Vertigo 42 A Richard Jury Mystery

Richard Jury is meeting Tom Williamson at Vertigo 42, a bar on the forty-second floor of an office building in London’s financial district. Despite inconclusive evidence, Tom is convinced his wife, Tess, was murdered seventeen years ago. The inspector in charge of the case was sure Tess’s death was accidental—a direct result of vertigo—but the official police inquiry is still an open verdict and Jury agrees to re-examine the case.

Jury learns that a nine-year-old girl fell to her death five years before Tess at the same country house in Devon where Tess died. The girl had been a guest at a party Tess was giving for six children. Jury seeks out the five surviving party guests, who are now adults, hoping they can shed light on this bizarre coincidence.

Meanwhile, an elegantly dressed woman falls to her death from the tower of a cottage near the pub where Jury and his cronies are dining one night. Then the dead woman’s estranged husband is killed as well. Four deaths—two in the past, two that occur on the pages of this intricate, compelling novel—keep Richard Jury and his sidekick Sergeant Wiggins running from their homes in Islington to the countryside in Devon and to London as they try to figure out if the deaths were accidental or not. And, if they are connected.

Witty, well-written, with literary references from Thomas Hardy to Yeats, Vertigo 42 is a pitch perfect, page-turning novel from a mystery writer at the top of her game.

"Elizabeth George is a superstar of the crime-fiction world, British Inspector Division. Deservedly so: Her tails always provide nuanced character studies and insights into social issues along with their intricate mysteries."

—The Seattle Times on Believing the Lie

“Definitely a literary force to be reckoned with.”

—Suspense Magazine

“Its tough to resist Georges storytelling, once hooked.”

—USA Today

"Riveting tale of love, passion, and betrayal...series fans will enjoy following Lynley and Havers on their first investigation outside the U.K., while newcomers will be just as enthralled."

—Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Just One Evil Act

"Just One Evil Act  [is] among the most demanding and satisfying of the many detective novels by Elizabeth George."

—The Wall Street Journal

"A serious, suspenseful, thought-provoking and heart-rending novel."

—Richmond Times Dispatch on Just One Evil Act

“George is a master of the wily plot and the timely tossed out red herring… Georges fans will be glad to see Havers back in action, even though, as ever, shes quick to land in trouble. And as for Lynley—well, hes as cool as ever, in more than one sense of the word.”

—Kirkus Reviews on Just One Evil Act

"This is a must for fans of this series. Twists and turns are vintage George and do not disappoint."

—Library Journal on Just One Evil Act

"A multiplicity of subplots and a richness of physical detail...The terrain and the weather are objective correlatives to the characters' stormy patches. Meanwhile, the story strands are untied and retied in satisfying and often moving ways."

—The Wall Street Journal on Believing the Lie

"Devilishly complicated."

—Entertainment Weekly on Believing the Lie

"A dense, twisty plot with characters who reveal the sad spectrum of human dereliction."

—People on Believing the Lie

"George's...ability to continually enhance the portraits of Lynley, Havers, and other recurring characters while generating fully fleshed new ones for each novel is nothing less than superlative, and her atmospheric prose, complete with lovely and detailed descriptions of her setting, combines to add literary gravitas to her work....A worthy addition to her portfolio and one that simultaneously disturbs and satisfies."

—Richmond Times-Dispatch

“This is one of her best.”

—Daily American on Believing the Lie

“Georges many fans…will be thrilled with this new episode in the lives of her lovable cast of characters.”

—Library Journal on Believing the Lie

“George's strengths--character development, plot twists and shocking tragedy--continue to shine.”

—Shelf Awareness on Believing the Lie

“A book of twists, turns and, to be blunt, fantastic writing…A complete A+ for the mystery realm.”

—Suspense Magazine on Believing the Lie

“[Lynley is] one of the great character portraits in contemporary crime fiction.”

—The Boston Globe

Elizabeth George first claimed a spot on the New York Times bestseller list in 1994. Two decades later her Lynley novels are still at the top of national bestseller lists, proving how vast and loyal her audience is. Critics and fans alike cherish Inspector Lynley, eighth Earl of Asherton, and Sergeant Havers, his working-class partner, for their believably irascible relationship as much as for their uncanny ability to solve the most challenging cases. And in her twentieth Inspector Lynley novel, A Banquet of Consequences, George delivers another winner as Lynley and Havers are drawn from Cambridge to London to the windswept town of Shaftesbury during one of their most complex cases yet.