The facts about Richard Jury can be listed dry. Alone, such a list does not depict the charm of the series, because it lives on (of course) especially through the main character, Richard Jury, inspector (later superintendent) at Scotland Yard. In the original English version, he is described as a Scotland Yard detective with the rank of Chief Inspector, and as an Inspector in the German version.

Jury is described as a good-looking man, who makes an impression on women. Furthermore, he is a good listener and can also be very good with children. His cases give him no rest until they are finally finished. He does not have a private life.

The appeal of the series lies in the lovingly drawn characters - some of them appear again and again in episodes, in shorter or longer side stories presented with a dry humour. The books by Martha Grimes about Richard Jury are always amusing and entertaining.

The cases described in the books are centred on the investigation of a murder - naturally, no surprises there. However, the circumstances of the deed’s discovery are often depicted in a very bizarre manner by Martha Grimes.

Richard Jury – Private Life

Jury is a melancholic man who lost his mother as a child in a bombing raid in World War II. Richard survived both the attack and the death of his mother. Since his father died in the war, Richard spent his childhood and youth in care homes or with relatives. He has a cousin that he visits regularly twice a year. However, the relationship between the two has grown very cold. Jury still maintains a normal relationship with his cousin’s husband, though.

The adult Richard Jury works as an inspector at the Scotland Yard, and is later promoted to superintendent. He lives alone in a flat in an apartment building, where his private life is rather sparse. Richard is very good with children, who often see him as one of their own and sometimes tell him things that are important for his investigations.

Persons Close to Richard Jury

Carol-Anne Palutski

A young, very good looking and lively woman who regards it as their duty to care of bachelors. He receives an answering machine from her, which she also installs. She also points out that Richard does not have much contact with women. If he meet a woman, which is rare, Carol-Anne wants to know precisely what happened. She sometimes sits on the couch in his apartment and paints her toenails.

Mrs. Wassermann

Mrs. Wasserman lives in the apartment halfway below street level. The old lady survived the Holocaust and is suffering from paranoia. She lives in a constant fear of criminals targeting her. Jury sometimes mounts various locks on her apartment door, which Mrs. Aquarius always locks carefully. She also received a police whistle from Jury to be able to call for help. Mrs. Aquarius is of course very pleased that an inspector from Scotland Yard lives in the same house as her.

Sergeant Alfred Wiggins

Sergeant Wiggins is always on Jury’s side. Wiggins is a hypochondriac, whose desk is littered with pills, tablets and herbal juices. He is afraid of all germs and likes speaking about the pills he is taking for different (alleged) diseases. He often has a suitable house recipe at hand and is generous with tips and advice.

Wiggins is also a good listener, who likes having conversations with the house staff in the kitchen, especially if he thinks he felt a chill in the bones and urgently needs a hot cup of tea. He usually makes a good report on his respondents and his records are always spotless, which has already led to some crucial clues.

Melrose Plant

Actually "Earl the 8^th of Caverness and the 12^th Viscount of Ardry". Much to the dismay of his Aunt Agatha, Plant has discarded his title, however. His reason for this was that he needed to attend some meetings of the House of Lords that bored him terribly. Moreover, he found it inappropriate to bear such a title and pursue a job as well. This job is described as a professor at the University of London, specializing in French poetry of the Romantic period. He is mentioned only rarely and serves perhaps only as embellishment to the author. Since Melrose Plant is described as very rich, he does not even have to pursue a regular job.

Melrose reads poetry as well as crime and solves the crossword puzzle in The Times in less than 15 minutes. Although Melrose seems to be quite a pleasant and likeable person, he finds no connection with children. He does not know what to do with them. Plant lives on his large estate, "Ardry End".

Melrose sometimes helps Richard in the investigation of cases. He also appears several times as an expert in something, which of course he never had even the slightest idea about.

Ruthven

Ruthven (pronounced Rivven) is Melrose Plant’s faithful butler. Ruthven is usually described in the background. He can only difficulty try to discard the salutation "your lordship" but will probably never completely manage to.

