Vertigo 42: A Richard Jury Mystery

I could have sworn I'd read this book before, but I have no record of it. And it was fun to read even though it felt familiar. Nice and twisty, and Wiggins really comes into his own. And of course, the dog.

I have been a Richard Jury fan for years and had just about given up on Martha Grimes ever writing another Jury novel. I was thrilled to learn about Vertigo 42 and snapped it up quickly. All the elements I've enjoyed in Grimes' series are here, from Jury's laid back but ever-so-serious policing style, to the antics of Melrose Plant and his Jack-in-the-Hammer friends. The story was well-plotted and kept me in suspense, and I was very happy to see some old friends like Ash and White Ellie make cameo appearances. My only issue was that the ending that came far too fast - I wanted the story to continue!

One suspicious death 22 years ago, another 17 years ago, and two murders five days apart. And then there's the dog. But Wiggins and Jury would never have solved the mess if it weren't for Alfred Hitchcock. The publisher's blurb gives clues but can't help untangle the mess. Be prepared for awful puns.

My first sojourn into Martha Grimes and detective Richard Jury. A completely satisfying experience with well-written prose. Richard takes on a closed case - Tom Williamson is not convinced that the love of his life died by accident 17 years ago. 5 years before Tess Williamson's death, a little girl, Hilda died on their property. Was Tess's death revenge? Was it accidental? At the same time, Richard's friends that gather at the Jack and Hammer pub are attempting to solve 2 local murders - why is their sleepy neighborhood suddenly experiencing an uptake in crime?Definitely on my list to read other Richard Jury tales.

A sad and boring chapter in an otherwise very enjoyable series of novels. In this latest installment of the series, the reader is given a boring murder mystery along with a re-hash of the recurring characters of the series. Grimes simply reuses material from prior installments to describe the characters, without mentioning anything new about any of the regular characters. The book would probably be less than two dozen pages if one removed everything she re-uses from her prior novels in the series. While it isn't plagiarism to recycle material from ones own work, it is a ripoff of ones fans to sell such a story without a warning that its a badly done recap of the series. If you have read the prior stories in the series, this book reads more like bad fan-fiction than a book written by the Grimes herself.The result of the recycling in this case is a bit like a bog roll made from recycled plastic and glass bottles. I gave the book 2 stars instead of 1, because a new reader to the series might not find the story as boring as her regular fans will. If you are a fan and don't want to skip this installment, no matter how bad it is, then at least wait to buy a used copy cheaply rather than wasting good money on a bad book. If you have not read the prior works in the Richard Jury series, read the others instead of this one.

I love the Jury books. I have read them all over the years. The first on my first trip to England. I enjoy the characters and the comfort of meeting them once again in each book. I thought this book was well done and I enjoyed it very much.

"Vertigo 42," is an absorbing, character driven novel that kept me satisfied as I followed the well developed plot.Tom Williamson, a friend of a friend, asks Superintendent Richard Jury of Scotland Yard to review his wife Tess's death. Tom doesn't accept the report that it was due to accident or suicide. He believes she was murdered.Five years before her death, Tess gave a party for children where one child was killed. Jury believes that the two cases must be related.We are introduced to the other children who attended the party which was twelve years ago. We see what the children are doing now and learn of their relationship toward each other.Jury has a crowd of friends that meet at the Jack and Hammer pub and serve as a break in the story but also they provide possible motives and suspects. One of those friends is Melrose Plant who even helps Jury with interviewing.Another death occurs and it ties in with the other children from the party. Now Jury is busy working on three murders.The characters are well developed as is their style of life. Many of the interviews are over a cup of tea and some treats. While they have their tea, questions are answered about the children of the past and their current activities.I enjoyed the pace of the story and the plot. It is interesting to attempt to guess who the killer might be but the author keeps the reader guessing and then ties everything together in a nicely wrapped conclusion.

It was a delight to meet up with Richard Jury and all the various characters that have populated the other series books. That said, I was disappointed that, although and intriguing plot, the usual sharpness of the series was just not there. I also found it a bit disconcerting to have ALL of the various characters from the previous books romping though the story. Some were just more token then necessary. Still enjoy the series but maybe not so much this one.

