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

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.

The appearance of a long-lost precious brooch at an auction house in London sets off a wide-ranging investigation by Gemma James and Duncan Kincaid, protagonists in this popular series of mysteries. Coupled with flashbacks to Jewish refugees fleeing to England just before the start of World War II, and Gemma's personal problems--her mother's illness and her own insecurity with regard to her relationship with Kincaid--set the tone for a highly emotional and poignant story.

The author, a Texan with a penchant for the English procedural, travels at least twice in each novel to London to research the places in which the tales take place. A charming map highlighting the locations and characters adorns the inside cover of the meticulously researched book. However, there is one error: the Hagganah as a terrorist group (it was the Irgun that performed such deeds against the English).

The alternating descriptions of the past and present keep the reader on edge virtually till the end of the book. The characters are deep and the interplay of emotions and relationships telling. The author's sensitivity to the plight of German Jews under the Nazis are moving and touching. A very good read, and one which is recommended.

American author Deborah Crombie scored another hit with her latest novel with the crime-fighting duo Duncan and Gemma. We learned more about the family and their dedication to police work. I haven't been to England but feel like I took a trip there. The places were very real and I am sure accurately portrayed. The story had good action and keep me guessing until the very end.

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

A marvelous diamond brooch is the catalyst for the action in this Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James novel. Its appearance in the catalog of an auction house sets into motion events that have their roots in the persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany and in the investigation of a fifty-year-old murder. When Detective Inspector Gemma James gets a distressed late-night call from her old friend Erika Rosenthal, who had been a refugee from Hitler's regime, asking her to look into the re-appearance of her diamond brooch, it precipitates a series of crimes which ultimately involve people in very high places. Gemma's partner, Duncan Kincaid, is soon involved and at the same time, Gemma must cope with stresses within her own family.

No one does better than Ms. Crombie the trick of involving the reader new to her series (and reminding the reader familiar with her work) without a lot of detail and without a lot of maneuvering to avoid spoilers. "Where Memories Lie" has quite a bit of cutting from various times in the past to the current investigation, which could be very confusing, and this too is very well handled. While a few of the characters border on the unbelievable, most of them are compelling and in some cases, truly touching. (Some readers may hear echoes of "The Manchurian Candidate.") The resolution of Gemma's family situation is a little too pat, but much about it is appealing.

Definitely recommended.