I’m an old fan of the Richard Jury series, and returning to the world of Long Piddleton, and its colorful cast of characters is a delight. I needed to pay close attention as Jury jet-setted across Great Britain in this multi-body mystery, but its worth it. All of the usuals make an appearance, if somewhat brief.

I do think that much of the richness of the book is lost if you aren’t already acquainted with the series, but perhaps it will lure you in to read the first 24 (!) books in the series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is one of those novels I think best read when you have time to sit and read for a while before putting it down. The story is a complex one and the characters are many, so trying to read it in spurts might be hard if the reader is trying to keep track of all the moving parts. Also, it is the twenty-fifth in this well developed series, with many of the same characters who have appeared regularly in earlier books within the series. These characters are like old friends to people who have read at least some of the earlier novels, but someone beginning the series might become a little confused as to who they all are and what their relationships are to each other and Jury if they try and begin with this novel.
The plotting is well done, with the case unfolding much as I imagine might be the process in an actual police investigation. There are many seemingly disparate facts that Jury accumulates along the way which slowly begin to swirl around each other to form a cohesive connection that leads to the solution. Because there are multiple deaths and numerous people involved with the various victims as well as Jury and his complement of friends and fellow investigators, it can get confusing if the reader tries to pick the book up and read for fifteen minutes here and there. Rather, save this one for when you have an hour or so, get comfortable, and immerse yourself in the novel.
The book begins with the discovery of a young woman found dead, floating in the bay. Things rapidly progress from there with help from New Scotland Yard being requested and Jury being drawn into the case. As in previous books, Jury’s friends spend much of their time in the local pub, where he gets a combination of information that may or may not be pertinent to the solving of the case as well as pulling in his friends to give him the occasional assist.
The plot is far too complex to try and summarize other than to say there are several young women who initially seem unconnected who are murdered. The side stories and numerous and varied, from a woman whose death has been ruled a suicide but no one believes that to be the case to a new business venture involving the opportunity to rent “family members” for various and sundry reasons. They all play a part in the ultimate solution of the murder, as well as offering some light hearted moments that allow the reader to enjoy the various personalities that Grimes has created.
I have read some of the earlier books in the series, but not all. This one makes me want to go back and read the rest, preferably in order, so that I can enjoy getting to know Jury’s friends on a more in-depth level. My thanks to Grove Atlantic Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader digital copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

I started reading Martha Grimes’ Richard Jury books for over thirty years. The Old Success has all the things I love about her books; understated wit, loveable and original characters and creative plots. Murders that seem unconnected does cause the reader to keep reading to find the clues along with the investigators in solving these crimes.

Jury is easy to fall for but as always remains a bit unattainable, which I guess is the attraction. It does seem odd that after all these years he is still on the job. I guess some characters are ageless. Melrose is also his usual delightful self. Fans will not want to miss this latest investigation.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to Net Galley and Grove Atlantic for the ARC of this book. I was glad to see the disclaimer before the book began that this copy had not yet been completely edited for publication. I do hope some heavy editing was performed.

I have all of the Richard Jury series, and had high hopes for this newest entry. On the positive side, most of the familiar characters and banter from the past came along with this one.

This, however, didn't make up for the difficulties. The plot seemed jumbled, there were many characters that often had little or nothing to do with the actual story, and more time could have been spent on developing the story. At times, it was quite difficult to know which character was speaking; again, this may have been cleared up during final edits.

One of my favorite parts had nothing to do with the murders. Melrose Plant used an idea he had learned about while drinking with the gang at The Old Success and played a wonderful prank on his insufferable Aunt Agatha.

I suppose daily life is messy and jumbled, but I prefer my mysteries to be presented with less confusion.

I will check into the final publication of this book to see if changes were made.

Hi,

My next review is as follows:-

“The Old Success” by Martha Grimes published in paperback on the 7th November 2019, by Grove Press. .256 pages ISBN-13: 978-1611854756

Regular readers of this authors books will know that her book titles are the names of English Public Houses!

When the body of a Frenchwoman washes up on a wild inlet off the Cornish coast, Brian Macalvie, divisional commander with the Devon-Cornwall police, is called in. With the only visible footprints belonging to the two girls who found her, who could have killed this mysterious tourist?

While Macalvie stands stumped in the Isles of Scilly, Inspector Richard Jury - twenty miles away on Land's End - is at the “Old Success” pub, sharing a drink with the legendary former CID detective Tom Brownell, a man renowned for solving every case he undertook. Except one.

In the weeks following the unexplained death of the tourist, two other murders are called in to Macalvie and Jury's teams: first, a man is found dead on a Northamptonshire estate, then a cleaner turns up murdered at Exeter Cathedral. When Macalvie and Jury decide to consult Brownell, the retired detective insists that the three murders, though very different in execution, are connected. As the trio set out to solve this puzzle, Jury and Macalvie hope that this doesn't turn out to be Brownell's second ever miss.
This very absorbing story rushes on to the very dramatic conclusion.

I enjoyed the book, the twenty-fifth in the series. Detective Superintendent Richard Jury of Scotland Yard is a very engaging detective and he has some most unusual friends, Melrose Plant and Marshall Trueblood among them, who are very helpful in aiding him to solve the crime.