It's been four long years since we've had a new Richard Jury book, and I for one am glad we had the wait. That made this book so very welcome. And it's an excellent book. The plot is intricate and there are plenty of surprises throughout. All of this interspersed with dry humour and truly wonderful characters. The case that Jury is working on this time is one not assigned by Scotland Yard. A man is certain that his wife's death was not an accident. The fact that the death happened 17 years ago doesn't deter Jury. As he begins investigating the story of Tess Williamson, he discovers a warm woman who he is strangely drawn too. There is tragedy and sudden death in Tess's life before her own. Then as Jury keeps digging new deaths start happening and these new deaths seem connected in some way to the death of Tess Williamson. I love Martha Grimes' books and Richard Jury in particular because they are so enjoyable, funny and poignant. She has long been one of my favourite authors.

I thoroughly enjoyed this Richard Jury novel. The allusions to Thomas Hardy's novels and to the film Vertigo presented a delight. The various characters illustrated many different personalities, and the extra benefit of Stanley iced the cake. I listened to the book on audio book and the last disc was damaged, so I missed the details of the conclusion, such as the motive for Tess's death and Tess's secret. The setting and characters provide a wonderful glimpse of English life with the ritual of afternoon tea and the English countryside. Aunt Agatha occasionally entered the scene, but did not seem up to her old standards of mischief. Of course Melrose and his group of cronies, living the life of leisure, enhance the story.

There’s comfort food such as chicken soup when you’re feeling ill or hot apple pie with ice cream when you’re sad or hot chocolate on a cold night. What about the concept of a comfort book? Sort of like a best friend who you may see once every two or three years, but every time you meet it feels like yesterday. So, what about a comfort book? It’s been four years since Martha Grimes wrote her last Richard Jury mystery, The Black Cat, but now we have a new one, Vertigo 42 and it’s like old friends coming back to visit. The old crew is back.Like all Jury mysteries, it contains dogs, children, and his friends Carole-anne Palutski, Melrose Plant, Marshall Trueblood, Vivian Rivington and Diane Demorney, as well as Plant’s aunt Agatha. They seem to have been relegated to the backseat though, having much smaller roles than I remember in previous books. However, Jury’s Sergeant Wiggins seems a little smarter than he did four years ago.Twenty two years ago a young girl was attending a party, fell into an empty in-ground swimming pool and died. Seventeen years ago, the hostess of the above party fell down a flight of stairs and died. Presently, a young woman fell out of a tower and died. Are all of these incidents related? Even though Superintendent Jury is on vacation, he gets involved in the investigation.As are all Richard Jury books, Vertigo 42 is a satisfying read. The title is taken from a bar atop a building in London, a slight deviation from the pub-originated titles of the previous books, but still somewhat related.I will say that the story was a little obtuse, hard to follow the connection at times. Also, in previous books Jury interacted with young children and dogs, whereas this book merely talks about them. I miss that. There was a certain satisfaction that came from these interactions. It put a smile on my face.One thing I found fascinating (which I don’t remember thinking about before) was that a female author has created a male character that notices things a woman would notice. Grimes’ description of clothing and rooms, wallpaper, furniture is certainly not how this man would describe them. I didn’t mind this…I just noticed it.Don’t get me wrong. I really liked Vertigo 42 and am still a Richard Jury fan, but something just seemed absent from this outing.

A woman falls off a tower. Or does she?

It’s been a while since I read one of author Martha Grime’s Jury mysteries so, when I saw this title on Netgalley, I had to request it. I was more than a little happy to be given the opportunity to catch up with Jury and friends. Like the other books in the series, the title comes from a real bar in England. It is also a tribute to one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most famous movies, Vertigo. If you’ve seen the movie, you will have some sense of the plot. If you haven’t seen the movie, what are you waiting for? Go. Watch. Now. Anyway, back to my review. A girl is thrown from a tower and Jury and his gang of eccentric bar hoppers must suss out who dunnit. Jury begins to suspect that this murder is linked to two earlier murders including one of a woman seventeen years earlier who fell down a flight of stairs near the scene of an even earlier tragedy at a children’s party. The fact that the woman had vertigo had resulted in an open verdict but her husband is convinced it is murder. Then, another murder occurs of a courier who was shot while delivering a dog to its new owner from a rather dodgy pet supply business, causing even greater confuson. All of these acts seem, at first glance random, except they all link back to the first death at the party.All of this may sound somewhat confusing and a little convoluted and, at times it is. But the thing is, Jury and the gang handle it all with style, panache, and not a little humour. I can’t say I found the mystery all that compelling but I really enjoyed catching up with the gang and, really, that is what a Jury mystery is about – the eccentric behaviour, the witty banter, and Jury’s always tolerant and self-effacing presence as he slowly and meticulously solves the crime.