The Winds of Change

Richard Jury, Book 19

By: Martha Grimes

Narrated by: Steve West

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

As he leans over the body of an unidentified five-year-old girl shot in the back on a shabby London street, Superintendent Richard Jury knows he'll be facing one of the saddest investigations of his life. His colleague DI Johnny Blakeley, head of the pedophile unit of NSY, thinks he knows where this child came from - an iniquitous house on that same street, owned by well-known financier Viktor Baumann and fronted by a woman named Murchison. Blakeley has been trying to wreck their operation for a long time.

While examining the body of an unidentified woman murdered in the gardens of Declan Scott's estate, Angel Gate, Brian Macalvie, commander of the Devon and Cornwall police, realizes he's been here before. Three years prior, Declan's stepdaughter, four-year-old Flora, was abducted while she and her mother Mary were visiting the Lost Gardens of Heligan. Shortly after that, Mary Scott herself died, and Declan was devastated by the loss of his child and his wife.

"He really doesn't need a body in his garden," says Macalvie.

Joined by the intrepid Melrose Plant, now a gardener at Angel Gate, Jury and Macalvie rake over the present and the past in a pub near Launceston called the Winds of Change. With one of their most serpentine investigations under way, all signs point to the guilt of Viktor Baumann, Mary Scott's first husband and Flora's father. But when no one in this case is exactly who he seems, how can Jury be sure?

©2004 Martha Grimes (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Another winner

Excellent mystery, the main characters are people you’d love to know, the mix of tragedy and comedy is perfect.

Amazing Story!!!

First and foremost I want to say Steve West’s performance is brilliant! He is absolutely incredible as a narrator and performer. How many accents can this man do?? Even his performance doing female voices is excellent. He is so good at what he does that I forget I’m listening to one man read and play all the characters. I love this man and so happy that Steve West got the job to narrate these books.

Now the story is a bit on the dark side. I promise not to give to much away but there is a few terrifying chapters where Richard Jury is willing to put himself and his job on the line to save some children. Which endeared me more to him. But even he is sickened as to what he must say and do in order to get the children out of danger. I have to say I found it a bit nauseatingly sick myself. Which brought to mind how undercover police must feel having to pretend to be the filth they so desperately want to lock up.

On a side note: I have read some of the reviews for this book and was quite surprised how many readers and listeners remarked on a very small scene in which Wiggins was very uncomfortable with a boy with Down syndrome. Taking it for what it’s worth Wiggins is portrayed like, sadly, many people who cannot get past another human being different. By his actions and his words he shows his ignorance. But what I saw was Richard Jury treated with respect and as he was a boy. Richard show empathy and did not look down on this young boy. The scene is so small in comparison with the rest of the story and the seriousness what is really going on with Child Sex Trafficking and Pedophiles.

A heavy subject

As always, the dialogue was great in this story. The performance was almost flawless. Although a very sad subject, both Jury and Melrose were true to character.

A short walk on the dark side

This entry in the Jury series takes on child sexual abuse, and Ms. Grimes doesn't pull any punches. That is wholly appropriate, since it is something that should not be danced around or taken lightly. At the same time, this listen is an intense emotional roller coaster thanks to the unfailing emotional honesty she writes into Richard Jury, and Steve West's spot on narration. There is a good deal of the charming conversations between characters that is her usual and enjoyable fare, but be forewarned. If you have strong feelings about the subject matter, this one is going to be a bumpy ride.

Excellent

Always an great story. Richard Jury is a great character. Steve West performs this book excellently.

Lost stars, owing to ignorant bigotry re Down’s Syndrome

Overall, The Winds of Change is very similar to Grimes’s other Richard Jury books: decent plot, enticing mystery, and detailed characterization (incl. a hero who continues to avoid needed psych medication and therapy), combined with startling sexism.
HOWEVER, The Winds of Change contains some extremely ignorant statements re Down Syndrome, statements not spoken by a character, but stated as fact. What statements? 1. That Down’s Syndrome is a curse. 2. That a boy with Down Syndrome, who says the name of his dead sister when the adults around him begin discussing her, is merely trying out a word. That “any” word would do, as the boy doesn’t know the significance of his sister’s name, doesn’t know what any word means. 3. That a boy with Down’s Syndrome should have been “taken care of”, placed in an institution, rather than live at home. ALSO, 2 of the book’s characters react hideously to this boy, including shuddering (and freaking out) at the boy wanting to stand next to one of them, resting his hand on the seated character’s forearm.