“The Old Success” is a really very extraordinary police procedural that was most enjoyable and I hope that this very talented and experienced author continues to write such imaginative books of this high quality. Very strongly recommended. L Against orders, he follows some leads on the original murder case, discovering as he

This is the twenty-fifth Richard Jury mystery, all of which save one have as their title the name of a British pub. In this case it is the name of the pub in Cornwall in which Jury is drinking with an old friend when he is called to a murder in the nearby Scilly Isles. The old friend, Tom Brownell, is a legendary retired policeman who has solved all of his cases except that of his own daughter who is thought to have committed suicide.

To begin with the book is a little confusing with all sorts of eccentric characters. If one has never read a Richard Jury book before, and I haven’t, keeping up with exactly what is going on is a bit of a headache, although it all becomes clearer as the book goes on. I would imagine that long-time readers welcomed Melrose Plant and his circle when they appeared.

I don’t like spoilers so I am not going to give any. Let me just say that there is a lot going on in a not too lengthy story. The clever plot ends most satisfactorily, and I enjoyed the book once I got everyone sorted. For Jury fans this will be a welcome return to beloved characters, and for the rest of us a fine introduction to the series.

A police procedural with a very good plot and very interesting characters, but there may be too many of them for this to be an easy read. I also find it strange that an author of crime novels doesn't know more about guns.

I really enjoy Martha Grimes' Richard Jury series - there are a lot of them since this is number 25. I haven't read them all, but have read quite a few. This is a set of murders that may or may not be related. Richard Jury is called in to help the local police and, of course, everyone looks to him for the answers. His wealthy, aristocratic sidekick, Melrose Plant is drawn in to help because he has a horse that can work as a conversation starter. Also brought in is a detective, Tom Bromwell, who is known to solve all his cases (except for the one of his wife's death, which was declared a suicide). The detectives meet in a bar called The Old Success to discuss the case - thus the title of the book.

It took me awhile to get into this one, I think because of all the characters and the subplot. I was a little confused for a bit. Once I got all the characters in my mind it flowed well. British mysteries are one of my favorite genres.

Thanks to Martha Grimes and Grove Atlantic through Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Some pieces are missing

Martha Grime's previous book "The Knowledge" revisited a lot of RJury series pubs into one story. This one ropes in a huge cast of old characters. There are two ways to approach them. One is to obsess over all of names and their relationships, scratching your head trying to remember or diving into online searches to nail everyone down. The other is to roll along in ignorance, figuring that you will be able to glean what you need from context. Up to you.

But the book as a whole is unsatisfying. There is a lot of running back and forth between locations, hopping trains and boats and planes, to the point that some times I could not remember where we are supposed to be. And in the end I simply did not understand the murders that had taken place, who did them and why. And I certainly could not figure out how, given all of the trains and boats and planes needed.

I used to love reading this cosy crime series when it was first written in the 1980s and 90s, featuring Richard Jury of Scotland Yard and his quirky aristocratic friend Melrose Plant, so thought it would be fun to revisit it many years later with the publication of the 25th episode in the series. As before the title comes from the name of a British pub, in this case The Old Success in Land's End where Richard meets CID detective Tom Brownell, a man who is legendary for solving all his cases but one, that of the death of his daughter, Daisy.

I found it quite difficult initially to follow the plot of this murder mystery. It seemed to be very jumpy with too many diversions and unnecessary characters popping in. The connections between the murders made by the investigators seemed obscure and required a huge leap of faith by the reader. I almost gave up reading half way through in frustration. It did eventually make some sense but left me with the feeling that it was all a bit rushed would benefit from a really good edit. The best bit of the book was the delightful prank that Melrose played on his aunt and persuaded me to rate the book a generous three stars.

Brian Macalvie is called to Bryher Island in the Isles of Scilly when a beautiful woman is found shot, floating in the waves near the beach. The body had been found by two young girls, Zoe and Zillah Noyes. The woman is soon identified as Manon Vinet, woman who had worked in Paris, and also as a nurse for Gerald Summerston.

Meanwhile, Richard Jury is talking at The Old Success pub with Sir Thomas Brownell , who had no unsolved cases until his daughter, Daisy, died and it was labelled a suicide. His granddaughter, Sydney Cooke, was crazy about horses, and Jury gets Mel Plant to take his horse to her. She loves the horse and goes back to Ardry End to care for the horse.

Soon, there are two more murders. One is near Ardry End when Flora Flood appears to have shot her estranged husband (but claims someone shot from behind her), and the other a woman who was a "holy duster" in the Exeter Cathedral. Since Flora was a cousin of the Summerston's and the holy duster was a former employee, it seemed all three murders might be connected. Summerston was known to be a womanizer.

Grimes characters are as zany as usual, and the story has lots of twists. Children play a very important part in this story as well. Jury, Brownell, and Macalvie eventually figure out all three murders, as well as figuring out that Daisy didn't commit suicide.

