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Lovejoy #3
Grail Tree 1ST Edition Signed Review Copy
In the world of antiques the Holy Grail is a holy terror - for almost every month someone claims to possess the original. So when an inebriated ex-clergyman confided to Lovejoy that he did indeed possess the cup, the resourceful antiques dealer knew just what to make of such a statement.The trouble was that someone else thought this version of the Grail was worth stealing - and now the owner was dead amid considerable carnage.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1979
4 people are currently reading
138 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Gash
90 books70 followersJohn Grant is an English crime writer, who writes under the pen name Jonathan Gash. He is the author of the Lovejoy series of novels. He wrote the novel The Incomer under the pen name Graham Gaunt.
Grant is a doctor by training and worked as a general practitioner and pathologist. He served in the British Army and attained the rank of Major in the Royal Army Medical Corps. He was head of bacteriology at the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine for the University of London between 1971 and 1988.
Grant won the John Creasey Award in 1977 for his first Lovejoy novel, The Judas Pair. He is also the author of a series of medical thrillers featuring the character Dr. Clare Burtonall.
Grant lives outside Colchester in Essex, the setting for many of his novels. He has also been published in Postscripts.
Grant is a doctor by training and worked as a general practitioner and pathologist. He served in the British Army and attained the rank of Major in the Royal Army Medical Corps. He was head of bacteriology at the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine for the University of London between 1971 and 1988.
Grant won the John Creasey Award in 1977 for his first Lovejoy novel, The Judas Pair. He is also the author of a series of medical thrillers featuring the character Dr. Clare Burtonall.
Grant lives outside Colchester in Essex, the setting for many of his novels. He has also been published in Postscripts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
July 28, 2017
To the Chinese god Kuan Ti, guardian of antique dealers and pawnshops, this book is most sincerely and respectfully dedicated.
The third of a set of three Black dagger crime Hardcovers I acquired and were the sole reason for revisiting the world of Lovejoy antique dealer extra-ordinaire. The man who can feel an real antique and yet be so oblivious when it comes to women something he has more of in his life than currency.
This book is about Lovejoy getting a new student/intern, something he gets paid for besides antiques and him being asked to look at the Holy Grail which is a hoot and a half for likes of Lovejoy. And as usual people start dying and our favorite antiquarian is starting to doubt his own ideas about this Grail. And the more he finds out the less he is sure that the thing does not exist. Lovejoy is in trouble with the Bill [Police}, women [always] and greedy people.
Another darker Lovejoy adventure which is as always easy to read and full of tips about antiques and the darker side of antiques.
The third of a set of three Black dagger crime Hardcovers I acquired and were the sole reason for revisiting the world of Lovejoy antique dealer extra-ordinaire. The man who can feel an real antique and yet be so oblivious when it comes to women something he has more of in his life than currency.
This book is about Lovejoy getting a new student/intern, something he gets paid for besides antiques and him being asked to look at the Holy Grail which is a hoot and a half for likes of Lovejoy. And as usual people start dying and our favorite antiquarian is starting to doubt his own ideas about this Grail. And the more he finds out the less he is sure that the thing does not exist. Lovejoy is in trouble with the Bill [Police}, women [always] and greedy people.
Another darker Lovejoy adventure which is as always easy to read and full of tips about antiques and the darker side of antiques.
October 25, 2015
I'm not sure why I like Lovejoy so much. He is misogynistic, selfish and obsessed with antiques. But it is this passion for his subject that makes him so attractive. He is unashamedly his own man, knows what he wants and will do whatever it takes to get it. He is a good friend and protector, so long as that doesn't get in the way of his primary purpose in life, which is always antiques. I enjoyed this story, but it went on a bit towards the end when it could have been brought to a conclusion much more quickly, which would have been better. I listened to the audio book and the narration was very good, capturing the flavour of Lovejoy's personality perfectly.
