Martha Grimes, best known for her Richard Jury mysteries, occasionally takes a hiatus from her usual fare and pens an eloquent piece of general fiction that shines a spotlight on her unique literary essence. As much as we adore her mysteries, these periodic excursions reveal an even deeper insight into the human soul with incomparable prose and copious emotion. Her artful characterizations --- real treasures to be unearthed with every turn of the page --- are the irrefutable substance of every novel.

THE TRAIN NOW DEPARTING contains two literary novellas sharing a common thread: emotional isolation. Each features a single, middle-aged woman whose life is comfortably predictable but conversely unfulfilling. And each of these women find themselves irreparably jarred by the intrusion of a stranger into their carefully constructed existence.

The first of these stories is entitled like the book, "The Train Now Departing," and takes place almost exclusively in a variety of restaurants. After a woman has an accidental encounter with a travel writer, they strike up an acquaintance and begin meeting for long afternoon lunches whenever he's in town. These poignant interludes could easily comprise a one-act play --- the staging consisting of a table and two chairs, the dialogue completely self-involved with only an occasional interruption by a waiter. In first person narrative, we are witness to the sad reflections on her unremarkable life as this woman attempts to elicit conversation elaborating on her companion's world travels. Despite her frustration at the emotional distance between them, it soon becomes clear that her isolation has been largely self-imposed; a reluctance on her part to actively participate in the ebb and flow of life going on around her.

"The years faded behind her, details slipping away. She felt she too was fading into the background, her outline becoming less clear, like a figure in a tapestry, uncertain and underwrought. It was as much as a person could do to keep the dim colors of self from fading altogether."

Grimes' genius at characterization is further evidenced in the way she emphasizes this woman's anonymity by never assigning her a name --- her only identity being "she." "She" had become a silent observer, her fanciful musings taking the place of any tangible interaction. Taking frequent refuge in the train station cafe, she observes the occasional boarding or departing passenger; the echoing emptiness of the station; the inactive ticket windows; the nameless faces in the train's windows who, like her, pass through but never disembark. It's this vivid Grimes' imagery that ultimately forms the perfect metaphor for this woman's life.  

The second novella, "When the Mousetrap Closes," is an interesting title selection; the actual title of an Agatha Christie play that has entertained London audiences for 48 continuous years. Grimes no doubt chose it with assurance, as did the woman portrayed in this second story.  

Edith, like her predecessor, desires to embrace more of life but has never summoned the courage to take the initiative. Subconsciously grieving over the loss of her mother, Edith is anchored to the house and the life they shared, cocooned in the safe sentimental past, unable to move on. She's become a master of avoidance, proclaiming that any life-altering decisions will be made "when The Mousetrap closes," and she's confident this is unlikely. But a chance meeting with an actor who seems interested in her companionship becomes an epiphany for Edith; a painful recognition of the void hidden carefully under the surface.

"She felt somehow shamed that her life was so narrow, that it covered such a small territory, that if she raised the spyglass she would see nothing but blank gray water."

Through the beauty of her lyrical prose, Grimes strips away the face of denial, exposing the sticky bog that can entrap us in a state of emotional limbo. Finessing between moments of hope and despair, the brutal honesty she imparts is so wrenching there's almost an audible sigh in her words. And without even knowing what strange twist these relationships will take, we too sense the tragic inevitability.