The closest witness to the crime is a blind and deaf man who seems constantly angry. He is the one who finds the body.

By Special request by Lady Cray, Richard Jury is sent to Baltimore, Maryland to look into the murder. The victim is the nephew of a friend of hers. Melrose Plant travels with Jury, as he has been invited by authoress friend Helen Taylor. Sergeant Wiggins and his personal pharmacopeia also accompanies Jury. While in Baltimore, all three find themselves introduced to rabid Orioles fans, delicious crabs and Edgar Allan Poe, along with the other charms Baltimore has to offer.

Besides murder, there is also a manuscript by Edgar Allen Poe that comes to light. It is real or is it a forgery? When another murder takes place involving the woman who discovered the document, Jury finds he really has his hands full. Plant and Wiggins become extra eyes and ears in solving the murders.

Once again, the story line moves smoothly, with twists and left turns, as the three friends unravel and discover if there are connections between the various events. ( )

Let me start with this: I have really enjoyed everything I have read (and collected) by Martha Grimes, but I couldn't get through this one. After several attempts ("Start over, I must be missing something..."), I find it is still much more dialogue than the story will support. Too many irrelevant side trips, far too confusing. ( )

snarky, murder-investigation, Baltimore, law-enforcement, situational-humor, verbal-humor, EAPoe
More overtly funny than most of the series, Jury and Wiggins head to the US for a few days at the behest and expense of an eccentric and marvelous character from one previous book while Plant heads to Baltimore at the frantic call from a friend. They all wind up pooling information at a bar named The Horse You Came In On. The story itself involves academia, Poe, several murders, and possible plagiarism.
Steve West actually gets to snigger on occasion during his narration! ( )

Richard Jury and Melrose Plant cross the pond to handle a case in Baltimore involving an alleged new story by Edgar Allan Poe, a wealthy football fan, Patrick Muldare, and a dead derelict, John-Joy. Melrose wandering through Baltimore with cabbie Hugh and making friends with the homeless was fairly funny. Some open-endedness of the case when Jip gives Richard a photo of herself at age 6 and asks him to find "it", the place she was living. Melrose embarks on his career as a writer. Fun read. ( )

The first Martha Grimes to disappoint me. A total change from the author's usual writing. Much darker, very confusing. Mainly set in the United States as opposed to Britain. I understand the author wanting to change her style, but rather than do so within an already established series, start a new one. This was sadly the last Grimes I ever finished. Tried to read the next in the series but was again disappointed and could not get through it. ( )