book, one that I missed since it was published in 1995, is set in Santa Fe and England. When three women are murdered at different times, Inspector Macalvie sees a connection. Inspector Richard Jury is not convinced at first but agrees to go to Santa Fe where one of the women, an American named Angela Hope who was an accomplished jeweler working in silver and turquoise, has her shop and a home about 15 miles away. Jury meets several of her friends and acquaintances including her cousin, a pharmacist, who freely admits to disliking her as well as her mysterious sister, Mary Dark Hope who is 13 going on 25. Jury also asks his friend, Melrose Plant, to look for Jenny, the woman he is yearning after who is also a missing witness. He also asks Melrose to find a young woman who was there when one of the women died in the Tate Gallery. That she is currently seeing Gabe, a wannabe artist (she is actually much better than he is), and friend of the famous Cripps family, allows Melrose to have several conversations with White Ellie Cripps (if you can call them conversations.) This is one strange family that includes a man who routinely exposes himself as well as a family that reminds you of Dickens. There is also a brief interlude as Melrose finds himself attracted to Miss Fludd, but nothing comes of that in this book. This is typical Martha Grimes. If you are looking for a straight forward mystery, this isn't it. If you delight in quirky people and an author who isn't afraid to show her education, this is perfect. However, I suggest you start at the very beginning and read them in order, starting with the Man With A Load Of Mischief." Hint: all of her Inspector Jury books have an inn or pub as the subject.
justasking27's review against another edition
3.0
A slow burn mystery with lots of side drama and enough dashing Melrose Plant to keep me happy.
plantbirdwoman's review against another edition
4.0
I've recently been somewhat disappointed by the books that I've read in this series - a series that I have, on the whole, found very enjoyable. So, it makes me happy to report that I found Rainbow's End to be quite entertaining. Perhaps the summer heat has addled my brain, but I liked it very much.
This book is the thirteenth in the long (and continuing) Inspector Jury series. As in the last book, The Horse You Came In On, we find Jury being persuaded to take a trip to the United States to follow up on potential clues regarding the death of an American who died at Old Sarum in England. The woman was a silversmith from Santa Fe, who created amazing works in silver and turquoise. Her death at first seems to have been from natural causes or an accident, but District Commander Brian Macalvie doesn't think so.
From our previous acquaintance with Macalvie, we KNOW that he's never wrong. His instincts regarding murder are unassailable, and so when he suspects that the supposed natural deaths of three women in three different locations in England are somehow related, Superintendent Jury knows better than to dismiss his theories out of hand.
The investigation reveals that the two other women who died had visited Santa Fe in recent months before their deaths and they could have met the Santa Fe silversmith who died. On this somewhat tenuous lead, Jury finds himself winging his way to New Mexico to follow up on Macalvie's instinctive suspicions.
Meanwhile, back in England, Sgt. Wiggins is in hospital with a mysterious malady related to an electrical experiment and Melrose Plant is assigned to look in on him and to undertake certain inquiries related to the case, as well as a personal inquiry on behalf of his friend, Jury.
While he's laid up, Wiggins is brought books to read, among them Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time in which her detective solves a historical crime while flat on his back in a hospital bed. Inspired, Wiggins decides to try his hand at researching issues related to the three women's deaths in hopes of helping to solve the mystery.
In Santa Fe, Jury seeks out people who knew the dead woman, including the cousin who had gone to England to identify the body. As he talks to these people, he builds an image of a woman who was impractical and rather other-worldly, maybe a bit lazy - totally unlike the 13-year-old sister she left behind.
The sister, Mary Dark Hope, is one of Martha Grimes' typical precocious and quirky children characters. She is completely down-to-earth, practical, and self-sufficient, and, of course, she has a pet. In her case, the pet is a coyote that she raised from a pup. She tells everybody he is part German Shepherd, but nobody is fooled.
The investigation proceeds apace, involving many of our favorite characters from previous books. and slowly all the threads begin to connect, leading to a pretty exciting conclusion.
I was quite taken with Grimes's descriptions of Santa Fe and its crowded restaurants and craft shops along Canyon Road, as well as its people who devote themselves to serving the tourists who flock there. It all sounded spot on to me, an accurate depiction of the Santa Fe and the New Mexico that I remember from visits. She was particularly good at describing the desert and the quality of light that draws so many artists and would-be artists to the area.
All in all, this was a satisfying read. I'm glad to find Grimes on track once more.
This book is the thirteenth in the long (and continuing) Inspector Jury series. As in the last book, The Horse You Came In On, we find Jury being persuaded to take a trip to the United States to follow up on potential clues regarding the death of an American who died at Old Sarum in England. The woman was a silversmith from Santa Fe, who created amazing works in silver and turquoise. Her death at first seems to have been from natural causes or an accident, but District Commander Brian Macalvie doesn't think so.
From our previous acquaintance with Macalvie, we KNOW that he's never wrong. His instincts regarding murder are unassailable, and so when he suspects that the supposed natural deaths of three women in three different locations in England are somehow related, Superintendent Jury knows better than to dismiss his theories out of hand.
The investigation reveals that the two other women who died had visited Santa Fe in recent months before their deaths and they could have met the Santa Fe silversmith who died. On this somewhat tenuous lead, Jury finds himself winging his way to New Mexico to follow up on Macalvie's instinctive suspicions.
Meanwhile, back in England, Sgt. Wiggins is in hospital with a mysterious malady related to an electrical experiment and Melrose Plant is assigned to look in on him and to undertake certain inquiries related to the case, as well as a personal inquiry on behalf of his friend, Jury.
While he's laid up, Wiggins is brought books to read, among them Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time in which her detective solves a historical crime while flat on his back in a hospital bed. Inspired, Wiggins decides to try his hand at researching issues related to the three women's deaths in hopes of helping to solve the mystery.
In Santa Fe, Jury seeks out people who knew the dead woman, including the cousin who had gone to England to identify the body. As he talks to these people, he builds an image of a woman who was impractical and rather other-worldly, maybe a bit lazy - totally unlike the 13-year-old sister she left behind.
The sister, Mary Dark Hope, is one of Martha Grimes' typical precocious and quirky children characters. She is completely down-to-earth, practical, and self-sufficient, and, of course, she has a pet. In her case, the pet is a coyote that she raised from a pup. She tells everybody he is part German Shepherd, but nobody is fooled.
The investigation proceeds apace, involving many of our favorite characters from previous books. and slowly all the threads begin to connect, leading to a pretty exciting conclusion.
I was quite taken with Grimes's descriptions of Santa Fe and its crowded restaurants and craft shops along Canyon Road, as well as its people who devote themselves to serving the tourists who flock there. It all sounded spot on to me, an accurate depiction of the Santa Fe and the New Mexico that I remember from visits. She was particularly good at describing the desert and the quality of light that draws so many artists and would-be artists to the area.
All in all, this was a satisfying read. I'm glad to find Grimes on track once more.
writerlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting. Not a lot of Plant but what there is is well done and almost no Long Piddleton fauna (which means only a few Agatha scene), the return of my favourite on and off recurring character Inspector Macalvie. Jury is heading out to the US again. Two books in a row. The trip is better than the first one which was boring, Wiggins is hospitalized (I think he electrocuted himself but it's not clear), reads Josephine Tey novels and solves the mysterious number problem. We get a good child protagonist (unlike the last book), a somewhat esoteric murder mystery that turns out to be quite down to earth after all.
Not bad, better than the last one by far but not as good as I'm used to. Grimes puts Jury and company through the motions with little passion this time around.
Not bad, better than the last one by far but not as good as I'm used to. Grimes puts Jury and company through the motions with little passion this time around.