Customer Reviews

Where Memories Lie LP: A Novel (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James Novels)

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In Deborah Crombie's "Where Memories Lie," Superintendant Duncan Kincaid and Detective Inspector Gemma James have settled into domestic tranquility with their sons from former relationships, thirteen-year-old Kit and five-year-old Toby. Kincaid works in Scotland Yard and Gemma is stationed in Notting Hill. Although they are no longer professional partners, they still depend on one another for advice and support. Gemma's friend, Erika Rosenthal, is a retired academic who left Berlin with her husband, David, at the beginning of World War II. One evening, Erika asks Gemma to come over to discuss an important matter. It seems that an Art Deco brooch made of diamonds set in platinum has surfaced and is about to be auctioned off at a house called Harrowby's. Erika's late father, Jakob Goldshtein, was a master jewelry maker who created this exquisite item in 1938 and gave it to his daughter. It was stolen from her fifty years ago under tragic circumstances and she never expected to see it again. Erika asks Gemma to find out how a British auction house managed to acquire Jakob's masterpiece. Gemma agrees to make inquiries, not realizing that her visit to Harrowby's will set off alarms in the mind of a cold-blooded killer.

The author makes excellent use of flashbacks to 1952 London, in which an inspector named Gavin Hoxley investigates the murder of Erika Rosenthal's husband. Gemma studies Gavin's case notes, and as she learns more about Erika and David's lives, she begins to realize how the past and the present have converged, "as if time had rippled." Duncan and Gemma team up, pooling their resources to solve a series of brazen homicides. Meanwhile, Gemma has problems of a more personal nature. Her dad, Ern Walters, who always treats her with a touch of disdain, shows up at her home one evening while she is out. He tells Duncan that Gemma's mum, Vi, has collapsed and is in the hospital. Since Vi has always been lively, independent, and energetic, Gemma is dismayed to learn that her mother has a serious illness with an uncertain prognosis. Gemma is also guilt-ridden because her busy schedule has kept her from looking in on her parents more often. She struggles to come to terms with her mother's illness, her father's resentment, and her fear of accepting Duncan's marriage proposal.

Crombie has assembled a varied and colorful cast. Gemma and Duncan are soul mates who are enjoying their well-earned contentment after years filled with misfortune and heartbreak. Erika Rosenthal is a dignified and self-sufficient woman who keeps her own counsel until she is ready to tell her horrifying tale. Kristin Cahill is an ambitious and attractive girl with an art history degree who is employed at Harrowby's. She is in love with Dominic Scott, a "pretty boy" with bad habits and unsavory associates. Dom's mother, Ellen Miller-Scott is a beautiful, haughty, and wealthy woman who disapproves of her son's irresponsible behavior. Harry Pevensey is a pretentious actor in decline. In spite of his shrinking bank account, he still has a taste for the finer things in life and is hoping for a substantial "payoff from the recent little financial gamble he had let himself be talked into, against his better judgment." Doug Cullen, Kincaid's sergeant, is unlucky in love and is uneasy when Gemma tries to match him up with one of her colleagues, DC Melody Talbot.

Her effortless writing style, smooth dialogue, and strong characterizations make this one of Crombie's most satisfying works. She skillfully demonstrates how events that date back half a century have a way of reaching out and influencing the present. In addition, Crombie shows the disastrous consequences of prejudice, greed, ambition, and pride. "Where Memories Lie" works on many levels--as an intriguing murder mystery, an exploration of an appalling chapter in European history, and a deeply affecting tale of complex personal relationships. This is a poignant and engrossing installment in a deservedly long-running and popular series.

