Product Description

Scotland Yard Superintendent Richard Jury is just one pint into his vacation in Long Piddleton when the murder of a notorious philanderer rocks the small village and its eccentric inhabitants...

"A writer to relish." (The New Yorker)

"Blends almost Dickensian sketches of character and social class with glimpses of a ferocious marriage." (Time)

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #275030 in Books
• Published on: 2002-06-01
• Released on: 2002-06-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780451410382
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Library Journal
Scotland Yard Superintendent Richard Jury, visiting his friend Melrose Plant in Long Piddleton, looks into the murder of Simon Lean, whose body is discovered stuffed into an antique secretaire a abattant. Working with help from the usual cast of zany characters, Jury goes about his business in his customary leisurely and self-assured manner and pieces together a very strange tale of greed, jealousy, and murder. The careful reader will have solved the mystery long before the ending. But this ninth in a series, though not Grimes's best, is a welcome addition and sure to be popular. BOMC alternate. JV
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Intriguing and Unusual
Antique dealer Marshall Trueblood is delighted when he coaxes Lady Sommerston into selling her secretaire a abattant--at least until it arrives at his shop and vents forth the severed head of a man with more enemies than even Superintendant Jury of Scotland Yard can count. And the ensuing investigation proves problematic in more ways than one.

As usual, Martha Grimes writes beautifully, presenting us with a host of likely and unlikely suspects ranging from an eccentric romance novelist to a near-hysterical book dealer to a woman who greatly enjoys her dubious reputation--and considerable humor in the form of Aunt Agatha, a plaster pig, a bicycle, and chamber pots. But fascinating as her prose is, the sheer complexity of her story seems to run away with her in this particular novel, which piles character upon character and event upon event in a truly dizzying sort way.

Perhaps more to the point, this particular work deals with the thematic thread of to what degree we actually know people as individuals, the plot relies heavily upon coincidence, and Grimes juggles a great many balls to conceal the killer's hand. Whether or not readers feel these balls all fetch up together in logical order is a matter of opinion; clearly some consider this one of her most spectacular finishes while others find it frustratingly vague. For myself, I found the novel requires more concentration than one expects of a murder mystery, and while I thought the device was very clever I felt the conclusion lacked drama and consequently doesn't entirely come off. While I do recommend the novel to long-time Martha Grimes fans, I would hesitate to recommend it to newcomers, who might find BLADEBONE's deliberate ambiguity a bit off-putting.

The bells toll for thee in this Grimes thriller!
Of all the Richard Jury-featured novels, I think that "The Five Bells and Bladebone" if by far my favorite.

How can one resist such an opening when Martha Grimes launches us into her ninth Jury episode with this sentence: "What else could you think of but getting your throat slit?"

Grimes' penchant for landscape and atmosphere holds true in this book. "It was a twenty minute walk from the flat in Limehouse to the Town of Ramsgate, and she was irritated that they'd decided on what he called a `dress rehearsal....hadn't they been over it and over it? And she didn't dare tell him that Tommy was coming in tomorrow night. He'd have killed her."

Is this the quintessential narrative hook or not? And Grimes doesn't let up until the final pages.

Marshall Trueblood (one of Grimes' recurring characters and resident antiques dealer in Long Pidd) discovers a dismembered corpse in an antique desk. Superintendent Jury soon establishes a connection between this death and the murder of a Limehouse lady named Sadie Driver. With his faithful Sergeant Wiggins, Jury begins to do what he is best known for: solving crimes. And no Jury book would be complete without close friend Melrose Plant, the aristocratic and (de)titled Peer, whose insight, connections, wealth, good wit (he does the London Times crossword in record time, whether the answers are correct or not!), and his Aunt Agatha, is of immense aid to Jury. Grimes titles her Jury books with names of actual pubs. If you track this one down (there's a good map in the book), be careful! It really is in a section of London that should make you think twice before going--I chose noon on a Sunday and STILL was intimidated, getting my pint, quickly swallowed, and OUT of there! (Actually, it is an unassuming pub with lots of character--it's just that the locals NEVER cotton to outsiders, especially foreigners! But the ale was good! Grimes told me last October, however, that the pub had actually undergone some renovation!)

Regardless, for the many fans of Grimes/Jury, "The Five Bells and the Bladebone" is not one to miss. It's my cup of tea (or pint of ale!).

Billyjhobbs@tyler.net

The most confusing of all M. Grimes books.
I am an avid M. Grimes reader but The Five Bells and Bladebone has me stumped. I cannot figure out who was who as far as the murderer and the two women are concerned. Very unclear ending for readers.