The Promise

Written by Susan Lantz Simpson

Narrated by Charlotte Loring

Like most Amish young women, Phoebe Yoder has dreams—but not of a courtship—at least not yet. She dreams of caring for the tender-hearted alpacas at her Englischer neighbor’s farm and learning the business herself. But that longing falls away the moment her baby sister goes missing.

In that horrifying instant, desperate for her sister’s safe return, she whispers a promise to Gott: she will give up her dreams and marry Micah Graber, a man she doesn’t love, but who is determined to make her his wife. Benjamin Miller hasn’t been back in southern Maryland for long before he meets Phoebe and begins to imagine what a fine life they could build together—beginning with an alpaca farm of their own. But he can see that Phoebe’s brash vow is all she will consider, no matter what her heart wants. As Ben falls for her gentle manner and sweet, sad eyes, he comes to understand his daunting task: to convince Phoebe that together, they can make a new promise that will never be broken.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media Audio
• Release date: Jul 30, 2019
• ISBN: 9781974958818

Susan Lantz Simpson

Susan Lantz Simpson has been writing stories and poetry since the young age of six. Having received a degree in English from St. Mary's College of Maryland, she has taught students of all ages. In addition to teaching, she went on to receive her nursing degree from the University of Maryland at Baltimore. She enjoys writing inspirational stories of love and faith. The mother of two wonderful daughters, she currently resides in southern Maryland.

Reviews for The Promise

[cfk_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One rotten Lord, sexual abuse, 3 murders and one suicide seem interconnected, sort of. I love any of these mysteries which combine Jury and Melrose even though I tend to doubt some of the round about stunts Jury gets his friends up to.

[juju2cat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I still love the series with Melrose Plant and Richard Jury but this was not put together well. The story flipped and flopped. I'm tired of the crew at the Jack and Hammer, too. I will always keep up with this series because I love the main characters but this book was a bit confusing.

[hubblegal-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A beautiful French tourist is murdered, her body washed up on the Cornish coast. Two little girls find her body. Divisional Commander Brian Macalvie doesn’t know what to make of it. While he and Inspector Richard Jury start their investigation, two more murders occur. Macalvie and Jury turn to Tom Brownell. Brownell is retired now but he’s known for solving every case, but one, that he worked on. Brownell is convinced that the murders are connected. Will this be the second case that Brownell doesn’t solve?There’s nothing better than spending time with old friends. This is the 25th Richard Jury mystery that Ms. Grimes has written, with the first one having been published in 1981. I’ve read every one of them, including a couple of her standalones. The mystery always seems to be almost insignificant as its Grimes’ characters that draw me to her books. She has written some of the most loved, eccentric and humorous characters I’ve ever read. I was in stitches in this current book when Melrose Plant brings in a young boy who he tells Aunt Agatha is a blood relation and Aunt Agatha squirms from the thought that she might not inherit everything after all. I love this author’s wry sense of humor. I do think that it would be wise to read from the start of this series to get the full benefit of the development of these characters. A new reader starting with this one may feel a bit lost without the backstory. Recommended.This book was given to me by the publisher in return for an honest review.

[edgoldberg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A dead body is found on an isolated island and the chief of police pawns it off on Richard Jury. One murder grows into three and a cold case. The typical Jury cast characters are in the book but kind of like an aside, they don't take up much of the action. There are also some children but no dogs, usually a staple in Richard Jury books. The book is short....248 pages...and can get a little confusing at times. But it's still enjoyable. Not up to usual Richard Jury standards, but as the author is in her late 80s, it's pretty darn good. I'd say this is only for Jury Jury fans, however.

[diana.hauser · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

THE OLD SUCCESS by Martha Grimes is the latest Richard Jury mystery published in November of 2019.I was very enamored with Ms. Grimes’ early mysteries. The characters were quirky, unusual and refreshing. The titles referenced English pubs - very interesting, also.This latest Richard Jury mystery, THE OLD SUCCESS, left me confused, weary and cranky.The characters are no longer quirky and interesting - they border on the ridiculous, especially the gang at the Jack and Hammer. Thankfully Carole-Ann and the ‘Stardust’ have only passing mentions. Sgt. Wiggins has little to do and even he is rather tiresome and lazy.The mystery is confusing and I don’t like to constantly reread passages in order to get timing and characters straight.Even Brian Macalvie can’t add interest and tension to this title.

[dokfintong · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Some pieces are missingMartha Grime's previous book "The Knowledge" revisited a lot of favorite pubs in the Richard Jury series, pulling their names willynilly into one story. This one ropes in a huge cast of old characters. There are two ways to approach them. One is to obsess over all of names and their relationships, scratching your head trying to remember or diving into online searches to nail everyone down. The other is to roll along in ignorance, figuring that you will be able to glean what you need from context. Up to you. Regardless of how you read it, the book is unsatisfying. There is a lot of running back and forth between locations, hopping trains and boats and planes, to the point that some times I could not remember where we are supposed to be and who was reporting to whom. And in the end I simply did not understand the murders that had taken place, who did them and why. And I certainly could not figure out how, given all of the trains and boats and planes needed.Side note: The horse subplot is lame. I do not remember, if I ever knew, how a valuable horse came to be sold to a person who knew nothing about him and there were no reminders here to help.I received a review copy of "The Old Success" by Martha Grimes from the publisher Grove Atlantic through NetGalley.com.