June 9, 2023
Another short British mystery. This series features the East Anglian antiques dealer Lovejoy and are hard to find, being out of print and not available on Kindle. Not sure why they are OOP as the series was good enough to be made into a TV series 'Lovejoy' staring Ian McShane. (Available on AcornTV in the USA I believe).
Pretty much what you expect from an amateur detective mystery here, just interesting to me because of the location and the background as an antiques dealer. Although the location of the final encounter is just described as 'The Castle Museum' it's obviously based on Norwich Castle to anyone who has been there.
I will continue with this series when I can find them.
Pretty much what you expect from an amateur detective mystery here, just interesting to me because of the location and the background as an antiques dealer. Although the location of the final encounter is just described as 'The Castle Museum' it's obviously based on Norwich Castle to anyone who has been there.
I will continue with this series when I can find them.
September 14, 2010
East Anglian antiques dealer Lovejoy (no first name) tries to solve the murder of a Reverend in possession of the Holy Grail. Gash's writing is too snarky and slangy to be enjoyable, and Lovejoy too much of a horndog. There were more characters than I could be bothered to keep track of, so when Lovejoy punched a woman in a pubfight and ripped the back of her dress open (whilst noting that vintage Victorian dresses would hold together better), I had forgotten this woman was the niece of the Reverend's widow. It almost seems impossible this could have been written as late as 1979...even as satire it's offensive.
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November 1, 2013I read this book years and years ago and remembered enjoying the series, if not for Lovejoy, who always came off as not respecting women all that much and a bit of a not nice type of guy, but because the mysteries were interesting, centering around antiques. I like how there would be a little bit of information about certain antiques, and even how someone might be able to counterfeit one.
However, fast-forward to the present and now I find myself just not enjoying this story. Between Lovejoy and his above mentioned 'qualities', I found the slang a bit hard to follow, the mystery confusing and generally most people were not too likeable.
However, fast-forward to the present and now I find myself just not enjoying this story. Between Lovejoy and his above mentioned 'qualities', I found the slang a bit hard to follow, the mystery confusing and generally most people were not too likeable.
September 21, 2020
'For that split second I didn't care. [...] I felt overjoyed I'd created a weapon from nothing under impossible circumstances'. That Lovejoy feels this after killing someone bent on killing him, with someone else approaching to kill him, in a darkened museum lit only by fireworks from outside, shows what's at the heart of the Lovejoy novels. Yes, they are adventure stories, and they are fun, but it's Lovejoy the maker that matters. Lovejoy dispenses loads of information about antiques, but not as dry data. Rather it's about the relationship between the maker and the object made. As he says all the time, it's the love that makes things that makes them important.
This is the first Lovejoy novel I read, having become a firm fan of the television series, and obviously the contrast between the two is immediate and striking. But it's such a compelling read. Yes it's built along the basic lines of greed and theft, but then Lovejoy himself is honest enough to point out that so much human activity is based on greed. And of course Lovejoy is the battered knight errant meting out natural justice to thieves who kill their victims.
Tinker is here as usual, but this is the first appearance of Lydia, the replacement apprentice after the clumsy Algernon of Gold from Gemini. She isn't ignorant like Algernon, but she's still a problem in that she responds to only one kind of antique. Life is never straightforward for Lovejoy, but if it were there'd be no story. Looking forward to another reread of 'Spend Game' now!
This is the first Lovejoy novel I read, having become a firm fan of the television series, and obviously the contrast between the two is immediate and striking. But it's such a compelling read. Yes it's built along the basic lines of greed and theft, but then Lovejoy himself is honest enough to point out that so much human activity is based on greed. And of course Lovejoy is the battered knight errant meting out natural justice to thieves who kill their victims.
Tinker is here as usual, but this is the first appearance of Lydia, the replacement apprentice after the clumsy Algernon of Gold from Gemini. She isn't ignorant like Algernon, but she's still a problem in that she responds to only one kind of antique. Life is never straightforward for Lovejoy, but if it were there'd be no story. Looking forward to another reread of 'Spend Game' now!
