The Red Queen

The Red Queen by Martha Grimes
7/1/25; 256 pages
Grove Atlantic
Richard Jury #26

The Red Queen by Martha Grimes is a recommended procedural and humorous cozy mystery. This is the twenty-sixth novel in the series featuring superintendent Richard Jury. It may be best appreciated by those who have been following the series and intimately know all the characters. Many of them are present, including Melrose Plant.

Jury and Wiggins of New Scotland Yard are asked to investigate when businessman Tom Treadnor is shot through the window at The Queen pub in Twickenham. No one saw who did it and Treadnor doesn't appear to be well liked, including by Alice, his wife. He was planning to divorce her. At the same time Jury sees a photo in the newspaper of a man who is the doppelgänger of Treadnor. The man is traveling in the USA and unable to be located.

Another case involves Wiggins, Jury’s partner at New Scotland Yard. His missing sister sent a postcard to their mother and Wiggins takes off with Macalvie to find her. The two follow various clues to find her. Eventually the two investigations begin to converge. There is also an incident with a goat and some pigs.

This is a short, fast-paced novel that can be quickly read. Along the way there are some delightful scenes and humorous encounters. This doesn't represent the best novels in the series. It doesn't have the suspense or complexity of earlier novels. The investigation seems lackluster and was easily predicted. However, Grimes is in her nineties now so another Richard Jury novel is a feat in itself.

The Red Queen is a great choice for those who have been following the Richard Jury series. Thanks to Grove Atlantic for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.