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Richard Jury #24
The Knowledge
With their signature wit, sly plotting, and gloriously offbeat characters, Martha Grimes’s New York Times bestselling Richard Jury mysteries are “utterly unlike anyone else’s detective novels” (Washington Post). In the latest series outing, The Knowledge, the Scotland Yard detective nearly meets his match in a Baker Street Irregulars-like gang of kids and a homicide case that reaches into east Africa.
Robbie Parsons is one of London’s finest, a black cab driver who knows every street, every theater, every landmark in the city by heart. In his backseat is a man with a gun in his hand—a man who brazenly committed a crime in front of the Artemis Club, a rarefied art gallery-cum-casino, then jumped in and ordered Parsons to drive. As the criminal eventually escapes to Nairobi, Detective Superintendent Richard Jury comes across the case in the Saturday paper.
Two days previously, Jury had met and instantly connected with one of the victims of the crime, a professor of astrophysics at Columbia and an expert gambler. Feeling personally affronted, Jury soon enlists Melrose Plant, Marshall Trueblood, and his whole gang of merry characters to contend with a case that takes unexpected turns into Tanzanian gem mines, a closed casino in Reno, Nevada, and a pub that only London’s black cabbies, those who have “the knowledge,” can find. The Knowledge is prime fare from “one of the most fascinating mystery writers today” (Houston Chronicle).
Robbie Parsons is one of London’s finest, a black cab driver who knows every street, every theater, every landmark in the city by heart. In his backseat is a man with a gun in his hand—a man who brazenly committed a crime in front of the Artemis Club, a rarefied art gallery-cum-casino, then jumped in and ordered Parsons to drive. As the criminal eventually escapes to Nairobi, Detective Superintendent Richard Jury comes across the case in the Saturday paper.
Two days previously, Jury had met and instantly connected with one of the victims of the crime, a professor of astrophysics at Columbia and an expert gambler. Feeling personally affronted, Jury soon enlists Melrose Plant, Marshall Trueblood, and his whole gang of merry characters to contend with a case that takes unexpected turns into Tanzanian gem mines, a closed casino in Reno, Nevada, and a pub that only London’s black cabbies, those who have “the knowledge,” can find. The Knowledge is prime fare from “one of the most fascinating mystery writers today” (Houston Chronicle).
368 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 3, 2018
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1344 people want to read
About the author
Martha Grimes
113 books1,454 followersMartha Grimes is an American author of detective fiction.
She was born May 2 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to D.W., a city solicitor, and to June, who owned the Mountain Lake Hotel in Western Maryland where Martha and her brother spent much of their childhood. Grimes earned her B.A. and M.A. at the University of Maryland. She has taught at the University of Iowa, Frostburg State University, and Montgomery College.
Grimes is best known for her series of novels featuring Richard Jury, an inspector with Scotland Yard, and his friend Melrose Plant, a British aristocrat who has given up his titles. Each of the Jury mysteries is named after a pub. Her page-turning, character-driven tales fall into the mystery subdivision of "cozies." In 1983, Grimes received the Nero Wolfe Award for best mystery of the year for The Anodyne Necklace.
The background to Hotel Paradise is drawn on the experiences she enjoyed spending summers at her mother's hotel in Mountain Lake Park, Maryland. One of the characters, Mr Britain, is drawn on Britten Leo Martin, Sr, who then ran Marti's Store which he owned with his father and brother. Martin's Store is accessible by a short walkway from Mountain Lake, the site of the former Hotel, which was torn down in 1967.
She splits her time between homes in Washington, D.C., and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
She was born May 2 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to D.W., a city solicitor, and to June, who owned the Mountain Lake Hotel in Western Maryland where Martha and her brother spent much of their childhood. Grimes earned her B.A. and M.A. at the University of Maryland. She has taught at the University of Iowa, Frostburg State University, and Montgomery College.
Grimes is best known for her series of novels featuring Richard Jury, an inspector with Scotland Yard, and his friend Melrose Plant, a British aristocrat who has given up his titles. Each of the Jury mysteries is named after a pub. Her page-turning, character-driven tales fall into the mystery subdivision of "cozies." In 1983, Grimes received the Nero Wolfe Award for best mystery of the year for The Anodyne Necklace.
The background to Hotel Paradise is drawn on the experiences she enjoyed spending summers at her mother's hotel in Mountain Lake Park, Maryland. One of the characters, Mr Britain, is drawn on Britten Leo Martin, Sr, who then ran Marti's Store which he owned with his father and brother. Martin's Store is accessible by a short walkway from Mountain Lake, the site of the former Hotel, which was torn down in 1967.
She splits her time between homes in Washington, D.C., and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 653 reviews
April 16, 2018
It has been almost four years since the last Richard Jury has been published. As soon as I started reading this I was reminded just how much I enjoy this series, these characters, like catching up with
old friends. This story includes a murder of a welathy married couple in front of an exclusive gambling establishment, two people who Jury had just met a few days before. Of course he is drawni to the case, and he enlists his two friends, Melrose Plant who he send to Africa,and Trusvlood, who he establishes as a black jack dealer in the gambling venue. Without his knowledge a small group of intrepid children, including the eleven year old Patty Haigh. This young girl is unbelievable, not a person to mess with, funny, fearless and quite enchanting. The Knowledge itself is a place that only those cab drivers who drive black cabs are able to find. Not even the police can find this place. Someone does though and who it is adds a bit of whimsy.
This is a series that is entertaining, has some great characters and an intirguing mystery that has ties to Africa. Some of what happens is probably unbelievable but it makes for a good story. Love the interplay between the characters,and appreciate the steady pace and the many turns this story takes.
Love this series and hope this time there is not as many years before next in series.
ARC from Netgalley.
old friends. This story includes a murder of a welathy married couple in front of an exclusive gambling establishment, two people who Jury had just met a few days before. Of course he is drawni to the case, and he enlists his two friends, Melrose Plant who he send to Africa,and Trusvlood, who he establishes as a black jack dealer in the gambling venue. Without his knowledge a small group of intrepid children, including the eleven year old Patty Haigh. This young girl is unbelievable, not a person to mess with, funny, fearless and quite enchanting. The Knowledge itself is a place that only those cab drivers who drive black cabs are able to find. Not even the police can find this place. Someone does though and who it is adds a bit of whimsy.
This is a series that is entertaining, has some great characters and an intirguing mystery that has ties to Africa. Some of what happens is probably unbelievable but it makes for a good story. Love the interplay between the characters,and appreciate the steady pace and the many turns this story takes.
Love this series and hope this time there is not as many years before next in series.
ARC from Netgalley.
December 21, 2021
3.5 stars
In this 24th book in the 'Richard Jury' series, the Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent investigates the murder of a wealthy American professor and his wife. The book can be read as a standalone, but familiarity with the characters is a bonus.
*****
Handsome rich American physics professor David Moffitt and his beautiful wife Rebecca are visiting London, and arrange to spend the evening at the VERY exclusive Artemis Club - a gambling casino/art gallery owned by Leonard Zane.
The Moffitts take an elite 'black taxi' to the club, driven by ace cab driver Robbie Parsons.
As soon as the Moffitts arrive at the casino, they're shot dead by a tall black gunman. The killer then jumps into Robbie Parson's taxi and orders him to pull away......fast! Robbie is sure his life is about to end, but the gunman just rides around town and gets out at Waterloo Station - where he pays his fare and adds a big tip!
Robbie doesn't want the perp to get away, so he activates a network of street kids - reminiscent of the Baker Street Irregulars - to track the killer. One child in particular, a ten-year-old named Patty Haigh, takes this directive VERY seriously.
Patty spots the gunman at Heathrow Airport and - using cunning, chicanery, thievery, and lies - joins the perp on a trip to Nairobi, Kenya. In fact, Patty goes so far as to befriend the killer, who's oddly kind and helpful.
Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Richard Jury, who was acquainted with the Moffitts, is put in charge of the murder case.
As always Jury gets assistance from eccentric friends who reside in the village of Long Piddleton. Jury sends Melrose Plant (aka Lord Ardry) to Nairobi;
And Jury tells antique dealer Marshall Trueblood to get a job at the Artemis Club, as a blackjack dealer.