June 26, 2019
Lovejoy's third outing see's him chasing the mysterious Grail Tree; an iconographic cup that had been added to by some of the world's greatest silversmiths. Intitally disbelieving an excentric reverend who offered the chance to look at but changes his mind when he mysteriously dies. Much of The Grail Tree follows his search for the truth while trying to solve his own complicated love life. Things are not helped by the arrival of Lydia (a regular in later books) as his next apprentice. For the first time we get to see the nasty side of Lovejoy, which probably why this book was not included in the 1986 BBC Tv show. Certainly not as good as the first two books, drifting towards detection and retribution rather than antiques but still has some clever Jonathan Gash touches.
July 18, 2021
I really love Lovejoy books and, of course the TV series. That said, this one? too many characters and the action scenes were not great. The talent for character is different than the talent for describing action and place. In this book the author does moderately well with pushing the Lovejoy character along, but I felt it lacks in quality or interesting place and action writing.
Also: will Lovejoy have a new squeeze , or 3, every book? Continuity allows room for depth. Hoping this trickle grows into the mighty stream it should be.
Also: will Lovejoy have a new squeeze , or 3, every book? Continuity allows room for depth. Hoping this trickle grows into the mighty stream it should be.
June 21, 2022
I’m reading the Lovejoy books in order, so this is the third I’ve read, and unfortunately it is my least favorite. All was going well right up to the last few chapters when the book takes a terrible turn and becomes a chore to read. We spend countless pages watching Lovejoy break into/search through (multiple times) a museum. Huge paragraphs of text that don’t do anything to move the story along. It feels like the author just kept writing in circles to get the word count up to where it needed to be. Hopefully future installments are better.
January 12, 2019
Jonathan Gash is a skilled writer. He handles language so very well, his focus on antiques as part of a story line amuses, and he keeps me in suspense. I never like his character's attitude towards women, but I suppose at least his hero's character is thus believable and carries through the novels. This is the sixth Lovejoy mystery I have read, and I am ready now to move to other authors, and return to other genres for a while, at least.
April 1, 2019
I am still failing to see how Lovejoy, who will leave his latest conquest halfway unbuttoned for the sake of an antique, lives off bread and margarine and frozen pasties, drives a terrible tiny old car, and hangs out with forgers and thieves and Tinker Dill, is so irresistibly attractive to every woman in a ten-mile radius. I mean, the played-by-young-Ian-McShane factor probably has a lot to do with it, but still.
July 2, 2022
Could it be the Holy grail? Probably not, at least Lovejoy seems sure that it isn't. But someone must think so because they are willing to kill to get it.
The one thing that Lovejoy is sure of is that he will have trouble with the women in his life. But that is completely fair as he invites at every occasion by his carnal, roguish behavior.
The one thing that Lovejoy is sure of is that he will have trouble with the women in his life. But that is completely fair as he invites at every occasion by his carnal, roguish behavior.
September 6, 2022
I haven't read Gash in a long time, and boy, I have changed! I struggled with the British slang and the lighthearted sexist attitude. I feel like I missed something in the conclusion, (and if you've read it, you'll figure out what I mean!) Overall, a quick garbagey dated romp.
October 22, 2018
Lovejoy lienee maailman tympäisevin ja itseään toistavin dekkarisarja. Edes Tapani Baggen hersyvä suomennos ei pelasta tilannetta.
November 1, 2018
Still slightly narked by the last minute twist, which came as a bit of a shock to the system. Nonetheless, the story was as utterly brilliant as ever. :)
August 6, 2020
An enjoyable Lovejoy romp.
October 11, 2020
Fun series to read.
December 17, 2021
One of Gash's best, especially the final battle in the castle with the fireworks going off outside giving the atmosphere inside a decently unsteady and creepy feel.