Deborah Crombie is a Texan who writes a fabulous British mystery series. Now in its 12th installment, her Duncan Kincaid-Gemma James mysteries are complex, involving and cleverly crafted; the progression of the love story between the two cops and their interactions with friends and family is compelling; the secondary characters, good and bad, are always exceptionally well drawn. But this one, which focuses on Gemma's old friend Erika Rosenthal and what happens when a long missing and valuable old diamond brooch of hers turns up at a London auction house, is just superb and gets my vote as Crombie's best yet. If you're already a fan of the series you'll remember Erika from earlier appearances in the series and will have doubtless come to like her as much as Gemma does. Now it would appear that several seemingly unconnected murders, both past and present, can only be solved by digging all the way back to Nazi Germany and Erika's sad and, till now, closely guarded history.


If once you've finished this gem, you find you'd like to go back and follow the Duncan & Gemma story from the beginning (highly recommended as you're sure to gain a richer appreciation for Crombie's work and her characters), here's the list, updated in April 2011: 1. A Share in Death, 2. All Shall Be Well, 3. Leave the Grave Green, 4. Mourn Not Your Dead, 5. Dreaming of the Bones, 6. Kissed a Sad Goodbye, 7. A Finer End, 8. And Justice There Is None, 9. Now May You Weep, 10. In a Dark House, 11. Water Like a Stone, 12. Where Memories Lie and 13. Necessary as Blood

The horrors of Nazi Germany reach across time and awaken buried memories and guarded secrets.

Twelfth novel in a series by award-winning Deborah Crombie, this latest crime thriller, Where Memories Lie, features main characters, Duncan Kincaid, an inspector with Scotland Yard and Gemma James, an inspector with the Metropolitan Police. The earlier books developed the careers, relationship and romance of Duncan and Gemma, and in this one, they are sharing a home, their lives and their sons.

In the late 1930s a renowned German jeweler made a diamond brooch for his daughter and gave it to her as she and her husband fled from Nazi Germany. The brooch was stolen from her in Germany and has now resurfaced more than fifty years later in an auction house in London.

Erika Rosenthal, original owner of the brooch and now a widow, has established a successful academic life but has kept her past closed off to everyone including herself. The reappearance of the brooch has brought it all to the front, and now Erika has asked Gemma to find out how the brooch came to be in London. But soon people connected to the brooch begin to be murdered, and Scotland Yard is called in. Gemma and Duncan, working together again, are drawn into the sometime deceptive and apparently dangerous world of art collecting.

A connection to a 1952 murder is intermingled into the present story. A young Erika identifies the body of her murdered husband who had been writing a book about the Nazis and their German sympathizers-some still alive and free at the time. The detective assigned to the case is ordered to drop his investigation, and he also ends up dead when he refuses.

The priceless brooch connects all the murders and Erika's memories hold the key to the secrets someone will kill to protect.

Fear, guilt, greed and cover-ups drive the emotions and tragedy in this suspenseful, complex story that was hard to put down. Although this is a series, it is a stand-alone plot with a continuation of the lives and Duncan and Gemma.

Armchair Interviews says: Another great addition to the series.

Debroah Crombie is on a par with George & James. This well-crafted whodunit will engage fans who like their crime in a London setting.

How very rare it is to find a series that never disappoints! Crombie's Gemma James/Duncan Kincaid mystery - their 12th - takes place in Notting Hill and Chelsea, with glimpses of St Paul's tossed in. The plot takes us to London during the Blitz, with the emphasis on Jewish immigrants from Hitler's Germany. The chapter headings come from diaries of the time as well as histories and make great reading all by themselves.

Gemma's fascinating friend, Erika Rosenthal, is the focus of much of the action and we get to enter her world, past and present. Crombie doesn't beat us over the head with the suffering of the Jews, however, and that makes the sharply-drawn scenes we do get all the more powerful. The plot is very plausible and peopled with vivid characters - Mr Khan is an especially delightful surprise. I've always admired Crombie's bravery at setting her stories in England, and once again she comes through without putting a foot wrong. Nor does she follow the Elizabeth George model of piling on so much researched background detail that you are too numb to notice any day-to-day errors. She gives us Brit characters speaking believable Brit in a detailed setting stocked with flowers and dogs and a fine cat. I love the little bits and pieces of real life Crombie always fits in. Two novels ago I ended up buying Clarice Cliff pottery; now I'm listening to Barb Jungr - education through mystery novels.