[phoenixcomet · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The trifecta of police work in Great Britain: Richard Jury, Brian MacAlvie and Tom Brownell, retired all become involved in solving the murder of Manon Vinet, found on a remote beach on one of the Scilly islands. When Tony Servino is murdered with Flora Flood holding the weapon in Northants, Moira Quinn is killed in another location and Daisy Brownell, an apparent suicide, the thought is how are these cases connected?Fast read for characters that I enjoy.

[beamis12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Number 27. Richard Jury has certainly been a around a good, long while. Yet, things around him he Dr become boring. Not only is he a good inspector, managing to assemble puzzle pieces into a while picture, but he also serves as the stable force for a group of various characters he calls friends. Take Lord Ardry for instance, aka Melrose Plant, since it seems he has given back his titles, though not his estate. An estate that includes a resident hermit, living in the Hermitage on his property, but also a horse named Aggrieved, who has it own goat, named Aghast. He also has an aunt Agatha, that he tries to avoid at all costs, since he seems convinced she wants to kill him and inherit his property. In fact, the hermit and the goat were an attempt to keep her from visiting. That hasn't worked as well as expected, so he is forced to come up with a new plan.His newest endeavour elicits this response from Agatha, "Whereupon Agatha stood aghast and agape. Melrose took note of "agape," for it might come in handy if he got another goat."The storyline itself includes a suicide that may not be a suicide, the murder of a French chocolatier, and the killing of a soon to be ex-husband of a friend of Melroses. Though she denies it. There is another possibly connected death in there too, a veritable cornucopia of pieces. But don't sorry Jury will figure this all out,I certainly couldn't and all will come together in the end. Maybe, possibly.These are mysteries for those who don't like vivid descriptions of blood and gore, nor explicit violence. There is good p, ironic British humor, quirky characters and enough going on to make your head spin. In essence, I find them endlessly entertaining and fun.ARC from Edelweiss.

[romonko · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I am a long-time lover of Martha Grimes' books. I particularly love her Richard Jury series. It's been awhile since she wrote the last book and this one is number 25 in the series. When I picked it up I was a little taken aback by the size. It's a pretty short book. I hoped it wouldn't be a rushed to finish type of book, but unfortunately it is somewhat. The good things about it were the characters that I've come to know and love - Melrose Plant and the crew at the Jack and Hammer. I particularly love Ruthven, Plant's impassive and unflappable butler and we get to see a lot of him in this book. We even meet a young precocious man by the name of Gerrard Gerrard who looks very promising for future books. The rest of the book doesn't measure up to Ms. Grimes usual standards. The plot is rushed and very disjointed. It's really hard to follow the storyline because we jump back and forth like a jackrabbit. The double entendres and the sly wit are all here and that plus the wonderful characters helps to carry this book off and to prevent it from getting into complete chaos. I am certainly not willing to give up on Jury and his hilarious crew yet. Besides I want to see what happens with Aggrieved (Melrose's horse). And it looks like his goat Aghast may be getting a companion, as Melrose realizes that goats are herd animals after all. Can't wait to see what that animal will be named - Agog? Agape? Aback? Not Agro because that's his dog's name. Time will tell.

[kimkimkim-7 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is not one of Grimes’ better efforts. The beginning felt like an old boy’s club and if you aren’t a member you have no idea what they are going on about or why they need to. Having read several of her books I easily fell into the back and forth between characters but there was something off about the cadence. It was jerky, it was here and there and it was not comfortable nor satisfying. Lots of people talking and not saying very much. While the bodies are dropping there are too many tangents leading off without successful resolutions. He’s involved with her, but she is not involved, but she may have been involved and why would she have done that or been there and it just never flowed. The plot and players were just a little too simplistic. Thankfully, Grimes wit is apparent throughout. Thank you NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for a copy.

[lostinalibrary · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The Richard Jury series by Martha Grimes used to be one of my favourite cosy mystery series but it's been a while since I read one so when I saw The Old Success on Edelweiss+, I was excited to read it. I thought it would be like running into an old friend I hadn't seen in a long time. It wasn't. As I read, it seemed like I was missing chunks of the story. I kept flipping back through pages, trying to find where I had gone astray but nada. Characters came and went and without any explanation or, frankly, purpose within the story. They mystery seemed to get lost in the hijinx of the regular characters who apparently never aged in the decades since I first met them despite the world having moved on even in the book. The murders kept stacking up, the connection between them at best tenuous but somehow that leap was made without any real work-up to it. I will admit I didn't guess the killer but, to be honest, by the time I reached the denouement, I didn't care. If I can be allowed to use an old cliche, this book felt like Grimes phoned it in. Will I ever read another book in the series - maybe to see if this one is an aberration. Would I recommend this one - not unless you're a fan who has been following the series religiously and then I'd recommend getting it from the library.Thanks to Edelweiss+ and Atlantic Monthly Press for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review