Train Now Departing [Paperback]

Martha Grimes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 3, 1998

These two linked novellas, "The Train now Departing" and "When 'The Mousetrap' Closes", both explore emotional isolation and identity within human relationships.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As she did in Hotel Paradise, Grimes here eschews the mystery genre, venturing into Anita Brookner territory in two related novellas whose protagonists are lonely women in emotional limbo. The unnamed heroine of the title story is a colorless woman who lives on an inheritance in her comfortable family home in a small town, has given up her job as a teacher and spends her days in passive desperation. A chance meeting with a man who writes travel books leads to her only sustained human contact. The two have platonic late-afternoon lunches during which his attention to his food outweighs her need for conversation; when they do talk, they bicker. She only picks at the rich food, preferring cheese sandwiches at the railway cafe, where she feels more affinity for the waitress than she does for the writer, whom she inwardly assails as a man without depth. It is she herself, however, too timid to travel anywhere, or to do anything at all, who is depthless. The irony of the denouement, where the woman's fear proves more accurate than the writer's offhand denial of danger, proves touching. Though she too represents another narrow existence lived in solitude, Edith Parenger, the protagonist of "When The Mousetrap Closes," is a more appealing, nuanced character. "An ordinary maiden lady" of 52, she is mourning the recent death of her mother, with whom she lived in harmony. When renowned young actor Archie Marchbanks turns up at her neighborhood tearoom, Edith is moved to talk to him. To her amazement, he initiates a weekly tea date during which she quizzes him about his craft. Clues to Archie's motivation emerge when he describes his roles as "the trick of the confidence man," but Edith is slow to understand the implications of his behavior. As Grimes describes these women with restrained sympathy, one is moved by her ability to suggest the aching emotional chasm of apparently solid middle-aged lives.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The latest offering from Grimes, the author of the popular Richard Jury mystery series, consists of a pair of atmospheric novellas. While both stories center on middle-aged, single women whose careful, well-ordered lives are gradually altered by meals they share with male acquaintances, these two novellas are quite distinct in their ambience and characterization. In "The Train Now Departing," Grimes eerily depicts a bright, analytical woman teetering into madness. "When the Mousetrap Closes" is the story of Edith Parenger, a woman whose desperate loneliness is pitted against her keen powers of observation in an unflinching exploration of the power of illusion. Although these stories are not mysteries, they are full of suspense and surprise. These carefully written little gems showcase Grimes at her best. Recommended for all fiction collections.
---Jane La Plante, Minot State Univ Lib., ND
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Headline (December 3, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747256977
• ISBN-13: 978-0747256977
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,507,171 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Martha Grimes is the bestselling author of twenty-one Richard Jury novels, as well as the novels Dakota and Foul Matter, among others. Her previous two Jury books, The Old Wine Shades and Dust, both appeared on the New York Times bestseller list.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful "departure" for Martha Grimes, July 6, 2000

By 

Colleen (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Train Now Departing (Hardcover)

If you're a fan of Martha Grimes's mystery novels (she is the author of a popular series of British police procedurals starring Richard Jury), take a trip with Ms. Grimes into the "non-Jury" world in her new book of two short novellas. As always, the writing is superb--witty, evocative, sharp--and the characters fully realized and sympathetic (or quite unsympathetic, depending on the character...).

The first novella, The Train Now Departing, tells the story of an introspective, imaginative middle-aged woman who has an oddly compelling relationship with a famous travel writer. During the couple's frequent luncheons, the woman tries every trick in the book to get the man to talk about his fabulous adventures, in an effort to live vicariously through him. The man is taciturn, argumentative, and not at all forthcoming--in fact, he seems to dislike traveling immensely. The woman's inner dialogue and emotional life is fascinating; the two friends' (friends?) relationship frustratingly wonderful.

The second novella,When the Mousetrap Closes, is another story of an unlikely friendship--this time, between a somewhat isolated middle-aged Englishwoman and a famous English stage actor. Normally shy, the woman is compelled to approach the actor in a tea room to tell him how much she enjoys his work, and a friendship forms. The story of how their relationship progresses, their conversations about acting and life and beauty, and the tale's conclusion is deep, thought-provoking and sad.

If you haven't read Ms. Grimes's mystery novels, you'll be able to read The Train Now Departing with an unbiased mind--and I think you'll enjoy it tremendously, as I did. If you've read her mystery novels, but have never tried one of her "non-Jury books," turn the mystery switch off, pretend she's a brand-new-to-you author, and enjoy this excellent literary departure.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A skilled departure for Grimes, April 1, 2003

By 

Debbie Lee Wesselmann (the Lehigh Valley, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Train now Departing (Paperback)

I picked up this slim book by Grimes because I was intrigued that this novelist, perhaps most famous for her mysteries and mainstream novels, would embark on a decidedly literary and less popular format, the novella. In THE TRAIN NOW DEPARTING, Grimes proves herself a versatile writer as comfortable with the subtlety of human interaction as she is with murder. The two novellas contained within the 185 pages are thematically linked. Each protagonist is a lonely, intelligent woman who meets regularly, for lunch or tea, with a man she struggles to decipher. Through these encounters, each edges closer to understanding the core of herself.

"The Train Now Departing" is the stronger (and longer) of the two; both the woman and her companion, a travel writer, are richly imagined and imbued with puzzling traits which humanizes them. While I cannot conceive of how the woman and the travel writer would have met and why they have established such an obviously painful routine, their exchanges illuminate the novella with touching realism. The contrast between the meals the two main characters share and the meals the protagonist consumes alone is a brilliant device that lends emotional force to the ending.

"When the Mousetrap Closes" is much more lively than the first novella, and the protagonist Edith's interest in Archie Marchbanks, a famous actor, is much more believable. However, the end of the novella suffers from gimmickry, cheapening everything that precedes it. I wished that Grimes had left the ends of the story unraveled rather than tying them up as she did. Despite this flaw, this novella has an almost irresistible charm.

These novellas are quiet and studied, with the emphasis on the inner lives of their protagonists. Readers who expect Grimes's genre fiction will be disappointed, but fans eager to explore another side of this author will be impressed by her range. I recommend this book only to those who understand - and embrace - the kind of departure Grimes has made.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent departure for Ms. Grimes!, May 4, 2000

By 

Christine Herron - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Train Now Departing (Hardcover)

I have been a Martha Grimes fan for 10 years now and have read all of her books. While I fell in love with Richard Jury and Melrose Plant, I still enjoy her other "non-Jury" mysteries. This book was no exception. The stories in this book are so wonderfully told. It was an excellent departure from her other characters. Martha Grimes prooves once again that she is a true writer. If you love Martha Grimes, pick up this book...you will not be disappointed...even though Jury, Plant, and the gang are nowhere to be found.