In this 26th book in the 'Richard Jury' series, the Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent investigates an odd murder in a Twickenham Pub.
Fans familiar with the 'Richard Jury' books are the audience for this novel.
*****
It takes a minute for patrons in a Twickenham pub called 'The Queen' to notice when whiskey distillery owner/real estate magnate Tom Treadnor is shot on a bar stool.
There's a noise like a popping cork, but no one sees a shooter or a gun. The police discover the killer shot through a window, and using red paint, changed the bar's sign from 'The Queen' to 'The Red Queen'.
The local police pass the case to New Scotland Yard, and Detective Superintendent Richard Jury and his assistant Sergeant Wiggins arrive to investigate.
Jury and Wiggins interview Treadnor's wife Alice as well as Treadnor's business partner; butler; stableman; kitchen staff; co-workers; friends; and acquaintances.
Treadnor seems to have had multiple personas, behaving genially sometimes and irritably other times; being environmentally conscious one week and exploitative the next week; being a good horseman one day, and a clumsy horseman another day; etc.
The detectives learn that almost no one in Treadnor's circle has an unshakeable alibi, and several people benefit from his death. So there are a number of possible suspects.
The investigation gets more complicated when Jury sees a newspaper story in the Financial Times about a CFO named Jason Lederer who's moving to Chicago to open an office. The photo of Jason Lederer looks EXACTLY like the murder victim Tom Treadnor, as if they're identical twins.
Jury tries to track down Lederer in Chicago, but it seems he showed up there briefly, then took off for a vacation in Cancún.
In the meantime, Sergeant Wiggins sets off on a quest to find his missing sister.
Wiggins sibling Betty Jean (BJ) took off five years ago, and the family hasn't heard from her since. Now BJ has sent a postcard to her mother, apologizing for running away and mentioning a dance trophy she and Wiggins won. The postcard has a photo of Cornwall but the postmark is too smeared to make out.
Wiggins engages the help of Police Commander Brian Macalvie, and the duo embark on a search for BJ. The men begin with Honey's Dance Hall in Lyme Regis, where Wiggins and BJ had their big success, and proceed from there.
The murder plotline and the BJ plotline sort of come together towards the end of the book, but the connection is not completely clear. I'm a longtime fan of Martha Grimes' 'Richard Jury' books, and I'm sorry to say this book isn't a success. The novel seems to have missing chunks; the murder investigation doesn't resolve in a believable manner; and the sub-plot about Wiggins' sister BJ adds nothing to the story.
On the plus side, some well-known recurring characters make an appearance in the novel, such as Melrose Plant (aka Lord Ardry) - an eccentric millionaire who sometimes helps Jury with his investigations.
The story also features two of Martha Grimes trademark characters: a precocious child (Tom Treadnor's great-nephew Tommy), and a fun canine (Tommy's dog Gizmo).
I did like visiting with favorite characters, and there are some humorous occurrences in the story. However, unless you're a dedicated Richard Jury fan, I wouldn't recommend this book.
Thanks to Netgalley, Martha Grimes, and Grove Atlantic for a copy of the book.
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