The Anodyne Necklace

Anodyne Necklace. This is the third novel in the Richard Jury of Scotland Yard detective series. The first novel in the series is Man With a Load of Mischief and the second is Old Fox Deceived. Each book in this long running series is named after an actual pub in Great Britain. The character development is the best feature of this book, with my favorite character being Melrose Plant, oft-put-upon by his thoroughly nasty aunt by marriage, Lady Agatha Ardry. Melrose gave up his title as Lord Ardry, still lives in his family's ancestral manor, Ardry End, and he doesn't stop his aunt from blatantly pilfering treasures from his home. Oh yes, there is a murder, of a young lady whose fingers are cut off. Another young girl is knocked on the head as she plays violin in a subway station, and she is in a coma. Someone has crafted a treasure map, and a very valuable emerald has been stolen. Get busy, Richard Jury and volunteer detective Melrose Plant, and solve this case!

When I first read the Jury and Plant series, all the books named after Pubs, I was shocked to learn she was American. She just does Brit droll humor to a T. I was even more shocked when later I learned that Grimes was actually dropped by Knopf Publishing, saying she was not making her advance back on the Jury series. Well, she has gone on to make them eat those words as every one is now a bestseller. I absolutely love to read, but in this instance, I actually prefer to enjoy the audio tapes simply because they are done by the great Tim Curry. As Grimes does Brit humor to perfection, Tim brings Richard Plant, Melrose Plant and his indomitable Aunt Agatha so perfectly. Curry slips into one character after another with such panache - right down to children. The combination of Grimes and Curry is just not to be missed. In the Anodyne Necklace, a violin, an ancent emerald necklace and a severed finger are clue to solving the ghastly murder in the wood of Littlebourne. The town is filled with dotty birdwatchers, a pretentious Peer, and more suspects than Jury can handle. Naturally, the ever-so-helpful, Melrose Plant, a Peer who has shun his titles, tags along to aid his friend - actually, to escape his Aunt Agatha who refuses to let Melrose give up his titles. The key unriddling the Littlebourne mystery is hidden in coded treasure map. It's great full all they way, and an absolutely must for Curry fans! Martha loves the old saying he who laughs last...she has been having one big giggle on the shortsightedness of Knopf ever since!

This book was absolutely awesome. I couldn't put it down the entire time I was reading it! I definately suggest any of the Richard Jury books to anyone who likes mystery books!

This early Richard Jury novel is more comic than most of the others in this series--the scenes in Littlebourne, despite the fact that this is a mystery, are quite funny, with stock characters who end up being likeable and affecting. However, the strength of this book is in the scenes in The Anodyne Necklace and its surrounding London slum neighborhood, which is full of eccentrics, odd as can be, but fully enjoying their sordid lives.The murderer is a surprise here as well. This is also the novel that introduces Jenny Kennington, who is as enigmatic at the beginning of this series as she is later on. I am not sure of her appeal for Richard Jury!

This is the book that began the Jury/Plant series, where all of the books are named after pubs. This is one of the very few books in my experience where I remember who the muderer was because it was a flawless mystery, perfectly logical, nothing held back, but still I couldn't guess the culprit! Definitely NOT the "had I but known" school. There are some wonderfully gory scenes, if you appreciate that in your mudrer mysteries, in adition to wonderful character moments and real humor. I found this book to be the best of all of M.Grimes's marvelous books. I hope they republish! I read this book for the first time when I was nine (child of a mystery reader)and it has not lost its charm with successive readings over the years. My old copy finally fell to bits!