Biting the Moon

I'm glad I read this book before its predecessor, Rainbow's End, because I might have believed all the amazingly bad reviews here. Inspector Jury needs to be placed before a jury and found guilty for being boring. True, I found both Andie and Mary a bit too mature for teenagers, and they both got lucky too often, but I found their special and fast bond as two eccentric loners touching and unique as they travelled together saving animals and hunting down the man who'd abducted Andie many months before. Agreed, you had to suspend some disbelief, but the unfinished business of Mary not checking up on Andie after their time together was through had a distinctly sweet romantic aire that had nothing to do with any conventional love story, and I liked that she didn't persue it further. I didn't even know about the unfair and outrageous antics of canned hunting until discovering this book, and loved these characters all the more for trying to save animals, plus righting the wrongs of human injustices where they could. Full of interesting characters and unpredictable twists and turns, I saw this story as a bit of escapist heaven combined with elements of an author who is definitely a dreamer of unconventionally romantic tales. Animal welfare is also a big deal in my book, so I really enjoyed the adventures of Andie and Mary. Who was Andie? We never really find out, but we know that Mary is a better person for having known her. A positive tale that dares the reader not to care about its many characters and causes, I found it irresistibly hard to put down.

Martha Grimes is best known for her fantastic Jury/Melrose Plant (Plant, who is actually Lord Audry, but has given up his title) English mysteries. But in this book, she's broken off into a beautiful mystery about the south western and northwestern United States, with two fiesty young girls-incredible characters, taking risks. I recommend this book to all. It's a Grimes' success!Joanna Campbell, Author and creator of the Thoroughbred Series, and author of the first 14 books.

A girl awakens with amnesia with only a strange message as a clue to her past, and decides to run away before the mysterious stranger who abducted her returns. She forges a new life in the wilderness alone until she meets a girl who shares her isolation, and who may be able to help her make a new life. Excellent intrigue and strong characterization.

This is one of only three books that have been fun to read, and left a positive impact on me. The other two are "Rage and Reason" by Michael Tobias and "A Hatful of Pain" by Craig Burton.

Martha Grimes knows how to break your heart. In this wonderfully written, as always elegant prose, she provides a morality play. Equally wonderful are her characters, the return of Mary Dark Hope from the Richard Jury series, and the return of that "illusive" girl from Hotel Paradise. Some will say, "Too much." I say, "More!"