It’s all early days for Duncan and Gemma in this one. Sergeant Gemma James, a young woman whose ex-husband has recently quit paying child support for their young son, reports directly to Scotland Yard Superintendent Duncan Kincaid, a man with an ex of his own. In this second case of theirs, they work so well together that Kincaid allows James more investigatory freedom than he would grant many others on his team (not that Crombie spends any time actually introducing the rest of that team in this one). Gemma respects Duncan’s professional skills, and she is comfortable enough with him to call him out whenever she thinks he’s going the wrong way on a case. Duncan, on the other hand, in addition to his respect for Gemma’s skills, is beginning to feel a romantic spark or two whenever he’s around her.
Bottom Line: Without the domestic and departmental complications of later books in the series, All Should Be Well is pretty much a run-of-the-mill mystery story. That is not to say that the story is not competently told because Crombie is a very good writer and her writing skills are on display in this one, too. I was a bit put-off by the sudden brainstorm very near the end of the novel that gave Duncan all the answers for which he had been searching so long because this made the ending seemed more rushed than it should have been. Fans of the series will remember All Should Be Well more because of the budding romance between Duncan and Gemma that is on display than they will for the case they solve.
Crombie's series has long been one of my favorites. I'm glad I started it with the first book because I can see how you'd feel off-kilter starting the series toward the end.
ReplyDeleteIt's really strange to see the pair as near-strangers who are still learning about each other. I picked this one up thinking it was the first book in the series instead of the second, so I will have to go back now to the beginning and see how the relationship was first presented. It's odd, as I say, but kind of fun, too, to read these early ones now as "prequels."
DeleteI've enjoyed this series for years. Sometimes I just enjoy reuniting with characters I've come to care about, but I've liked them all.
ReplyDeleteI still remember how surprised I was to hear that Crombie is a Texan. I think she spends considerable time in the U.K. but she lives in Dallas, last I heard. I would never have known that from her stories; same way with Elizabeth George.
DeleteCrombie immigrated to the UK with her first husband. They lived in Edinburgh and then in Chester, England. I didn't know this when I suggested that my English husband read her books. I asked him what he thought of them, and he was impressed. The only "mistakes" he noticed were things that had been translated for American audiences. Actually living there for a long period of time definitely gave her the inside edge.
DeleteAh, that explains it. I didn't realize she had been married to a Brit and lived there for that long.
DeleteI have to tell you, though, that she absorbed a lot more of the details of British life than I managed to do in several years of living in London. I don't know how she does it; very talented lady.
Yes, she is. I've been to the UK several times, but only visited London once. You're a braver man than I, Gunga Din. I would not want to live there. I feel at home once I'm traveling the A1 and gotten north of Durham, and my preferred piece of heaven is Scotland-- the Highlands. I like traffic jams that consist of a flock of sheep!
DeleteI spent most of my weekends exploring the U.K. by car and rail, and I agree with you that getting out of London was the only way to really learn about the country. I grew to love Scotland and Wales, even Northern Ireland, to a degree. I did a lot of hiking and made some great friends that way, too. What you say about the sheep-jams made me smile, reminding me of one trip where I found my car completely surrounded by sheep on a small highway not too many miles outside of John O'Groat's on Scotland's northern coast. Good memories, all.
DeleteSpeaking of John o' Groats, I found a lovely little bookshop in Thurso when we stopped there. We were spending a week in a tiny cottage on a beach outside Durness where a pine martin stopped by every morning to see what we were having for breakfast. Getting to Durness on the "main highway" involved about fifty miles driving on a single-track road, and the locals certainly didn't let any grass grow under their tires!
DeleteThat reminds me of my first day ever in England driving aa rental car. I found myself on what was effectively aa three lane road, where I was shocked to learn that people wanting to pass another vehicle would simply go right down the middle of the road - in either direction. I have to admit that I got pretty good at doing it myself after three or four weeks of driving there. That was probably about 1982, and I'm not sure that it's done that way anymore, but it was something to see back then for sure.
DeleteI don't remember that being done when I was there-- and I think I would!
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