Help the Poor Struggler

By: Martha Grimes

Narrated by: Steve West

Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's Summary

Around bleak Dartmoor, where the Hound of the Baskervilles once bayed, three children have been brutally murdered. Now Richard Jury of Scotland Yard joins forces with a hot-tempered local constable named Brian Macalvie to track down the killer. The trail begins at a desolate pub named, "Help the Poor Struggler".

It leads straight to the estate of Lady Jessica, a 10-year-old orphaned heiress who lives with her mysterious uncle and an ever-changing series of governesses. And as suspense spreads across the forbidding landscape, an old injustice returns to haunt Macalvie...with clues that link a murder in the distant past with a killing yet to come.

©2005 Martha Grimes (P)2013 Simon & Schuster Audio

Grimes sets a more serious tone--good listen

The last book or two in the series have seemed transitional in some ways, from the earlier books which were richly populated by all the eccentric characters from Long Piddleton and provided some comic relief in places during the crime detection. This book is almost all about Richard Jury (from Scotland Yard), his sidekick Sgt Wiggins, and an Inspector from another jurisdiction, Brian Macalvie. Melrose Plant plays a minor role, and the Long Piddleton characters meet briefly in the Jack and Hammer pub, so that we don't forget about them, but this is really a more serious and intense book than the earlier ones. There is both interesting tension among the characters who have experienced three recent murders and the haunting memory of one twenty years before for which the wrong person might have been convicted. The recent murders occur when he is getting out of prison.

As usual, Grimes has used a pub as the title of her book, "HelpThe Poor Struggler," and this name may be said to sort of speak to the general situation, but doesn't play a central role in the book, except that Jury, Wiggins and Macalvie meet there to discuss the case. Here are three seemingly unrelated child murders and they must hurry to solve the case before another child gets murdered, in this case, the precocious Lady Jessica Ashcroft.

I felt this book was an improvement from her last, but still greatly miss the lighter-hearted early books, where there was still Richard Jury, Who did more with Melrose Plant and his team of quirky friends. There was nice tension-reducing in that. However, this looks like a transition into more serious crime solving. Her most recent books (notwithstanding that they were all written in the 1980's), but recent in terms of where in the series they are placed, seem to be her effort to have less involvement of the silly characters and more straightforward mystery solving. I rather miss the Long Piddleton group, but know this is her own maturation as a writer most likely. I enjoy hearing this old series, which I read in the 80's. They are each a treat. Recommend.

12 of 13 people found this review helpful

Jury and the deaths of children

Would you listen to Help the Poor Struggler again? Why?

Yes, I would. I like the Martha Grimes mysteries. Having read most of them years ago, I particularly enjoy listening. In this book the heavy-drinking crowd at the Jack and Hammer do not play as big a role, though Melrose does come into the plot--always a good addition. The plot and resolution (particularly the resolution) are a tad fragile, but my belief is that readers take to Grimes' novels for the atmosphere and character development. She is particularly good at creating unusual personalities in children.

What other book might you compare Help the Poor Struggler to and why?

This book is similar to any of the Richard Jury mysteries, though the crimes are a bit grimmer.

What about Steve West’s performance did you like?

As with any good reader, he performs superbly and inhabits the characters. I never feel jarred by his interpretations.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. I prefer enjoying this type of mystery over several days, while walking the dog or driving.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Losing their luster

The first several books were really great. The last several have been a disappointment.

This one was better than the last, but still had little of what made the series great. Plant is barely present. Wiggins was more or less pointless in this one (as were most of the regular characters). Her new character was not likeable.

Without that quirky cast, these are just fairly run of the mill mysteries. This one was poorly plotted (the murderer comes out of left field).

I am now taking a break from the series. I may come back and read the rest, but the shine has definitely dimmed.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Meet Macalvey

murder-investigation, obsession, law-enforcement

A tough read because children are being targeted. The usual characters are in place plus a new high ranking copper who is obsessed by a case he was on as a newish sgt and was positive that the wrong man was imprisoned. The case is convoluted enough to make everyone a little nutty, including the reader. I like the way the author's mind works.
Steve West does a wonderful job.

Confusing

Too much time away from Plant snd Jury. Too much reliance on coincidence. My biggest criticism is that I still don't totally understand what was going on. An author doesn't need an Agatha Christie drawing room monologue to explain the mystery. In this case, though, it could have been a lot clearer.

Just another masterful Grimes mystery

Where does Help the Poor Struggler rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

If you mean those by Martha Grimes, it is near the top. I have read her books before (when I had normal vision) and am now listening. I wish you offered all of her books on audible.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Help the Poor Struggler?

I tend the enjoy the scenes with the children and the various pub scenes with the usual cast of characters. I adore the amount of detail in her descriptive prose.

How could the performance have been better?

You could have used a different reader. Had it not been for the story and my love of Martha Grimes' work, I would have ceased to listen. I do not think this reader does her prose justice. He gets in the way and his voice gets on one's nerves. He is too flat.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I suppose the ending. I don't really think about books in terms of moments.

Any additional comments?

A very good cozy mystery that does not disappoint. If only the reader could have been up to par with the mystery itself.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

yeah

blue screen and the other side of things to be in Europe and Asia and

0 of 3 people found this review helpful