Richard Jury is asked to help with a murder investigation where a woman is accused of killing her husband. While doing this is also helps a friend and his daughter reunite.
I found the story and characters to be a bit confusing to me, having only read one book by this author I was unfamiliar with all the people she spoke of so it's not really a stand alone book.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for an advance copy of The Old Success, the twenty fifth novel to feature Superintendent Richard Jury of New Scotland Yard and his assorted friends.

Commander Brian Macalvie of the Devon and Cornwall Police is on the Scilly Isle of Bryher investigating the murder of a woman found shot dead on the beach. As they are in Exeter he ropes in Jury and former Met DI Tom Brownell to help but soon they are immersed in their own case in Northamptonshire, another shooting which seems equally mysterious. When a third person is shot they have to work hard to link the killings and establish a motive.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Old Success which is another delightful piece of whimsy with a good mystery attached. It is a fairly short read which leaves little room for excess and yet manages to pack in a good, absorbing investigation, a good dose of humour and some weirdly outrageous characters. It should be noted that realism plays no part in the proceedings, but, somehow, it doesn’t matter. Those in the know will welcome it as another fun read but for those picking up the series for the first time it may be a little baffling - my advice just go with the flow and be prepared to be charmed.

The plot is somewhat convoluted as it depends entirely on the connections between a multitude of characters, most of whom are concealing secrets and the victimology although such a brutal term would never be employed. I enjoyed the twists and turns as Jury and his cohorts use any number of unorthodox methods, including a stuffed giraffe, to get to the truth. It’s a clever novel And as the humour is never far from the surface, especially in some of the subplots, it makes for a very enjoyable read.

The Old Success is a good read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

Three shooting, three different locations but is there a connection between them. Inspectors Jury and Macalvie, with the help of ex-police Inspector Brownell investigate.
I have in the past read a few of this series but not for sometime. The story felt like it was connected to past arcs in the series and therefore I feel it could not be read as a standalone. The story itself didn't really caught my imagination, nor my interest. There seemed to be too many names introduced which were really of no importance, and at times I found it difficult to know who was talking, which may be the fault of the formatting of this ARC.

Although I am a great fan of Martha Grimes, her most recent book, “The Old Success” was a bit difficult for me to follow, probably because it’s been a while since I followed the series. The problem, for me, was references to characters in previous novels and jumps in crime-solving logic that seemed to come out of thin air, such as when they tied the current crime to a past one without much in the way of supporting reason. You really need to “just go with it” in this novel, because if you examine too closely you may see gaps in logic, However, I have always read Martha Grimes for the pleasure of her charming cast of characters and their quirky antics, and in that way, this book did not disappoint, since I fondly remember the crowd from Long Piddleton. “The Old Success” centres around a crime that took place in Watermeadows, scene of a previous novel and characters, so it may have been better if I were more up-to-date with the series, and I would have been more familiar with the names that cropped up..
However, be that as it may, I always enjoy Martha Grimes’s capable writing style and humorous characters. I’m sure this recent book will be well-received and enjoyed by her many fans.

I love this series and it has become more defined over the years. This installment brings us a great plot, quirky characters , wit and of course a mystery for Richard Jury to solve. I enjoyed visiting with Richard and Melrose Plant during their investigation.
Many thanks to Grove Atlantic and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I've been reading this series for probably 30 years, which should be a clear indication that I'm a big fan of Richard Jury and Melrose Plant. But in recent years, I've been struggling a bit. Jury first appeared as a 40-something WWII orphan. (1981, The Man With a Load of Mischief).. Nearly 40 years later, Jury doesn't seem to have aged...nor have his companions. This might make sense, if the series had kept to a set time period, but time has moved on (cell phones!), and none of the characters have aged! A quibble, I know, in a much loved series.

I was disappointed in The Old Success. I had to go back and reread several times, and still felt I was missing something. I hope this was a glitch in the digital ARC I received and will be corrected in the print edition. Overall. I didn't feel that it held together well; there were too many strands that didn't seem to come together effectively. Additionally, some recurring characters appeared almost as "throw-aways," brief scenes that had no real bearing on the book as a whole.

On the positive side, I love Melrose Plant's continued low-key battle with his Aunt Agatha, and the "relative for hire" that he brings in to antagonize her is priceless. Some wonderful moments in the Jack and Hammer in Long Piddleton were highlights of the story, for me.

I received an advance reading ebook from NetGalley and Atlantic Monthly Press in exchange for an honest review.

I like some of the characters I've read in earlier novels in the series involving Jury.. but I could not get on with this one... too many layers of characters, and it seems to go on endlessly .

Martha Grimes is a good writer who has over written her latest installment of the Richard Jury series. There are too may murders, too many characters, and too many places. I found it to be disjointed and confusing.

#TheOldSuccess #NetGalley

James' mysteries are being reissued in electronic form, and that makes it even easier to enjoy these well written, erudite mysteries. I admit to having a huge fictional crush on Richard Jury, so I enjoy all of her novels. This isn't one of James' strongest, as it can get confusing keeping the interconnections between all the characters straight, but it is marked by one of James' most sympathetic supporting characters,Tom Brownell. I don't remember if Diane's ex-husband, George Jenks, makes any reappearances in other novels, but I hope he does. She is one of my least liked characters but I did enjoy their interactions.