January 15, 2022
Not my cup of tea, so to speak. The story was kinda bleak to read, there where a whole lot of nothing in my opinion. Overall the plot was kinda slow burning and predictable, or simple¿
August 6, 2022
A charming Lovejoy caper, lots of antique inspiration and warnings - be sure your great find isn't a fake
May 7, 2023
Lovejoy's best mystery. Read multiple times.
April 26, 2024
This is a light, easy read, and the mystery, such as it is, is equally lightweight. The TV version is better.
May 16, 2024
As usual, Lovejoy gets into a lot of trouble, juggles a lot of women, tangles with some very bad villains, and gets involved in an antiques-related mystery. He’s a lovable scamp.
July 20, 2016
Ah, Lovejoy ... he's always after women and antiques and destined to screw up at both. Why women run after him is beyond me--I'm a woman and see no attraction (and the book Lovejoy sees nothing wrong in "clouting" them, which is awful). However, Lovejoy is always *interesting*--an over-the-top, somewhat sleazy guy with an incredible store of knowledge about antiques. We don't necessarily want to invite him to dinner, but I enjoy reading about his adventures and learning his views on obscure antiques. He will do anything to save a beautiful antique, even let himself get beaten senseless to lead the fight away from one that sets his divvie bells ringing.
When I first read a Lovejoy book (can't remember which one now), it was after watching every episode of the TV series, and I was disappointed that the books were quite different. Once I got past that, I was able to start again and like them--the stories are darker, edgier, and more complex than can be shown in a hour-long show. The cast of quirky characters is much broader--the television version of the characters were softened to fit family hour (and viewers enjoy a recurring, chummy cast).
So, I can appreciate Jonathan Gash's storytelling and characters as they were originally meant to be. The mystery was a good whodunit, and why, and what the "Grail Tree" actually was, was intriguing. I like that Gash doesn't hold Lovejoy up to be an exemplary human being. He isn't, and yet, he's moved by the death of a man he liked to find the true killer and bring him to his own brand of justice.
I'm glad I gave this series another chance.
When I first read a Lovejoy book (can't remember which one now), it was after watching every episode of the TV series, and I was disappointed that the books were quite different. Once I got past that, I was able to start again and like them--the stories are darker, edgier, and more complex than can be shown in a hour-long show. The cast of quirky characters is much broader--the television version of the characters were softened to fit family hour (and viewers enjoy a recurring, chummy cast).
So, I can appreciate Jonathan Gash's storytelling and characters as they were originally meant to be. The mystery was a good whodunit, and why, and what the "Grail Tree" actually was, was intriguing. I like that Gash doesn't hold Lovejoy up to be an exemplary human being. He isn't, and yet, he's moved by the death of a man he liked to find the true killer and bring him to his own brand of justice.
I'm glad I gave this series another chance.
April 23, 2015
Wonderful story. I was glad that we finally have confirmation that he did rebuild his cottage, clearly putting this novel after The Judas Pair, and so I believe these novels are actually put out in chronological order.
I very much liked the characters introduced (Henry, Martha, Honkworth, Lydia, etc.) though I think the villain could have used a little more exploring. Unlike the first couple of novels, nobody close to Lovejoy got killed so there was less of the revenge plotline. He was still quite the pugilist, taking on a couple of different people. For being such a nasty cad he sure is attractive to the ladies for some reason. Though I guess some women do like the abuse, or maybe the challenge of reforming a man like Lovejoy. In any case, he really isn't a very nice man; bad manners, fiery temper (at least where antiques and his skin are concerned), prone to fisticuffs, and bouncing from one woman to the next. Still, as a character he is rather loveable. He's like the Mike Hammer of the antiques community. I do rather wish the cops weren't presented as such fools. I believe Maslow would be a very interesting character to keep around and actually beneficial to Lovejoy in many ways.
The eBook was formatted not so well. There were several spelling errors and quite a few stray punctuation marks floating around at odd times (I'm guessing a bad OCR). Still, the enjoyable story made up for the bad formatting.