Jury soon learns that Leonard Zane's casino/art gallery imports paintings from a Kenyan artist AND Zane owns a tanzanite gem mine in Kenya. This makes Zane, as well as other people connected to the Moffiits, persons of interest in the murder case. The investigation soon gets VERY complicated - with elements of smuggling, jealousy, greed, etc. - and Jury and his assistant Sergeant Wiggins interview many suspects.
Meanwhile, Melrose Plant makes useful discoveries in Kenya - as does Patty Haigh - and they inadvertently meet in Nairobi and join forces. Patty's resourcefulness in any and all circumstances is remarkable, and she's easily the book's most interesting (and fun) character.
Jury's beautiful, fortune-teller neighbor Carole-Anne Palutski - who often cadges restaurant dinners off the detective - makes an appearance in the story.
And it's always amusing to observe the health regime of the hypochondriac Sergeant Wiggins.
The book's title, 'The Knowledge', refers to a secret pub that caters exclusively to London cab drivers. The attempts of other people, including Jury, to learn the location of The Knowledge are hilarious.....but it's not easy to get the best of a London cabbie. 😊
The plot was a bit over-complicated in my opinion, but I enjoyed the book and recommend it to mystery fans.
You can follow my reviews at https://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot....
April 1, 2018
Ten-fifteen years ago, if you'd asked about my favourite book series I probably would have said it was those by Martha Grimes and featuring Scotland Yard detective Richard Jury alongside the aristocratic but diffident Melrose Plant.
All named after a pub featured the in book (kicking off with The Man With A Load of Mischief in 1981), they were my comfort reads. I LOVED our main players - Jury himself and Melrose Plant of course. I'd even worked out who should play each in a TV series at one point. (And was later disappointed to see those cast in a German series based on the books - a bit like my response to the UK TV version of the Elizabeth George's Inspector Thomas Lynley series.)
I struggled a little at one point in this series. Jury seemed to constantly be falling in love with women you'd least expect and it felt as if the story, and our characters, floundered a little. Even now I'm not sure if their lives are really going anywhere. Perhaps Grimes doesn't know where she wants to take them. Indeed, I read somewhere that she'd 'slowed' time between each book in the series to avoid the characters ageing too much.
And in reality they haven't really aged since I first met them 20-30 years ago, which IS a good thing for me. I don't want to read about them as 80yr olds, but would prefer they stay in their 30s, 40s or 50s. (Or perhaps I want them to age at a similar pace to me.... which I'd also like to be slowed down if at all possible? #Kthnxbai).
There are many things I adore about the series. The characters, obviously. Grimes really nails the voices of her main cast, including Jury, Plant, Jury's colleague Wiggins and neighbour Carole-Anne Palutski, along with Plant's eccentric band of English aristocrats; incidentally, written incredibly well by an American author.
And... I think I've said this before, she writes kids really really well. Many of her Jury / Plant series have featured self-possessed and audacious youngsters all playing well off both main characters. (And then of course there's her Emma Graham series, centred around the series' 12yr old namesake.)
It's no different here as we're dragged from London to Kenya by Patty, a 10yr old street kid. (One needs to suspend disbelief, I must admit, in contemplating how a child could travel on two international flights, roam about Nairobi and eventually run into the one person she needs to. But, #whatevs)
I could easily have read this in a sitting and was tempted to ditch my plans to do so. My original plan involved only starting the book but I kept going, such is the warm enveloping nature of Grimes' narrative.
As always, both of our heroes get their time in the spotlight - I've wondered if she prefers one over the other - and think I was once very much in team Jury camp, but am prevaricating a bit about that (and team-Melrose) as I've gotten older.
All named after a pub featured the in book (kicking off with The Man With A Load of Mischief in 1981), they were my comfort reads. I LOVED our main players - Jury himself and Melrose Plant of course. I'd even worked out who should play each in a TV series at one point. (And was later disappointed to see those cast in a German series based on the books - a bit like my response to the UK TV version of the Elizabeth George's Inspector Thomas Lynley series.)
I struggled a little at one point in this series. Jury seemed to constantly be falling in love with women you'd least expect and it felt as if the story, and our characters, floundered a little. Even now I'm not sure if their lives are really going anywhere. Perhaps Grimes doesn't know where she wants to take them. Indeed, I read somewhere that she'd 'slowed' time between each book in the series to avoid the characters ageing too much.
And in reality they haven't really aged since I first met them 20-30 years ago, which IS a good thing for me. I don't want to read about them as 80yr olds, but would prefer they stay in their 30s, 40s or 50s. (Or perhaps I want them to age at a similar pace to me.... which I'd also like to be slowed down if at all possible? #Kthnxbai).
There are many things I adore about the series. The characters, obviously. Grimes really nails the voices of her main cast, including Jury, Plant, Jury's colleague Wiggins and neighbour Carole-Anne Palutski, along with Plant's eccentric band of English aristocrats; incidentally, written incredibly well by an American author.
And... I think I've said this before, she writes kids really really well. Many of her Jury / Plant series have featured self-possessed and audacious youngsters all playing well off both main characters. (And then of course there's her Emma Graham series, centred around the series' 12yr old namesake.)
It's no different here as we're dragged from London to Kenya by Patty, a 10yr old street kid. (One needs to suspend disbelief, I must admit, in contemplating how a child could travel on two international flights, roam about Nairobi and eventually run into the one person she needs to. But, #whatevs)
I could easily have read this in a sitting and was tempted to ditch my plans to do so. My original plan involved only starting the book but I kept going, such is the warm enveloping nature of Grimes' narrative.
As always, both of our heroes get their time in the spotlight - I've wondered if she prefers one over the other - and think I was once very much in team Jury camp, but am prevaricating a bit about that (and team-Melrose) as I've gotten older.
April 15, 2018
I have read, and have looked forward to reading, every book in the Richard Jury series. The characters have been clever, intelligent and amusing. The dialogue crisp and delightful. This book, however, is so disappointing on so many levels. The first is the convoluted plot of tanzanite, smuggling, Africa, gambling, to name a few.
Then there is the matter of ten year-old Patty Haight. The girl who does everything. She manages to: finagle herself aboard planes to foreign countries; cavort across the African countryside; con every adult she meets into doing her bidding. And I repeat-a ten year old? This was absolutely and positively unbelievable. Does no flight attendant ever check her ID or passport? I have more trouble boarding on domestic flights.
By the time I finished reading The Knowledge, I was not only confused by all the subplots, I simply didn't care.
Then there is the matter of ten year-old Patty Haight. The girl who does everything. She manages to: finagle herself aboard planes to foreign countries; cavort across the African countryside; con every adult she meets into doing her bidding. And I repeat-a ten year old? This was absolutely and positively unbelievable. Does no flight attendant ever check her ID or passport? I have more trouble boarding on domestic flights.
By the time I finished reading The Knowledge, I was not only confused by all the subplots, I simply didn't care.
November 15, 2019
When I was approved for an arc of Grimes' latest in the Richard Jury series, The Old Success, I realized I had a couple to catch up on first, including this one.
Jury meets an interesting young man and his wife who are visiting London--he an American professor of astrophysics; she a beautiful Brit with dual citizenship--while shopping at Starrdust and they met for dinner later that evening. Jury is shocked and saddened to later learn that both have fallen victim to a shooter outside an exclusive London casino and he decides to do some investigating on his own instead of leaving it to the City Police. He is helped by his usual group of eccentric and talented friends but also by the city's taxi drivers and a gang of street-smart kids who seem to know an awful lot about what is going on around town. The kids are reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes' Baker Street Irregulars.
The 'who did it' of course is known but the reason why is a problem. Is it to do with gambling? Smuggling? Greed? A very intriguing mystery.
The Knowledge is a bar for London taxi drivers only; its whereabouts are a closely guarded secret. This leads to some amusing situations in the story, especially at the end. How ironic!
Jury meets an interesting young man and his wife who are visiting London--he an American professor of astrophysics; she a beautiful Brit with dual citizenship--while shopping at Starrdust and they met for dinner later that evening. Jury is shocked and saddened to later learn that both have fallen victim to a shooter outside an exclusive London casino and he decides to do some investigating on his own instead of leaving it to the City Police. He is helped by his usual group of eccentric and talented friends but also by the city's taxi drivers and a gang of street-smart kids who seem to know an awful lot about what is going on around town. The kids are reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes' Baker Street Irregulars.