Aunt Agatha

She is the aunt of Melrose Plant, and was married to the brother of "Earl the 7^th of Caverness". Aunt Agatha is an American who appears, however, "very British." This also means that she calls herself "Lady Ardry". When Melrose is in his estate "Ardry End", she visits him constantly and gets on his nerves again and again. She is known for never getting enough of the delicacies brought by the cook with tea. During these visits, she is also sometimes caught by Melrose trying to confiscate a figurine or something similar and putting it in her large handbag. These figures appear later on her fireplace. Aunt Agatha is a feisty lady who likes to quarrel with someone as long as she gains a benefit from it. Ruthven often tries (unsuccessfully) to prevent Agatha visits to Adry End.

Marshall Trueblood

Marshall runs an antique store in Long Piddleton and is friends with Melrose. "Aunt Marsha" as Trueblood sometimes called, is always well dressed and truly reflects all the cliches that are associated to gay men through his behaviour and appearance. He is depicted as a nice contemporary and wealthy man who can afford to dress like this if he so pleases.

Vivian Rivington

Vivian also lives in Long Piddleton. Her year-long plan of marrying an Italian count has not yet come true because both Melrose and Marshalare constantly putting her down. Thereby, the two always speak of Count Dracula - at least in Vivian's absence. Vivian has a soft spot for Richard Jury and he is also very devoted to her. Unfortunately, Martha Grimes has probably not provided a happy ending for the two, because so far no development has been shown in this direction.

Diane Demorney

Also living in "Long Pidd", Diane Demorney Horsokope predicts the future of her friends based on their zodiac sign. She also tries to persuade Vivian from getting married with such made-up horoscopes. She knows things that no normal person would ever know. She picks a tiny subtopic of a subject and makes it her own, knowing everything there is to know about it. This often leads to confusion in conversations with her friends.

Polly Praed

She is a mystery author, who appears only rarely in the novels centred on Richard Jury. Polly makes Jury and Plant’s acquaintance during a case in a case known. She adores Richard Jury, wo rarely or never notices it. Melrose has a crush on Polly, which she also never seems to notice.

Theo Wrenn Browne

Theo is the owner of the bookstore of Long Piddleton and is at odds with almost everyone - except Aunt Agatha.

Scroggs

Owner of the pub, in which Melrose, Marhall and Diane meet every now and again.

Divisional Commander Brian Macalvie

Responsible for the Devon and Cornwall counties, Macalvie is always the first at a crime scene, since his team is not punctual enough for him. He is not all too enthusiastic about Scotland Yard's involvement in a murder case through Richard Jury and yet, the two investigators eventually develop a friendship.

Superintendent Racer

Racer is Richard Jury’s superior at Scotland Yard. He is described as choleric and unjust. Moreover, Racers usually keeps out of the office to pursue private affairs. One could compare him Vice-Questore Patta, created by Donna Leon as the superior of Commissario Brunetti in Venice.

Fiona Clingmore

Fiona is Racer’s secretary. She is very concerned about her appearance and is always dressed in black. She adores Richard Jury, whom she encounters repeatedly at the desk, while trying one of their beauty potions or painting her nails.

Cyril (Cat)

The cat Cyril lives on the premises of Scotland Yard, but nobody knows where she came from. In fact, she often goes into Racer’s office, driving him crazy. Again and again, the situation escalates, with Cyril trying to escape through the open door - followed by Racer’s wild curses. Richard Jury sympathizes with Cyril.

Richard Jury - The Books

It is advisable to read the series in chronological order, as the books feature details about events occurring in the previous ones.

Man with a Load of Mischief (1981)

The Old Fox Deceiv'd (1982)

The Anodyne Necklace (1983)

The Dirty Duck (1984)

Jerusalem Inn (1984)

Help the Poor Struggler (1985)

The Deer Leap (1985)

I Am the Only Running Footman (1986)

The Five Bells and Bladebone (1987)

The Old Silent (1989)

The Old Contemptibles (1991)

The Horse You Came in On (1993)

Rainbow's End (1995)

The Case Has Altered (1997)

The Stargazey (1998)

The Lamorna Wink (1999)

The Blue Last (2001)

The Grave Maurice (2002)

The Winds of Change (2004)

The Old Wine Shades (2006)

Dust (2007)

The novels about Richard Jury are also available as audiobooks. Inspector Richard Jury is read by Matthias Ponnier, Melrose Plant by Felix von Manteuffel and Sergeant Alfred Wiggins by Edgar Kulow. The audio books are entertaining and illustrate the various characters consistently through the speakers' voices.