I very much liked the characters introduced (Henry, Martha, Honkworth, Lydia, etc.) though I think the villain could have used a little more exploring. Unlike the first couple of novels, nobody close to Lovejoy got killed so there was less of the revenge plotline. He was still quite the pugilist, taking on a couple of different people. For being such a nasty cad he sure is attractive to the ladies for some reason. Though I guess some women do like the abuse, or maybe the challenge of reforming a man like Lovejoy. In any case, he really isn't a very nice man; bad manners, fiery temper (at least where antiques and his skin are concerned), prone to fisticuffs, and bouncing from one woman to the next. Still, as a character he is rather loveable. He's like the Mike Hammer of the antiques community. I do rather wish the cops weren't presented as such fools. I believe Maslow would be a very interesting character to keep around and actually beneficial to Lovejoy in many ways.
The eBook was formatted not so well. There were several spelling errors and quite a few stray punctuation marks floating around at odd times (I'm guessing a bad OCR). Still, the enjoyable story made up for the bad formatting.
April 19, 2016
I believe that Lovejoy is meant to be a lovable rogue, so it's a shame that he comes off as a selfish misogynist instead, which means his motivation for getting involved in solving the murder seems murky and unclear.
There seemed to be an awful lot of characters in this book - most of whom felt like they were there for local colour, and didn't service many plot requirements. I got some of them confused, at one point thinking Lovejoy was meeting a new character in a bar, when in actual fact he was re-meeting the detective from the scene of the crime, only a few pages earlier. This could be done to the fact that there are a series of Lovejoy books and maybe some of these characters get fleshed out a bit more, and feel more real across several books.
The reveal of the murderer appears in a quite off-hand way, but this is not the denouement of the book. The actual ending is more exciting and darker than I would have expected from earlier scenes.
Having said all that the prose was enjoyable to read, and it clipped along at quite an enjoyable pace. I was engaged in the mystery, and drawn into the world of antique trading, especially Lovejoy's skill at identification and his passion for antiques - which added some rather enjoyable scenes.
I recently acquired this along with two other Lovejoy books. This one hasn't put me wanting to read the other two, but neither has it made me want to explore the series beyond them.
There seemed to be an awful lot of characters in this book - most of whom felt like they were there for local colour, and didn't service many plot requirements. I got some of them confused, at one point thinking Lovejoy was meeting a new character in a bar, when in actual fact he was re-meeting the detective from the scene of the crime, only a few pages earlier. This could be done to the fact that there are a series of Lovejoy books and maybe some of these characters get fleshed out a bit more, and feel more real across several books.
The reveal of the murderer appears in a quite off-hand way, but this is not the denouement of the book. The actual ending is more exciting and darker than I would have expected from earlier scenes.
Having said all that the prose was enjoyable to read, and it clipped along at quite an enjoyable pace. I was engaged in the mystery, and drawn into the world of antique trading, especially Lovejoy's skill at identification and his passion for antiques - which added some rather enjoyable scenes.
I recently acquired this along with two other Lovejoy books. This one hasn't put me wanting to read the other two, but neither has it made me want to explore the series beyond them.
March 29, 2015
While I enjoy Lovejoy as a television series and I appreciate that he is still a cheeky chappie when doing his antique deals, this book leaves me completely cold.
Lovejoy still comes over as a lady killer, full of charm and ever ready to make a quick few pounds in any way that he can but the storyline of this book is disjointed, difficult to follow and completely uninteresting.
Lovejoy is searching for a Holy Grail tree (I think) and he gets into a variety of scrapes as he attempts to find it. He is also involved with various women who he treats rather callously and stumbles across an incident that leads to the death of one man.
Sounds entertaining but it isn't, just a dull read from start to end. Thank goodness there is a bit of Lovejoy's personality to amuse the reader along the way. Otherwise it would have been a complete disaster.