The action moves quickly and even the to-ing and fro-ing part of the mystery (where the sleuths put the bits together before the big finale, my least favorite part) is crisply accomplished. In fact, at 295 pages, it was all over far too soon.

The family gets less air-time than I'd like, some attention having to go to Gemma's sick mother and blustery father, but Kit continues to develop as a wonderful character. Hope we see more of the boys next time, as well as Gemma's associate Melody, who is getting very edgy and interesting. The ending isn't exactly Harriet and Peter exchanging Latin tags on Magdalen Bridge, but it's quite good enough to make long-time readers smile. Brava.

PS If you haven't read them all, start in the middle with Dreaming of the Bones: it's the best of the best.

Heavy praise by Amazon reviewers led me to "Where Memories Lie," and although I didn't find it to match the best in British mystery writing, Deborah Crombie certainly knows how to put a decent plot and police procedural together.

The story has already been well-explained by other readers, so no need to provide further details. What I especially liked about the book was the likable, realistic relationship between the two principals, Detective Inspector Gemma James and her partner (in life), Chief Inspector Duncan Kincaid. They make an effective and credible crime solving team as well as an interesting and lively couple. I think that much more is known about this relationship if earlier books in the series have been read previously. This was my first James/Kincaid book.

What I liked less about the novel was a certain unevenness in the frequent chronological switch backs. There are three time periods (more or less) woven into the story and there were times when it was difficult to know where the story line had landed.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I'd give it a 3.5 if Amazon permitted it.

This was my first (Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James) novel. I thought it was very well written and had an interesting plot. Jemma and Duncan make a very likeable team, and they are surrounded by interesting family and friends. While I certainly had questions about some of the relationships, I felt this book could definitely stand on its own. It made me want to go out and read the books at the beginning of the series. I read a lot of mystery's, and I liked the fact that this story was to the point. Sometimes you get an extra 50 pages or more which are not necessary to the story line. Some of the book flashes between the past and the present of one of the central characters. Debra Crombie does this in an accomplished manner, as we are witness to a truly hateful time in history.

Every time I read a Deborah Crombie novel I'm convinced she can't get any better, and then I read her next book, which builds on the previous books and does, indeed, get better. I couldn't put Where Memories Lie down, and once I finished it, I couldn't stop thinking about the way Ms. Crombie manages to braid three stories together into one beautifully complete whole. I highly recommend this and all her earlier books.

Absorbing story with interesting characters and plot. Just started reading it and look forward each day to picking it up where I left off.
arlene

Kristin Cahill works at an auction house in London. She still lives with her folks, is harassed at work by her boss, stalked by a co-worker and is in love with a "posh" guy who constantly stands her up. When she is offered an art-deco a broach for sale (where her commission will be three or four thousand pounds) she feels her life has turned a corner. More than she knows. The broach was involved in a war crime during WW2 and is involved in a series of murders...including hers.

Gemma and Kincaid get to work on this mystery together, just like old times. But it's not appreciated by either of their assistants. Gemma's assistant is efficient and competent but she's got a secret history (maybe her family is royalty) and Kincaid's resents his place being usurped by Gemma.

Add to the mix, that the broach was designed by the father of an old friend of Gemma's who was killed by the Nazis, but lost during her escape from Germany, her friend's dead husband, an unsolved murder (actually two) from fifty years ago, a rich widow, her junkie son, her ex-lover. Oh, did I mention that Gemma's mum has leukemia and you have the makings of a wonderful mystery.

As always, Crombie does a great job of tying all the disparate people together into a nice solid ending. Plus we are left with ongoing questions that can only be answered in the next novel. Great story.

Zeb Kantrowitz