The 'who did it' of course is known but the reason why is a problem. Is it to do with gambling? Smuggling? Greed? A very intriguing mystery.
The Knowledge is a bar for London taxi drivers only; its whereabouts are a closely guarded secret. This leads to some amusing situations in the story, especially at the end. How ironic!
August 2, 2018
Martha Grimes is what you call a prolific producer of excellent crime fiction having released a book (sometimes two) annually for the past 25 years! Now that's dedication! Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, where her father was the City Solicitor. Her mother owned the Mountain Lake Hotel in Western Maryland where Martha and her brother spent a substantial period of their childhood. Later, Grimes earned her B.A. and M.A. at the University of Maryland and put them to good use writing page-turning tales that have been described as falling into the mystery genre and into the "literary mystery" niche sub-genre. Her stories place emphasis on well-written character-driven aspects and less on violence. In 1983, Grimes received the Nero Wolfe Award for best mystery of the year for "The Anodyne Necklace". In 2012, Grimes was named Grand Master by The Edgar Awards Mystery Writers of America.
"The Knowledge" is the 24th(!) book in the critically acclaimed Richard Jury series, and features Jury as an inspector with Scotland Yard and his friend Melrose Plant, a British aristocrat who has given up his titles. A little known fact is that each of the Jury mysteries is named after a pub and this one is no different - named after the extensive testing cab drivers go through in order to gain a licence. Some of her other books include the Emma Graham quartet of novels and the Andi Oliver duology. She is also a passionate animal activist and donated two-thirds of her royalties for "Biting The Moon", the first book in the Andi Oliver series released in 1999, to animal abuse organisations.
Although I haven't had the pleasure of reading all the previous 23 novels in this wonderful series, the ones I have read have lead me to having extremely high expectations as Grimes writes such unique books and I would say she is certaily a masterful writer within this genre. There are so many authors writing very similar stories yet Grimes can write an inordinate amount of titles without resorting to "borrowing ideas" from others. I am blown away by how intriguing each story is and how engaged I was from the beginning right until the conclusion.
This is an authentic British mystery that keeps you enthralled and excited and manages to do so without using violence at the every turn, something that takes a lot of skill to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally drawn, especially Mr, Jury who has to be one of my favourite and most enduring characters in modern literature. There are some delightfully curious details that you won't find elsewhere and one of my most loved elements - the prose, it's simply spectacular and pulls you into the book immediately. All of these aspects combine to create a magical reading experience.
I do hope that Grimes continues to publish the Richard Jury series as it has swiftly become a favourite of mine. I plan to go back and read the rest of the books that I haven't read yet and also delve into her other titles. Jury is an eccentric and loveable character that I would surely miss should this series come to an end. Brilliant, just brilliant!
Many thanks to Grove Press for an ARC. I was not required to post a review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
"The Knowledge" is the 24th(!) book in the critically acclaimed Richard Jury series, and features Jury as an inspector with Scotland Yard and his friend Melrose Plant, a British aristocrat who has given up his titles. A little known fact is that each of the Jury mysteries is named after a pub and this one is no different - named after the extensive testing cab drivers go through in order to gain a licence. Some of her other books include the Emma Graham quartet of novels and the Andi Oliver duology. She is also a passionate animal activist and donated two-thirds of her royalties for "Biting The Moon", the first book in the Andi Oliver series released in 1999, to animal abuse organisations.
Although I haven't had the pleasure of reading all the previous 23 novels in this wonderful series, the ones I have read have lead me to having extremely high expectations as Grimes writes such unique books and I would say she is certaily a masterful writer within this genre. There are so many authors writing very similar stories yet Grimes can write an inordinate amount of titles without resorting to "borrowing ideas" from others. I am blown away by how intriguing each story is and how engaged I was from the beginning right until the conclusion.
This is an authentic British mystery that keeps you enthralled and excited and manages to do so without using violence at the every turn, something that takes a lot of skill to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally drawn, especially Mr, Jury who has to be one of my favourite and most enduring characters in modern literature. There are some delightfully curious details that you won't find elsewhere and one of my most loved elements - the prose, it's simply spectacular and pulls you into the book immediately. All of these aspects combine to create a magical reading experience.
I do hope that Grimes continues to publish the Richard Jury series as it has swiftly become a favourite of mine. I plan to go back and read the rest of the books that I haven't read yet and also delve into her other titles. Jury is an eccentric and loveable character that I would surely miss should this series come to an end. Brilliant, just brilliant!
Many thanks to Grove Press for an ARC. I was not required to post a review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
April 3, 2018
The quirky cab drivers in this book were such a treat! I always like a new Richard July mystery and this one was a fun read. Early in the book a couple is killed in front of an exclusive casino/nightclub. A cabbie, Robbie Parsons, had driven the couple to the venue and a man with a gun jumped into his car and told him to drive. Robbie drove around the London and finally dropped the man at Waterloo Station.
A bunch of kids who were friends of Robbie tracked the man to Heathrow where he boarded a plane. Patty Haigh, age 10 (my favorite character in this book) actually finagled her way onto the plane to continue following the man. Richard Jury is, of course, brought in to investigate the murders and he had actually met and liked the man who was killed. The hunt is on to find the killer and some interesting information develops.
The Knowledge is a bar for Black Cab drivers only. It is a secret place and the secret is carefully kept by the cabbies. It is not on any map and many people have tried to find it.
I enjoyed this mystery and loved the quirky characters. The writing is clever and flows well. This story is a fun one because of the characters and the intricate plot.
Thanks to Martha Grimes and Grove Atlantic through Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.
A bunch of kids who were friends of Robbie tracked the man to Heathrow where he boarded a plane. Patty Haigh, age 10 (my favorite character in this book) actually finagled her way onto the plane to continue following the man. Richard Jury is, of course, brought in to investigate the murders and he had actually met and liked the man who was killed. The hunt is on to find the killer and some interesting information develops.
The Knowledge is a bar for Black Cab drivers only. It is a secret place and the secret is carefully kept by the cabbies. It is not on any map and many people have tried to find it.
I enjoyed this mystery and loved the quirky characters. The writing is clever and flows well. This story is a fun one because of the characters and the intricate plot.
Thanks to Martha Grimes and Grove Atlantic through Netgalley for an advance copy of this book.
October 7, 2025
Maybe it's not you, Martha. Maybe it's me. But there is asking a reader to suspend disbelief, and there is asking a reader to _really_ suspend disbelief, from the get-go. Especially when it comes to The Precocious Kid Trope. And while some may have found our Jury's jaunts down memory lane enjoyable, I felt like they were filler (and that it was unreasonable to expect such minute details to be remembered years and years and books and books later). I'm bummed that it's come to this; this series has given me so many hours of reading pleasure up until now. Well, here's hoping we get along better next time!
April 20, 2018
Ahhhhh...another adventure with Richard Jury, Melrose Plant, Marshall Trueblood and the entire cast of characters. The crime at the heart of this one hits Jury particularly hard. The ensuing solution is vintage Jury. I do love these books.
March 23, 2018
As David and Rebecca Moffit exit a cab in front of an exclusive club/casino/art gallery called Artemis, they are tragically shot to death. The shooter then jumps in the cab, points a gun at the cab driver, Robbie Parsons, and tells him to drive.
Det. Superintendent Richard Jury becomes involved in the murder case due to the fact that he had met the victims two days before their death and felt an instant bond with David. He’s determined to find the murderer as the investigation moves from London to Reno, Nevada to Tanzanian gem mines and even to Africa.
While I don’t often read cozy mysteries any longer, Martha Grimes is one author that I always return to. I’ve read each of her books and it was quite a pleasure to once again spend time with her unique, eccentric characters. This book also introduced us to a gang of young children, particularly the clever Patty Haight, who were all delightful. Ms. Grimes’ books are character and humor driven and are unlike any other mystery series. From Richard Jury to his aristocrat friend Melrose Plant to dear Wiggins, Marshall Trublood, Carole-Anne, Diane and Vivian and even the mischievous cat Cyril, all such beloved characters. I did miss Aunt Agatha in this particular book. Logic and believability may be lacking in the mystery department but her books more than make up for it in the character department.
Recommended as are all of Martha Grimes’ books.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
Det. Superintendent Richard Jury becomes involved in the murder case due to the fact that he had met the victims two days before their death and felt an instant bond with David. He’s determined to find the murderer as the investigation moves from London to Reno, Nevada to Tanzanian gem mines and even to Africa.
