Rating: 
Summary: sharp, witty, funny ... an all around good read
Review: Rumour has it that if you know the publishing world really, really well, you'll be able to recognize the characters (editors, agents, authours, etc) and publishing houses that Martha Grimes has caricatured in "Foul Matter." If you fall into that happy category, than this book is a definite must read -- however, even if you don't fall into that grouping, "Foul Matter" is still a must read for it purely entertaining and engrossing plot.Best selling suspense authour Paul Giverney is looking for a new publishing house. However not just any publishing house will do; he's looking for one that is so unscrupulous that it'll stoop to fulfilling certain conditions: 1) that said publishing house will terminate it's contract with one of it's best (literary quality wise, not necessarily sales-wise) authours, and 2) that he gets that authour's editor for his books. If those two conditions are met, then Paul Giverney will sign a three book deal with the publishing house. And the house that he's chosen to deal with is Mackenzie-Haack (a ruthless but not necessarily top notch publishing house); the authour he wants them to drop is Ned Islay, and the editor he wants for his books is Tom Kidd. When Giverney tells Clive Esterhaus (one of Mackenzie-Haack's more ambitious editors) his terms, Clive is appalled. Fulfilling Giverney's conditions could mean the end of Mackenzie-Haack because Tom Kidd is a rarity in the present-day publishing world -- and editor who believes in what he's doing. And Tom believes in Ned Islay, and appreciates the quality of Islay's novels. So that he'll probably leave Mackenzie-Haack if they drop Islay and try and force Giverney on him. And if Tom walks out on Mackenzie-Haack, several authours will probably leave with him as well. Clive can see no way to meet Giverney's conditions at all; but his boss Bobby Mackenzie thinks that he has hit on a plan that will ensure that they can be rid of Islay and still keep Tom. Will Bobby's ruthless plan work? And will Clive merely stand by and watch? Or will an unexpected twist throw a spanner in the works? After the disappointment of "A Grave Maurice," "Foul Matter" was like a breath of fresh air. The main plot (Bobby's plan to be rid of Islay) was interesting, engrossing, sharp and (at times) rather funny. The subplots were more like character studies of certain secondary characters -- but where, in the Richard Jury series, similar subplots used to bore me, here the subplots worked really well, filling us in on certain character motivations, their feelings and desires -- thus making them more rounded and more realistic characters. And although while I was reading the novel I felt as if the bits that dealt with Islay dragged a little, on the whole my impression after I had finished the book was that the pacing was excellently done. Sharp, funny and riveting, "Foul Matter" was a truly satisfying read. (By the way, "Foul Matter" is NOT a mystery novel, just in case you're expecting another Richard Jury like mystery novel.)
Rating: 
Summary: It would be great--if it was well written.
Review: Suffer through it, and I suppose you'll learn a thing or two about the publishing industry.
Rating:
Summary: Martha Grimes has once again written a winning tale
Review: The setting is Manhattan. The subject is the New York publishing industry. The characters are writers, editors, publishers, secretaries, hit men and a PI or two. The plot centers on bestselling author Paul Giverney, who is wanted by every house in the business. He has left his current publisher, Queeg & Hyde, which puts him "in a state of what the sports world called 'free agency.'" He decides to make his move to Mackenzie-Haack as long as they agree to his one unalterable condition, which is to get rid of Ned Isaly --- their most literary writer --- and assign his editor, Tom Kidd, to Giverney. Once this is done he tells Clive Esterhaus that he will sign a three-book contract instead of two. Esterhaus is appalled, but he was a shrewd and cutthroat businessman who wanted it all. Clive has grave misgivings about this idea and nearly collapses when Bobby tacitly confirms he is proposing that, instead of breaking Isaly's contract, they take one out on him. Mob up? How could he arrange to appease Mackenzie, reassure Paul and still keep Ned safe and securely tied to Mackenzie-Haack? Clive makes the difficult phone call to the notorious Zito, which sets off a panoply of events that will surprise and delight readers. The hit men are hired. They are a pair of independent operators who will not kill anyone until they get to know her/him. If they like the person, they refuse to snuff her/him out. Karl and Candy come to like Isaly and they don't understand why he is being targeted. As part of their plan to collect as much information as they can about him, they each choose a book to read and discuss. Their conversations are comprised of dialogue that is a mix of tough guy talk and intellectual philosophizing. And often they seem the sanest, most grounded of the cast. Things really start to resemble a French farce when Isaly, out of nostalgia, decides to go to Pennsylvania to visit his hometown. Trailing behind him are all of the main characters, as one by one they realize that he could be in danger. They resemble a parade going the wrong way on a twisted route without a map, each of them trying to hide while they spy on each other and plan to save Ned. Even Giverney, who also grew up in Pennsylvania, ends up hiring a hit man as a bodyguard to protect the mark he fingered but never wanted "taken out." Martha Grimes is American. Her reputation is solidly built on her Richard Jury novels, all of which are set in England and are so "British" they certainly have appeased the appetite of the stodgiest anglophile for years. FOUL MATTER is one of the few books she has set on U.S. soil. But have no fear. While Jury and company sit this one out, Grimes maintains the high standards she is known for and is on target as she uses her skill to spin a winning tale that is finely honed. FOUL MATTER is a splendidly erudite, witty and clever exploration of the scandalous, ego-centered world, inhabited by writers who may become pawns in the nefarious machinations of their publishers. We probably will never know if Grimes has fashioned her characters and her story out of her personal experiences, or if her fertile and extraordinary imagination simply turned itself to composing a parody of a genre and industry she knows best. Fans who have followed her career and read her Inspector Jury novels know full well that plausibility is not what makes her characters so appealing; it's their lack of it. Her books are character-driven and in FOUL MATTER she spoofs the players and her own world --- that of writing. Enjoy! --- Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum from Bookreporter.com
Rating: 
Summary: too bloated to be funny
Review: There's nothing sadder than comedy that doesn't work, which makes Foul Matter one of the saddest books of the year. The biggest problem is pacing; the book's 100 pages longer than it should be, and chapters that should crackle with energy lie flat on the page. Grimes never manages to build up the momentum that this kind of comedy needs to survive. Imagine the same story told by, for instance, Donald Westlake. It would be crisper, sharper, and a whole lot shorter.
Rating:
Summary: Cozy & Light-hearted
Review: This is a very pleasant, Cozy-style novel with light-hearted humor about the money-grubbing publishing business. There is no gore or serious menace here; the ending is predictable. If made into a movie, one of the hit men could be played by Danny DeVito. I found it an enjoyable read, but too long. Lop off 100 pages, beef up the suspense, and it would have been a more exciting read.
Rating:
Summary: Cozy & Light-hearted
Review: This is a very pleasant, Cozy-style novel with light-hearted humor about the money-grubbing publishing business. There is no gore or serious menace here; the ending is predictable. If made into a movie, one of the hit men could be played by Danny DeVito. I found it an enjoyable read, but too long. Lop off 100 pages, beef up the suspense, and it would have been a more exciting read.
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