I have only seen the second series of Grantchester, but it was nice to see several characters still being part of Sidney Chambers his life when he is in his fifties. Such as Leonard, Amanda and even Mrs Maguire, and let's not forget there is Geordie.
Sidney being a dad, and Archdeacon but still having to choose between those and doing some detective work.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book.

The continuing story of the ever so human Sydney Chambers. I can't but picture the TV series when reading, but this does not detract from the stories. These final tales, loosely connected by love in all it's forms, are a fitting and satisfying ending for the people we've become so fond of.

I have been a big fan of 'Grantchester' since it first hit our televisions, so I was intrigued to see how the novels would compare. Sadly, I was disappointed. I found the story slow to start and it barely engaged me. Consequently, I didn't get too far into the novel before I gave up. Sorry.

I had dismissed the TV series ,as a light weight Sunday evening watch, so was very pleasantly surprised by this. I managed to pick up on the characters very easily, and really enjoyed the episodic structure. I will definitely read more of them.

Sidney Chambers is a great character on TV and I was very interested to read the book and get to know him in a different medium. I hadn't realised that the books span a longer time period so I was surprised to find a much older Sidney. It did not disappoint and I enjoyed every minute of the book and am determined to now seek out the previous books to catch up with his adventures.I would definitely recommend this book.

I will be totally honest and say that the last story in this collection broke me and while I can't say I enjoyed it, it's a wonderful reading experience. As always this is a series of short stories about Sidney, and they all work on their own and then added together become a brilliant whole. It's beautifully written, moving and heartbreaking.

This feels like it's the last in the series, and while it would be a good book to end on I do hope there's more from Sidney.

This is the sixth collection of short stories featuring Sidney Chambers. Sidney is now an Archdeacon and has moved on from Grantchester with his wife and daughter, however the stories still revolve around the characters we've come to love and know so well through the earlier books and the TV series "Grantchester". Set in the early 1970s, everyone has become a little older and wiser although Sidney still loves to solve mysteries and often gets in trouble for dereliction of his home duties.

All written in James Runcie's engaging style the six stories cover very different aspects of Sidney's life. In the "Bluebell Woods" Sidney and his young daughter find the body of a man collecting toxic plants while they are out walking in the woods and Sidney and Geordie work together once again on solving the murder. A priceless antiquarian book stolen from Sidney's old college, Corpus Christi, leads Sidney into a perplexing 'locked room' mystery to solve in"Ex Libris" and in "Authenticity" Amanda makes a very costly decision and Sidney must grapple with a new secretary trying to change his relaxed ways.

More serious matters affecting Sidney's friends and family occur in "The Long Hot Summer" where his nephew goes missing and in "Insufficient Evidence" where a friend of Sidney's is a victim of rape and is treated in a disgraceful and unsympathetic way by the police and courts of the times. Finally "The Persistence of Love" describes a tragic death of a loved character and has Sidney reflecting on the meaning of life, love and death. A common theme through all the stories are Sidney's thoughts on ethics and morals, love and jealousy and what might have been if he had made different choices. I loved spending time again in Sidney's world and this was definitely an enjoyable and worthwhile addition to the series.

I started reading this series with high hopes and initial enjoyment but as the series has gone out they have become rather pedantic and, I have to admit, somewhat boring. I do not think these books are helped by the TV series which is wildly different from the original story and can make for confusion. Mind you, though the vicar on TV is hardly the sort you would want in your pulpit being drunk or chasing women most of the time, it makes for a more interesting narrative.

Sidney suffers a dreadful loss in this latest title and has to come to terms with it and this is quite a surprising change to the storyline so I wonder what will happen next. I am not sure that I am that bothered whether I find out or not though as I have read all of them so far I daresay I shall read the next title.....

One more niggle is that each book advances in time so in order to set the scene and to hammer home the fact that it is the 1960s or 1970s we are constantly being given 'product placement' and it is a trifle overdone.

I dislike being negative about a book but I feel that these are now being written because the author has promised a certain number, not because he really has a compulsion to write them

I discovered this book series thanks to the TV series Grantchester and this is the third book I have read, and since this is book sixth have I missed three, but that is something I'm planning to rectify.

In the first book did we meet a young Sidney Chambers some years after WW2, unmarried and vicar of Grantchester. It's now the 70s and Sidney and Hildegard are married and they have a young daughter, Anna, and he has risen in the ranks and is now archdeacon. But, he still can't stay away from trouble as the stories in this book will prove. This book is as the rest I have read divided into short stories that have different cases that Sidney takes one. And, I have to say that so far is this my favorite book in the series, all six stories are quite good with interesting cases, from t.ex murder and rape cases to Sidney's nephew going missing. And the years go by in the book, in the first story, is it early 70s and Anna is a little girl while she is a teenager in the last story in this book.

SIDNEY CHAMBERS AND THE PERSISTENCE OF LOVE is a fabulous book. It has an interesting mix of both serious and less serious cases. I found, for instance, the rape case both infuriating and sad. Its words against words and the attitude towards the woman in the trial are brutal. In many ways did it feel like nothing has changed when it comes to rape cases, this is the 70s and she had been drinking and was challenging dressed. The lawyer pretty much assumed she asked for it.