While I don’t often read cozy mysteries any longer, Martha Grimes is one author that I always return to. I’ve read each of her books and it was quite a pleasure to once again spend time with her unique, eccentric characters. This book also introduced us to a gang of young children, particularly the clever Patty Haight, who were all delightful. Ms. Grimes’ books are character and humor driven and are unlike any other mystery series. From Richard Jury to his aristocrat friend Melrose Plant to dear Wiggins, Marshall Trublood, Carole-Anne, Diane and Vivian and even the mischievous cat Cyril, all such beloved characters. I did miss Aunt Agatha in this particular book. Logic and believability may be lacking in the mystery department but her books more than make up for it in the character department.
Recommended as are all of Martha Grimes’ books.
This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.
June 24, 2018
I love Richard Jury and Melrose Plant, but I am not fond of the way many of the books in the series have gone recently, in particular the author's seeming need to thrust children as main characters into every novel. This one has a pip named Patty Haigh, who is so unbelievable as to be just this side of nauseating.
On the other hand, it did have some reminiscences about other cases and other pubs, none like THE KNOWLEDGE however. Most of the usual characters are included as well although I wish Jury would leave off matchmaking since it is almost as boring as the insufferable Carole-anne Palutski.
One thing I wish Grimes would clear up is in what year all this mystery takes place? It gives the impression that it's the 21st century, but Jury's non-knowedge about tanzanite is bizarre. I knew about its scarcity years ago, and I'm not a Detective Superintendent. He seems a trifle too naive in this one as well. And just exactly how old is he? All those references to his mother would seem to make him older than he would appear to be.
As I said, I like the Jury/Plant series, but I wish Martha Grimes would simplify her plots. She's got two of the best characters so she doesn't need to pile on so many others, who only seem to muddle, not clarify, the issues.
On the other hand, it did have some reminiscences about other cases and other pubs, none like THE KNOWLEDGE however. Most of the usual characters are included as well although I wish Jury would leave off matchmaking since it is almost as boring as the insufferable Carole-anne Palutski.
One thing I wish Grimes would clear up is in what year all this mystery takes place? It gives the impression that it's the 21st century, but Jury's non-knowedge about tanzanite is bizarre. I knew about its scarcity years ago, and I'm not a Detective Superintendent. He seems a trifle too naive in this one as well. And just exactly how old is he? All those references to his mother would seem to make him older than he would appear to be.
As I said, I like the Jury/Plant series, but I wish Martha Grimes would simplify her plots. She's got two of the best characters so she doesn't need to pile on so many others, who only seem to muddle, not clarify, the issues.
March 29, 2018
Net Galley ARC. This was my first Martha Grimes (Richard Jury) mystery. It started out well enough, a husband and wife shot dead outside a posh London casino. And it continued well enough as Robbie, an expert black cabbie, is forced at gunpoint to drive the perp across London and eventually to Heathrow. Then begins a long series of curveballs, requests for suspension of disbelief, I found increasingly difficult to summon, and digressions into minor character's backgrounds, philosophies, and… well, it went on and on.
I have to say the book is well written and there were some quips by Scotland Yard sleuth and the eponymous Richard Jury that made me chuckle, but a pre-teen girl who manages to pickpocket an Emirates boarding pass and get the name changed on it… at Heathrow? Please.
Maybe I'm a curmudgeon and like my mysteries gritty and realistic, but I think this is all too clever and it seems as though the author is asking, how far will my readers follow me? This one is #24 in her Jury series. I won't be looking for #25.
I have to say the book is well written and there were some quips by Scotland Yard sleuth and the eponymous Richard Jury that made me chuckle, but a pre-teen girl who manages to pickpocket an Emirates boarding pass and get the name changed on it… at Heathrow? Please.
Maybe I'm a curmudgeon and like my mysteries gritty and realistic, but I think this is all too clever and it seems as though the author is asking, how far will my readers follow me? This one is #24 in her Jury series. I won't be looking for #25.
May 16, 2018
Holy Cow! Hang on to your socks – this new Richard Jury novel, “The Knowledge”, by Martha Grimes – starts out with a BANG! We are introduced to Robbie Parsons, a highly skilled London Black Cab driver, and his merry band of cohorts (fellow Cabbies and assorted pick pockets and grifters), as he witnesses a double murder and then is kidnapped by the murderer and told to “Drive!” It’s Robbie’s quick thinking, knowledge of the streets of the City, and his coded messages to other drivers, which sets us off to an amazing cinemagraphic chase scene!
As it turns out, Robbie’s coterie of “helpers” are children! Nine and ten years old; precocious and “street-smart”. Fans of Martha Grimes know that she writes AWESOME kid characters; what a treat to have them pop up here. The best bits of this novel are the interactions/relationship between Melrose Plant, aka Lord Ardry, Jury’s titled friend and perennial “helper”, and ten-year-old, Patty Haigh. This is a fast-paced novel but I slowed down to savor these passages full of humor and a little pathos.
Thank you, Ms. Grimes, for not phasing out the wonderful ancillary characters that make the Richard Jury series so wonderful, humorous and rich! We learn a LOT more about Marshall Trueblood’s fascinating past! And maybe sense a little romantic movement between Melrose and Vivienne?
Settle in for an engaging mystery with jaunts into the world of tanzanite mining (we go to Africa!), astrophysics and quantum mechanics, and lots of fun facts about the strange and mysterious streets of the City of London and the super-secret pub known only to cabbies, called The Knowledge.
As it turns out, Robbie’s coterie of “helpers” are children! Nine and ten years old; precocious and “street-smart”. Fans of Martha Grimes know that she writes AWESOME kid characters; what a treat to have them pop up here. The best bits of this novel are the interactions/relationship between Melrose Plant, aka Lord Ardry, Jury’s titled friend and perennial “helper”, and ten-year-old, Patty Haigh. This is a fast-paced novel but I slowed down to savor these passages full of humor and a little pathos.
Thank you, Ms. Grimes, for not phasing out the wonderful ancillary characters that make the Richard Jury series so wonderful, humorous and rich! We learn a LOT more about Marshall Trueblood’s fascinating past! And maybe sense a little romantic movement between Melrose and Vivienne?
Settle in for an engaging mystery with jaunts into the world of tanzanite mining (we go to Africa!), astrophysics and quantum mechanics, and lots of fun facts about the strange and mysterious streets of the City of London and the super-secret pub known only to cabbies, called The Knowledge.
March 26, 2018
Thank you to Grove Atlantic, Atlantic Monthly Press and NetGalley for an advance e-galley of The Knowledge by Martha Grimes in exchange for an honest review. This is the 24th murder mystery in the Richard Jury series. However, since this is a first in the series for me, I can approach it on its own individual merits. This can easily be read as a standalone. Richard Jury is a Scotland Yard sleuth and The Knowledge is the name of a London pub frequented by black cab drivers only. The book begins with the murder of a married couple outside of an elite art gallery/casino. The crime is witnessed by a cab driver who, in turn, is kidnapped. The storyline takes us from London to Africa and back again, introducing new characters as it progresses. This novel reads like a cozy mystery because the characters are not always credible and sometimes confuse the story. I did enjoy The Knowledge and would like to read more of Martha Grimes' previous novels.
June 14, 2020
My first read from Martha Grimes (Richard Jury) and I throughly enjoyed it! Looking to read more Richard Jury mysteries!
January 1, 2023
This series has been iffy for me since I began dabbling in it a few years ago. I would enjoy one, then find another tiresome. I put it on my discontinued list. With this recent entry, it’s back on my active list.
The recent books are more contemporary and urban—not that urban is necessary for interesting but it seems to have injected the series with more vitality and relevance, the characters more engaging and less stuck in place, and somewhere along away that pointless aunt seems to have left the scene. So I’m back.
The recent books are more contemporary and urban—not that urban is necessary for interesting but it seems to have injected the series with more vitality and relevance, the characters more engaging and less stuck in place, and somewhere along away that pointless aunt seems to have left the scene. So I’m back.
November 1, 2021
THE KNOWLEDGE
(Richard Jury # 24)
Martha Grimes
I am not sure how this can be book 24, when I have never read any of the others! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
I simply enjoyed this book a great deal, and it is my first one, so clearly it seems that you can start anywhere in the series! Right?
I loved the start of the book, the cabs, the kids and the cops, Richard Jury. I loved Patty Haigh, despite the fact that she is a bit closer to a super child than a real airport resident. I thought the plot was properly intriguing and the twist and turns were well done!
I have already put another on my reading list...
4 stars for entertaining
Happy Reading!
(Richard Jury # 24)
Martha Grimes
I am not sure how this can be book 24, when I have never read any of the others! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
I simply enjoyed this book a great deal, and it is my first one, so clearly it seems that you can start anywhere in the series! Right?
I loved the start of the book, the cabs, the kids and the cops, Richard Jury. I loved Patty Haigh, despite the fact that she is a bit closer to a super child than a real airport resident. I thought the plot was properly intriguing and the twist and turns were well done!
I have already put another on my reading list...
4 stars for entertaining
Happy Reading!
April 9, 2018
This one starts out really strong and then just floundered into flights of "pay no attention to what I am showing you, this is what really happened behind the curtain" which leaves me flat. I like these characters and have followed the series for years but was very disappointed with the muddy reveal.
June 9, 2018
I read all the Richard Jury books I was able to find in another era, usually finding them at used book sales. This latest addition to the series came after a rather long piece of time and I found I was unable to embrace the Jury group of odd friends. There were also people holding important parts of this plot that were truly unbelievable and did not amuse for that reason. If I describe it would spoil book for others,
I have a shelf of these books that I think I may have to pass along to other readers as I now realize I have no desire to revisit the books. Time to let go.
I have a shelf of these books that I think I may have to pass along to other readers as I now realize I have no desire to revisit the books. Time to let go.
June 7, 2018
Implausible, incoherent and containing the thinest of plots.
November 1, 2018
An intriguing mystery with a wonderful cast of characters. I loved Patty!
April 12, 2018
“The Knowledge” by Martha Grimes is book twenty-four in the Richard Jury series. The story begins in London on Friday, November 1, and traverses across the city and several continents at a frantic pace. Grimes reaches out and pulls in the reader right from the first line.
“He was a dead man and he knew it.”
Robbie Parsons drives a prestigious Black Cab, but he was shocked when shots ring out and the killer jumps into his cab. A fast-paced frantic chase through London ensues with the cabbies and the assistance of unusual “extra” helpers, local street children. After a frenzied drive seemingly nowhere, the passenger, and murderer of two people, abruptly puts the gun away, pays the fare, and gets out.
Meanwhile, Detective Superintendent Richard Jury, New Scotland Yard CID, is shocked when he reads the newspaper headline: Couple Shot Outside Trendy London Club. He had met this couple a few nights earlier at a local club. As the city police and Scotland Yard scramble to find the killer, the challenging question is “Why were they killed?” Money? Revenge? Love? None of the usual motives seems to fit this bizarre murder. Even Jury is muddled. “Superintendent, you have a way of speaking in riddles.”
Jury, however, is the consummate investigator, digging for truth and answers, question and requesting everyone.
“What? I didn’t tell you everything? You think I was lyin’?”
“Not at all. But no one ever tells us ‘all he knows’ because you don’t know all you know.”
Occasionally a bit of humor is thrown in at the expense of TV. “We should have a murder board, sir. We’ve been through all of that, Wiggins. And it’s a whiteboard. Don’t talk like we’re a TV cop show.”
The story is not linear, and the action moves from one place to another, from one perspective to another, and from one time to another. As details about the couple come out, the conspiracy moves across continents from the United States to Africa. Flashbacks fill in the background and details, and each chapter is identified with the date and location.
All the characters are well developed and interesting. Everyday details and ordinary happenings are interspersed throughout the book. Casual conversations set the tone and give glimpses into their personalities. Characters are real, believable, and readers like them.
London’s black cab drivers play a key role in the resolution of the mystery, and they provide the title of the book. Since London is complicated to navigate, black cab drivers must pass a rigorous geographic test, claimed to be one of the hardest in the world. It was called “the knowledge.” That was also the name of a hidden hangout for cab drivers, and one that NEVER allowed non-drivers access. Well, maybe there will be an exception.
One especially interesting and unique character is Patty Haigh, one of the “child assistants” involved. The children “informers” do present some “social” incongruities. Patty is extremely well prepared for sleuthing, especially for a ten-year old child, and adept enough that that she traverses international airports, sneaks into foreign countries, talks her way into luxury hotels, and returns to live on the streets of London without some sort of social service intervention.
I was given a copy of “The Knowledge” from Martha Grimes, Atlantic Monthly Press, and NetGalley. I loved every word. I could not put it down. This book is every bit as engaging as the twenty-three before it. It was as easy to read and seemed as if It were reading about an old friend. Oh wait, I was!
“He was a dead man and he knew it.”
Robbie Parsons drives a prestigious Black Cab, but he was shocked when shots ring out and the killer jumps into his cab. A fast-paced frantic chase through London ensues with the cabbies and the assistance of unusual “extra” helpers, local street children. After a frenzied drive seemingly nowhere, the passenger, and murderer of two people, abruptly puts the gun away, pays the fare, and gets out.
Meanwhile, Detective Superintendent Richard Jury, New Scotland Yard CID, is shocked when he reads the newspaper headline: Couple Shot Outside Trendy London Club. He had met this couple a few nights earlier at a local club. As the city police and Scotland Yard scramble to find the killer, the challenging question is “Why were they killed?” Money? Revenge? Love? None of the usual motives seems to fit this bizarre murder. Even Jury is muddled. “Superintendent, you have a way of speaking in riddles.”
Jury, however, is the consummate investigator, digging for truth and answers, question and requesting everyone.
“What? I didn’t tell you everything? You think I was lyin’?”
“Not at all. But no one ever tells us ‘all he knows’ because you don’t know all you know.”
Occasionally a bit of humor is thrown in at the expense of TV. “We should have a murder board, sir. We’ve been through all of that, Wiggins. And it’s a whiteboard. Don’t talk like we’re a TV cop show.”
The story is not linear, and the action moves from one place to another, from one perspective to another, and from one time to another. As details about the couple come out, the conspiracy moves across continents from the United States to Africa. Flashbacks fill in the background and details, and each chapter is identified with the date and location.
All the characters are well developed and interesting. Everyday details and ordinary happenings are interspersed throughout the book. Casual conversations set the tone and give glimpses into their personalities. Characters are real, believable, and readers like them.
London’s black cab drivers play a key role in the resolution of the mystery, and they provide the title of the book. Since London is complicated to navigate, black cab drivers must pass a rigorous geographic test, claimed to be one of the hardest in the world. It was called “the knowledge.” That was also the name of a hidden hangout for cab drivers, and one that NEVER allowed non-drivers access. Well, maybe there will be an exception.
One especially interesting and unique character is Patty Haigh, one of the “child assistants” involved. The children “informers” do present some “social” incongruities. Patty is extremely well prepared for sleuthing, especially for a ten-year old child, and adept enough that that she traverses international airports, sneaks into foreign countries, talks her way into luxury hotels, and returns to live on the streets of London without some sort of social service intervention.
I was given a copy of “The Knowledge” from Martha Grimes, Atlantic Monthly Press, and NetGalley. I loved every word. I could not put it down. This book is every bit as engaging as the twenty-three before it. It was as easy to read and seemed as if It were reading about an old friend. Oh wait, I was!
May 18, 2018
I have been a Richard Jury fan, but found this disappointing. It's been a long time since we had a new Jury novel, have they always been this unbelievable? There were too many impossible coincidences and happening even for a novel: Jury just happens to meet the murdered couple the night before their death and spends a lovely evening with the captivating, handsome (most of the good men in Martha Grimes' books are handsome and most of the good women are beautiful) pair.
The supposed murderer is in a hurry to leave the country, but befriends a child in the airport, although he's a policeman, (a policeman who doesn't check his bullets) he never seriously questions why she is traveling internationally alone, upgrades her ticket to first class, then later buys her a ticket to another country. An 11 year old child just happens to steal and forge a boarding pass and get enough money from her newly met travel companion to pay her way in a foreign country. She just happens to walk 4K in total darkness through a jungle of man eating animals to a safari park and just happens to meet Melrose Plant who has been sent there by Jury. Melrose Plant, who is usually my favorite character, becomes a total wimp in her presence and succumbs to her will. Noone questions why the child has joined the safari without paying a cent. She is a waif who behaves like a spoiled child hobnobbing with the wealthy and carrying a host of disguises in her small back pack. Marshall Trueblood just happens to be an exceptionally competent casino croupier as a plant for Jury. The final suspect, too, was not very believable. With all this said, I continued to read the book because I wanted to know the solution!
The supposed murderer is in a hurry to leave the country, but befriends a child in the airport, although he's a policeman, (a policeman who doesn't check his bullets) he never seriously questions why she is traveling internationally alone, upgrades her ticket to first class, then later buys her a ticket to another country. An 11 year old child just happens to steal and forge a boarding pass and get enough money from her newly met travel companion to pay her way in a foreign country. She just happens to walk 4K in total darkness through a jungle of man eating animals to a safari park and just happens to meet Melrose Plant who has been sent there by Jury. Melrose Plant, who is usually my favorite character, becomes a total wimp in her presence and succumbs to her will. Noone questions why the child has joined the safari without paying a cent. She is a waif who behaves like a spoiled child hobnobbing with the wealthy and carrying a host of disguises in her small back pack. Marshall Trueblood just happens to be an exceptionally competent casino croupier as a plant for Jury. The final suspect, too, was not very believable. With all this said, I continued to read the book because I wanted to know the solution!
August 17, 2019
I am in awe of Martha Grimes. Her latest book,!”The Knowledge “, is just so clever, smart, complicated, and No. 1 in so many ways. She may even be better than Christie or Sayers. And she’s American!! Wowhee!! I love her obviously.
I think her characters are so imaginative andt hey’re all here. Shining brightly for us faithful followers. I would recommend reader her series from the beginning. It does matter because I you want to catch all the nuances.
This outing takes us all over London, also to Africa!
And then back to London. I’m so sorry for people who have missed this series and the joy of reading about everything I’ve referred to here.
I think her characters are so imaginative andt hey’re all here. Shining brightly for us faithful followers. I would recommend reader her series from the beginning. It does matter because I you want to catch all the nuances.
This outing takes us all over London, also to Africa!
And then back to London. I’m so sorry for people who have missed this series and the joy of reading about everything I’ve referred to here.
April 17, 2018
Yikes, Martha, what were you thinking?! Having been a true Jury & Plant fan over the years (and having read every book at least three times), the last five or six novels have been an unmitigated disaster, including the latest one, The Knowledge.
I long for the Man with a Load of Mischief days where the Long Pidd group are there to add comic relief to an interesting murder mystery. But, sadly, those days are long gone. Just marry Jury off and retire him. I think that's it for RJ.
I long for the Man with a Load of Mischief days where the Long Pidd group are there to add comic relief to an interesting murder mystery. But, sadly, those days are long gone. Just marry Jury off and retire him. I think that's it for RJ.
July 23, 2018
I usually enjoy Grimes' Richard Jury mysteries more than I did this installment. It may have had something to do with the way the "murder" was set up and by whom. The cast of supporting characters, especially the street-kids, didn't thrill or entertain me (wrong era - they simply came across as wrong 'uns). Plus, Melrose Plant, for such an erudite and otherwise intelligent man, can sometimes be quite obtuse.
August 25, 2022
Very confusing and convoluted story. A couple gets shot, twee children get involved as the story continues to spiral off into a fog. This of course all be due to this being entry 23 in the series. Will try again but with the first book in the series.
August 2, 2020
Another journey into the world of Richard Jury, Melrose Plant, and Marshall Trueblood. Lucky Melrose Plant who must travel to Africa to learn about the mining of gems and a local artist. The best character award goes to Patty Haigh, a ten-year-old girl, who follows the killer from London to Dubai to Africa. The world of the London taxi drivers amazes me with their knowledge of the streets, sites, and lore of London. Again, the Starrdust windows of animation present a world of imagination and wonder. So many layers of mystery and corruption in this story that what the readers believes at the beginning of the story completely changes by the end of the story. What an adventure through the different cities and countries in search of the truth! And the learning of gambling, art, and mining.
September 24, 2018
Why do I keep reading these books? This one made no sense and the characters are all annoying.
May 28, 2020
Twenty-fourth in the Richard Jury mystery series revolving around a detective superintendent at New Scotland Yard whose friendship with not-an-earl Melrose Plant adds such layers of fun.
My Take
I love the brotherhood of these cab drivers! I remember my first trip to London with my husband telling me about the tests the black cab drivers had to pass, and that I would never be rooked by one of them.
Those kids are good, but I don't understand why or how they work for the cab drivers?? What do they do for them? As for Patty. Wow. I wanna know what her IQ is because she is one amazing, sharp-witted LITTLE girl. Self-assured, open to new places and people, and thinks on her feet. I wonder what her home life is like?
Be wareful, for Grimes throws us into the story and then draws back a few days, making the victims all the sadder. And as much as I loved Jury's encounter with the Moffits, it didn't ring true. Although I did love the sound of that glass-roofed treehouse. As for the contrast between those mothers...! Pfft, one is an absolute dream of a mom while the other is such a shark! The death of the Moffits simply broke my heart, thinking of a world deprived of such a wonderful couple. At least we get to have Patty, lol.
It's an intriguing idea that Sherlock saw an organic whole and not just bits and pieces, that he "observed". Jury's analogy to Michelangelo's carving of David was a brilliant sidestep.
Ahh, it's envy, that is, as DCI Jenkins rolls out a list of the cars on the Dubai police force: Lamborghinis, BMWs, Aston Martins, Bentleys... I'm trying to imagine the police car park.
Whoa, we got a nice bit of back history on Marshall Trueblood. That boy has got some hidden depths. That game he invented in school, Razorbite, ouch. As for Melrose...he's intelligent, self-centered, self-absorbed, but he is interested. He is not your typical lord. Nor a typical Englishman.
Crack me up.
Now that drawer full of broken light bulbs is a clever idea. I know I'm not interested in putting my hand in there!
Grimes uses a third person global subjective point-of-view alternating primarily between Jury's, Plant's, and Patty's perspectives. Very handy as it takes us along on Melrose's safari as well as Jury's investigation and Patty's travels. We do gain a perspective from some of the other characters as well.
There is action in the story, but it's really about the characters — sweethearts, oblivious but well-meaning, manipulative, sneaky, and a few scum.
My primary issue with The Knowledge is Jury's attitude throughout. He's so easygoing and not very coplike or a typical Englishman. In fact, he feels more like an American than not. Plant didn't feel true to previous stories either. It's either me and not having read a Richard Jury in ages or they are off.
Other than the personality changes, it's a funny, superficial read that explores the knowledge every black cab driver must have with more twists and turns than old London streets. I'm not even gonna mention all the red herrings...
The Story
It was a lucky chance encounter at the Starrdust in which Richard Jury met David Moffit. One that led to a convivial evening with the gambling professor and his brilliant wife. So when Jury discovers they've been murdered he inserts himself into the case.
Turns out that deer can see a blue we can't. And poor Wiggins is flummoxed by this new insight Jury has.
The Characters
London
Detective Superintendent Richard Jury is with CID in New Scotland Yard. Carole-anne Palutski usually masquer...er, works at the Starrdust, but she can be anything at all. She's always Richard's upstairs neighbor. Phyllis Nancy is a girlfriend as well as a forensic pathologist.
Long Piddleton, Northamptonshire, England, is...
...the village where Melrose Plant lives in his country house, Ardry End. He is probably Jury's best friend and a former earl (he gave up his title). For excitement, he helps Jury out on his cases. Ruthven is his butler; Martha is his cook; Pippin is a maid; Blodgett is the gardener; and, Aghast is the goat.
Marshall Trueblood is an antique dealer in the village and one of the drinkers who gather at the Jack and Hammer, which is owned by Dick Scroggs. Patty isn't the only one with "relatives" we didn't know before — his great-uncle was a well-regarded Kenyan painter named Abu Kabiga. Uh-huh. Others in the group include Vivian Rivington, Joanna Lewes is a romance writer, and Diane Memorney who drips with facts, usually only one per topic. Miss Twinney is the village librarian. "Count Dracula", a.k.a., Franco Giopinno, was an Italian Vivian had been dating and whom the group hated. Alain Resnais may be a new one.
Dr David Moffit and his wife, Rebecca, are visiting London and her self-absorbed mother, Claire Howard. An astrophysicist, he teaches physics and astronomy at Columbia University and is a well-known gambler. Paula Moffit is David's beloved mom, a widow. Charlie is Paula's Hungarian cook; Penny is her maid. Mrs Shriver owns an isolated cabin.
New Scotland Yard
The hypochondriacal Detective Sergeant (DS) Alfred Wiggins is Jury's partner. Seems he is also the last Tweedears, a baron de jure, or so says Owen Lamb, a genealogist from Baltimore. There also seems to be a Fitz-Hugh Wykham (later Wiggins), ninth baron de jure. And I'm not sure how these two connect... Cyril is the department cat. Detective Chief Superintendent Racer hates Jury. And Cyril. The sexy Fiona Clingmore is Racer's secretary.
Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Dennis Jenkins is on-scene at the Artemis Club. He works with DS Nora Greene. Barbara Porter is the Arts and Antiques Unit, although her specialty is botany. WPC Lois Watkins has her moments.
The Starrdust is...
...based in Covent Garden and is owned by Andrew Starr, an admired and respected astrologer. Meg and Joy are shop assistants who do amazing things with the shop's windows. Madame Zostra, the famous clairvoyant (known as Carole-anne) works out of a silver tent in the shop.
Harry Johnson is a physicist from The Old Wine Shades , 20; Mungo is the dog at the bar and Trevor is the barman. Simon Parkington works at the Park Lane Hotel. Mr Gibbons is the manager of an art gallery in South Kensington of which Mr Tallow is the owner. Jane Holdsworth had been a widow in The Old Contemptibles , 11. Aubrey is a porter at Boring's, Plant's mens club. Young Higgins is their head porter and the oldest one. Major Champs and Colonel Neame are some of the more permanent members. Bea Slocum is a talented artist friend of Plant's and lives with the Crippses ( Rainbow’s End , 13). The now deceased Sarah had been Jury's cousin; her husband, Brendan, is still alive in Newcastle. Pete Apted is a good lawyer who loves weird cases. Karl Mundt.
The Artemis Club is...
...a highly exclusive casino. You can't even get in without an appointment! Leonard Zane owns the club and is a well-known art dealer with a gallery in the club. Maggie Benn is Zane's assistant who vets the callers. Jim is Zane's chauffeur. Max. Henri Bergeron is another of the artists in Zane's gallery.
The black cabs of London
Robbie Parsons has been a taxi driver with that highly desirable black cab for the past thirty-five years. Other drivers, some of them Robbie's friends, include Brendan Small, James, Reggie Reeves, Clive Rowbotham, Janet Swift, Kevin O'Malley, Michaelson, Jonah, Ray Rich, Ben Churchill, Reg Keene, Minnie Huff, Cliff Nugent, Reed Keane, and Billy Burnsides who had tried to get his grandfather in. It's that Brian Moore who throws the cabbies for a loop.
The kids — they all want to be cops — who are working for the cab drivers including Henry, who is a dip; Martin; nine-year-old Suki rips off meals with her dog, Reno; the pocket-picking Aero is amazing on a skateboard as well as on the wheels-up shoes his friend Jules, a cobbler, made for him; Jimmy; and, the fearless ten-year-old Patty Haigh who can do anything, absolutely anything. As Robbie says: "Looks like a little girl, but acts like MI6." Aunt Monique is a useful invention, as is Prince Ramakudu, Patty's brothers Conrad and Randy, and Uncle BB. I'm not sure who Inez and Clara are, foster kids? I'll bet they don't know they exist, lol. Nor do her foster parents Freddie and Marie Umbijawa. Maureen is the snarky waitress at the City Café. The party will be held at the Daybreak Café.
The Knowledge is...
...a completely autonomous pub created by Maurice Benbow, a black cab driver himself. One that only cab drivers are allowed to know the location. Ben is the dog who "led" Maurice to the building. Conrad Coover is one of his driver friends.
B.B., a.k.a., Bushiri Banerjee, is the shooter.
Nairobi, Kenya
Masego Abasi is a brilliant painter. Patty reminds Abasi of a young girl he used to know "Little Rita". Alala is a young girl from Kibera, a slum. Another Bushiri Banerjee is a wealthy industrialist. Elspeth Banado is his wife.
The Nairobi PD
Chief Inspector Kato Kione likes the idea of "Lord Ardry".
Mbosi Luxury Tented Camp gives...
...safari trips. The guests include the hideous Attaboys — Mitchell and Mildred are the parents; Etta is the decent grandmother; and, the kids are the bored Mona and rotten Little Mitchell; Sally Sly and her eight-year-old daughter, Savannah; the very large Mrs Rose Campanelli from Outer Otter; Bobbi North and her teenage son, Jefferson; and, the obnoxious Donald and his unnamed wife. Trish and Ernest Van der Moot are their hosts. Their employees include Lumbai, Montre is a driver, and Danglo is a tracker.
Tanzania
Inspector Benjamin Buhari is with the Tanzanian police and is Bushiri's brother. Benjamin had a daughter, Marguerite, but the mother walked out on them both. President Nyerere became the first president of Tanzania.
Joe-Dan's Bar and Grill is in Namanga. Merelani contains most of the small mines in Block D. Sayko Adisa is the manager of the Blue Vein mine. Abi is one of the young kids who works the mine.
Reno, Nevada
Danny Morrissey was shot at the Metropole, a casino a Leonard Zane had in Reno. Marguerite Banado had been Zane's assistant and a gambling addict.
Back in the day
At St Eglantine's, Trueblood's public school, the second-best player of Razorbite was Conleith Murdock, who was also good at poker. Hoskins and Stewart were good on the metal table. That idiotic Rupert Thorne was lousy at the game. Carruthers was very good at tennis. Mr Atkins/Adkins is the sports master. Mr Nigby is the headmaster.
The Cover and Title
The cover has a white background with a faint gray map of London on it. The author's name is in black in the top third.The title is in gold with the series info just below it across the middle. Below this is a black London cab, shot up.
The title is the name of a pub and a life-altering test, The Knowledge.
My Take
I love the brotherhood of these cab drivers! I remember my first trip to London with my husband telling me about the tests the black cab drivers had to pass, and that I would never be rooked by one of them.
Those kids are good, but I don't understand why or how they work for the cab drivers?? What do they do for them? As for Patty. Wow. I wanna know what her IQ is because she is one amazing, sharp-witted LITTLE girl. Self-assured, open to new places and people, and thinks on her feet. I wonder what her home life is like?
Be wareful, for Grimes throws us into the story and then draws back a few days, making the victims all the sadder. And as much as I loved Jury's encounter with the Moffits, it didn't ring true. Although I did love the sound of that glass-roofed treehouse. As for the contrast between those mothers...! Pfft, one is an absolute dream of a mom while the other is such a shark! The death of the Moffits simply broke my heart, thinking of a world deprived of such a wonderful couple. At least we get to have Patty, lol.
It's an intriguing idea that Sherlock saw an organic whole and not just bits and pieces, that he "observed". Jury's analogy to Michelangelo's carving of David was a brilliant sidestep.
Ahh, it's envy, that is, as DCI Jenkins rolls out a list of the cars on the Dubai police force: Lamborghinis, BMWs, Aston Martins, Bentleys... I'm trying to imagine the police car park.
Whoa, we got a nice bit of back history on Marshall Trueblood. That boy has got some hidden depths. That game he invented in school, Razorbite, ouch. As for Melrose...he's intelligent, self-centered, self-absorbed, but he is interested. He is not your typical lord. Nor a typical Englishman.
Crack me up.
"But the color, on a short-term loan from Hollywood, faded and left behind the daily sweep of drab shrubs and grass bleached by the sun to near-transparency..."And Jury is buying artwork! Meanwhile, Plant is being inducted into The Knowledge. And...sigh...Plant is still oblivious to Vivian, no matter how carefully Jury plans that Orient Express trip.
Now that drawer full of broken light bulbs is a clever idea. I know I'm not interested in putting my hand in there!
Grimes uses a third person global subjective point-of-view alternating primarily between Jury's, Plant's, and Patty's perspectives. Very handy as it takes us along on Melrose's safari as well as Jury's investigation and Patty's travels. We do gain a perspective from some of the other characters as well.