For books such as this, I feel I should stop and call it a day but I always seem to have the desire to finish in the hope that it gets better ... this one didn't!
Lovejoy still comes over as a lady killer, full of charm and ever ready to make a quick few pounds in any way that he can but the storyline of this book is disjointed, difficult to follow and completely uninteresting.
Lovejoy is searching for a Holy Grail tree (I think) and he gets into a variety of scrapes as he attempts to find it. He is also involved with various women who he treats rather callously and stumbles across an incident that leads to the death of one man.
Sounds entertaining but it isn't, just a dull read from start to end. Thank goodness there is a bit of Lovejoy's personality to amuse the reader along the way. Otherwise it would have been a complete disaster.
For books such as this, I feel I should stop and call it a day but I always seem to have the desire to finish in the hope that it gets better ... this one didn't!
March 6, 2014
Unfortunately, I found this entry into the Lovejoy series just an OK listen. I still stand by many of the things I said before - the slang, Lovejoy's rudeness to women, etc. However, having 2 of these stories under my belt, I was able to understand a bit more of the slang and his poor treatment of women? Well, it is evident in all the books so really shouldn't come as any surprise.
What I did find was that this story was pretty slow moving and even the confrontation at the end was just ho-hum. It felt like the author padded the situation with alot of instances, all of which ended up being much ado about nothing.
As much as I have been enjoying the stories, I was hoping this one would be something special. Being a King Arthur fan, I want all books to be as magical as the Holy Grail tale itself. So, Lovejoy, antiques, and a Grail trail would make for an exciting read, right? Unfortunately not in this case.
Disappointed. :(
What I did find was that this story was pretty slow moving and even the confrontation at the end was just ho-hum. It felt like the author padded the situation with alot of instances, all of which ended up being much ado about nothing.
As much as I have been enjoying the stories, I was hoping this one would be something special. Being a King Arthur fan, I want all books to be as magical as the Holy Grail tale itself. So, Lovejoy, antiques, and a Grail trail would make for an exciting read, right? Unfortunately not in this case.
Disappointed. :(
June 4, 2018
The trouble with reading a series of books is trying to come up with something new to say with each succeeding book. If I stop enjoying the series, I’ll stop reading the books, so I can’t really complain about them. And I usually read them for enjoyment, not necessarily for any edification–and often the critical faculties will simply take a sabbatical while I’m in the midst of one.
In this Lovejoy mystery, Lovejoy has to overcome his incredulation over the fact that someone might actually possess the Holy Grail, and by the time he does so, someone’s croaked and our roguish antiques dealer may be next. The new antique (er, a bit of an oxymoron) stuff here is Lovejoy’s apprentice selection process, how to fake a chair, and the joys of trying to date all the women in a small English village–eligible or not.
In this Lovejoy mystery, Lovejoy has to overcome his incredulation over the fact that someone might actually possess the Holy Grail, and by the time he does so, someone’s croaked and our roguish antiques dealer may be next. The new antique (er, a bit of an oxymoron) stuff here is Lovejoy’s apprentice selection process, how to fake a chair, and the joys of trying to date all the women in a small English village–eligible or not.
January 31, 2016
Don't start your Lovejoy introduction with this one...he's clouted a woman in the first few pages and is super misogynist and 'orrible the whole way through.
I didn't enjoy this as much as Gold from Gemini but I am looking forward to other books in the series.
It's still enjoyable! I love the slang, the scatterings of historical notes and antique specific stuff, the descriptions of rural East Anglia, the characters and Lovejoy's asides to the reader. I can never keep up with the string of women who trail after him but enjoy his twisting and turning.
I didn't enjoy this as much as Gold from Gemini but I am looking forward to other books in the series.
It's still enjoyable! I love the slang, the scatterings of historical notes and antique specific stuff, the descriptions of rural East Anglia, the characters and Lovejoy's asides to the reader. I can never keep up with the string of women who trail after him but enjoy his twisting and turning.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews