Following hard upon the action of 2006's twisty The Old Wine Shades
, Grimes's equally intricate 21st Richard Jury mystery brings the Scotland Yard superintendent to a shady London hotel to investigate the murder of wealthy bachelor Billy Maples. Jury discovers connections between the murder case and the distant past through Maples's grandfather, who served as one of Britain's top code breakers during WWII. Allusions to the literary themes of Henry James lend depth. The superintendent also encounters some major romantic complications in the form of gorgeous Det. Insp. Lu Aguilar, the lead detective on the case, and Scotland Yard pathologist Phyllis Nancy. Ably abetted by his longtime amateur colleague, Melrose Plant, Jury deftly and doggedly pursues the killer. While still several notches below P.D. James's outstanding psychological whodunits, this excellent series consistently entertains—and in a way that's accessible for newcomers. 8-city author tour. (Jan.)