There is action in the story, but it's really about the characters — sweethearts, oblivious but well-meaning, manipulative, sneaky, and a few scum.
My primary issue with The Knowledge is Jury's attitude throughout. He's so easygoing and not very coplike or a typical Englishman. In fact, he feels more like an American than not. Plant didn't feel true to previous stories either. It's either me and not having read a Richard Jury in ages or they are off.
Other than the personality changes, it's a funny, superficial read that explores the knowledge every black cab driver must have with more twists and turns than old London streets. I'm not even gonna mention all the red herrings...
The Story
It was a lucky chance encounter at the Starrdust in which Richard Jury met David Moffit. One that led to a convivial evening with the gambling professor and his brilliant wife. So when Jury discovers they've been murdered he inserts himself into the case.
Turns out that deer can see a blue we can't. And poor Wiggins is flummoxed by this new insight Jury has.
The Characters
London
Detective Superintendent Richard Jury is with CID in New Scotland Yard. Carole-anne Palutski usually masquer...er, works at the Starrdust, but she can be anything at all. She's always Richard's upstairs neighbor. Phyllis Nancy is a girlfriend as well as a forensic pathologist.
Long Piddleton, Northamptonshire, England, is...
...the village where Melrose Plant lives in his country house, Ardry End. He is probably Jury's best friend and a former earl (he gave up his title). For excitement, he helps Jury out on his cases. Ruthven is his butler; Martha is his cook; Pippin is a maid; Blodgett is the gardener; and, Aghast is the goat.
Marshall Trueblood is an antique dealer in the village and one of the drinkers who gather at the Jack and Hammer, which is owned by Dick Scroggs. Patty isn't the only one with "relatives" we didn't know before — his great-uncle was a well-regarded Kenyan painter named Abu Kabiga. Uh-huh. Others in the group include Vivian Rivington, Joanna Lewes is a romance writer, and Diane Memorney who drips with facts, usually only one per topic. Miss Twinney is the village librarian. "Count Dracula", a.k.a., Franco Giopinno, was an Italian Vivian had been dating and whom the group hated. Alain Resnais may be a new one.
Dr David Moffit and his wife, Rebecca, are visiting London and her self-absorbed mother, Claire Howard. An astrophysicist, he teaches physics and astronomy at Columbia University and is a well-known gambler. Paula Moffit is David's beloved mom, a widow. Charlie is Paula's Hungarian cook; Penny is her maid. Mrs Shriver owns an isolated cabin.
New Scotland Yard
The hypochondriacal Detective Sergeant (DS) Alfred Wiggins is Jury's partner. Seems he is also the last Tweedears, a baron de jure, or so says Owen Lamb, a genealogist from Baltimore. There also seems to be a Fitz-Hugh Wykham (later Wiggins), ninth baron de jure. And I'm not sure how these two connect... Cyril is the department cat. Detective Chief Superintendent Racer hates Jury. And Cyril. The sexy Fiona Clingmore is Racer's secretary.
Detective Chief Inspector (DCI) Dennis Jenkins is on-scene at the Artemis Club. He works with DS Nora Greene. Barbara Porter is the Arts and Antiques Unit, although her specialty is botany. WPC Lois Watkins has her moments.
The Starrdust is...
...based in Covent Garden and is owned by Andrew Starr, an admired and respected astrologer. Meg and Joy are shop assistants who do amazing things with the shop's windows. Madame Zostra, the famous clairvoyant (known as Carole-anne) works out of a silver tent in the shop.
Harry Johnson is a physicist from The Old Wine Shades , 20; Mungo is the dog at the bar and Trevor is the barman. Simon Parkington works at the Park Lane Hotel. Mr Gibbons is the manager of an art gallery in South Kensington of which Mr Tallow is the owner. Jane Holdsworth had been a widow in The Old Contemptibles , 11. Aubrey is a porter at Boring's, Plant's mens club. Young Higgins is their head porter and the oldest one. Major Champs and Colonel Neame are some of the more permanent members. Bea Slocum is a talented artist friend of Plant's and lives with the Crippses ( Rainbow’s End , 13). The now deceased Sarah had been Jury's cousin; her husband, Brendan, is still alive in Newcastle. Pete Apted is a good lawyer who loves weird cases. Karl Mundt.
The Artemis Club is...
...a highly exclusive casino. You can't even get in without an appointment! Leonard Zane owns the club and is a well-known art dealer with a gallery in the club. Maggie Benn is Zane's assistant who vets the callers. Jim is Zane's chauffeur. Max. Henri Bergeron is another of the artists in Zane's gallery.
The black cabs of London
Robbie Parsons has been a taxi driver with that highly desirable black cab for the past thirty-five years. Other drivers, some of them Robbie's friends, include Brendan Small, James, Reggie Reeves, Clive Rowbotham, Janet Swift, Kevin O'Malley, Michaelson, Jonah, Ray Rich, Ben Churchill, Reg Keene, Minnie Huff, Cliff Nugent, Reed Keane, and Billy Burnsides who had tried to get his grandfather in. It's that Brian Moore who throws the cabbies for a loop.
The kids — they all want to be cops — who are working for the cab drivers including Henry, who is a dip; Martin; nine-year-old Suki rips off meals with her dog, Reno; the pocket-picking Aero is amazing on a skateboard as well as on the wheels-up shoes his friend Jules, a cobbler, made for him; Jimmy; and, the fearless ten-year-old Patty Haigh who can do anything, absolutely anything. As Robbie says: "Looks like a little girl, but acts like MI6." Aunt Monique is a useful invention, as is Prince Ramakudu, Patty's brothers Conrad and Randy, and Uncle BB. I'm not sure who Inez and Clara are, foster kids? I'll bet they don't know they exist, lol. Nor do her foster parents Freddie and Marie Umbijawa. Maureen is the snarky waitress at the City Café. The party will be held at the Daybreak Café.
The Knowledge is...
...a completely autonomous pub created by Maurice Benbow, a black cab driver himself. One that only cab drivers are allowed to know the location. Ben is the dog who "led" Maurice to the building. Conrad Coover is one of his driver friends.
B.B., a.k.a., Bushiri Banerjee, is the shooter.
Nairobi, Kenya
Masego Abasi is a brilliant painter. Patty reminds Abasi of a young girl he used to know "Little Rita". Alala is a young girl from Kibera, a slum. Another Bushiri Banerjee is a wealthy industrialist. Elspeth Banado is his wife.
The Nairobi PD
Chief Inspector Kato Kione likes the idea of "Lord Ardry".
Mbosi Luxury Tented Camp gives...
...safari trips. The guests include the hideous Attaboys — Mitchell and Mildred are the parents; Etta is the decent grandmother; and, the kids are the bored Mona and rotten Little Mitchell; Sally Sly and her eight-year-old daughter, Savannah; the very large Mrs Rose Campanelli from Outer Otter; Bobbi North and her teenage son, Jefferson; and, the obnoxious Donald and his unnamed wife. Trish and Ernest Van der Moot are their hosts. Their employees include Lumbai, Montre is a driver, and Danglo is a tracker.
Tanzania
Inspector Benjamin Buhari is with the Tanzanian police and is Bushiri's brother. Benjamin had a daughter, Marguerite, but the mother walked out on them both. President Nyerere became the first president of Tanzania.
Joe-Dan's Bar and Grill is in Namanga. Merelani contains most of the small mines in Block D. Sayko Adisa is the manager of the Blue Vein mine. Abi is one of the young kids who works the mine.
Reno, Nevada
Danny Morrissey was shot at the Metropole, a casino a Leonard Zane had in Reno. Marguerite Banado had been Zane's assistant and a gambling addict.
Back in the day
At St Eglantine's, Trueblood's public school, the second-best player of Razorbite was Conleith Murdock, who was also good at poker. Hoskins and Stewart were good on the metal table. That idiotic Rupert Thorne was lousy at the game. Carruthers was very good at tennis. Mr Atkins/Adkins is the sports master. Mr Nigby is the headmaster.
The Cover and Title
The cover has a white background with a faint gray map of London on it. The author's name is in black in the top third.The title is in gold with the series info just below it across the middle. Below this is a black London cab, shot up.
The title is the name of a pub and a life-altering test, The Knowledge.
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