One thing I like about this book is how one get to follow the changes of time, in the previous book was it the 60s and now we have reached the 70s and everything is changing in the world. Sidney is growing older, music like jazz is not as popular anymore and anarchism is popular among the young. It's a world that's changing. All through the book can one feel it through Sidney experiences. The last story in this book is the most poignant, there is no crime in the story, but a deeply sad story that hits Sidney hard.

SIDNEY CHAMBERS AND THE PERSISTENCE OF LOVE can be read as a stand alone, it's not hard to get into this book. But, at the same time, do I think that reading the first book is something I would recommend since the books feel like a journey that started when we first meet Sidney Chambers back in the 50s. Still, one perhaps feels as I did when I finished this one and that was that I really needed to read the ones I have missed.

I was first drawn to this series by the television adaptation. Initially the two followed hand in hand but then at some point diverged. I think I like the way that the book has gone better although I understand the changes made for television being as it is a different media.
In this sixth and I believe last book in the series, we have 6 stories. They are all quite different to each other but contain the same cast of characters that I have grown quite close to and fond of throughout my time reading about them.
There's a story about a man who died whilst collecting poisonous plants. Amanda and her art world features in another which also sadly includes a death of a well loved character. Story 3 takes elements from 2 and puts another familiar face in a bit of a pickle. Story 4 delves back into the church and the theft of an ancient and valuable book. In book 5 we revisit Sidney's sister as her son goes missing. And then we come to story six and I really don't want to talk about it. If I don't talk about it, it never happened right?
Anyway, as I said at the beginning, the gang's all here, Sidney, Geordie, Hildegard, Amanda, Leonard, Mrs M, Helen, Byron, Anna, Cathy, Johnny, Jennifer and Gloria just to name a few off the top of my head and the stories start from the early 70s. I understand that this is the last book in the series as the author feels that he can't take the characters further forward as the world is changing too much and as such, the things they do would not be as easily explained going forward. I have heard rumours of some kind of a prequel and I would definitely be interesting in reading more about Sidney and Geordie from the time before they got together.
Each story is self contained but also spill out over to subsequent ones, much like a continuing tv drama. There are elements of previous books also mentioned so it is best to read the series from book one, in order, to get the very best from the stories and indeed the characters. Much has happened to Sidney and Geordie (and others) since they met back in the 50s. Much has also happened in the world and this is just as well researched in this book as has been in the previous. The author very cleverly weaves current affairs seamlessly into his stories and for those of us of a certain age, there are a lot of trips down memory lane to be had along the way.
Even though I refuse to talk about the last story, even I have to admit that it was the best in the whole series. There is so much emotion and introspection to be had through its short number of pages. A return to the original Sidney if you like, a Sidney who is lost, unsure, who has some things to think on. A Sidney who, on leaving the book (and maybe the series) you just know will be OK.

My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

I've read all of the previous books in the series which I thoroughly enjoyed and although I think you don't necessarily have to do this, I would recommend it. I feel that it helps to have that wider understanding and extra connection with the characters which is gained from reading the other books. Not only that, but they're fantastic books which shouldn't be missed.
The Persistence of Love is made up of six smaller stories which are connected through Sidney and span about five years of his life. They all cover different things, they're not all crime, but each one is perceptive and thoughtful. I liked them all, but the last one really stood out to me. It was emotional and poignant and really touched me. It stayed with me long after I finished reading.
Sidney has a great depth and insight which makes reading all the more pleasant. His many flaws combined with beautiful descriptions of the Cambridgeshire countryside, make reading a Sidney Chambers book reminiscent of greeting an old friend.
Overall, I would give this book 4.5 out of 5. It's engaging, insightful and at times moving, with some classic English mysteries for good measure.

Recommended: to those who like their cozy mysteries with substance that matters. :)

Although I heard about the "Grantchester Myteries" before and I know that there is also a related TV series, which I mean to check out soon, I haven't read any of the previous books.
I expected the "usual" cozy mystery with a busybody, self-designated sleuth who gets in the way of police investigation more often than not. However, this book was anything, BUT usual.
It is not a single story to begin with, but rather a collection of 6 novellas loosley chained, covering a period of five years from 1971 to 1976.
The novellas are as different from one another as this book is from others in the genre. Not all of them are crime oriented. There is an appealing and gentle humour throughout them, but some are funny and intriguing while others are deeply sad and touching. I would consider some of them as strictly crime novellas, as they are much too grim and realistic (without being violent), with nothing cozy about them at all. Having said this, I don't mean to imply that they are not interesting to read, because they are, but they do make you think about all the unfairness there is in the world.

James Runcie's writing has a clear and engaging tone and he makes his characters come to life. They are all credible, flesh and blood people with virtues and flaws, likeable or irritating, adding their colour to the wide palette.
The themes / ideas JR raises in the novellas via his characters also make you deliberate on what I would call the facts of life (love, hate, life, death, gain and loss). The philosophy behind is nothing complicated, but it is all about what makes us human & it is expressed concisely and makes you stop and think and make you own stand/draw your own conclusions.

The list of novellas in in the book:
1. The Bluebell Woods: during a walk in the woods Sidney and her daughter discover a dead body with a basket of poisonous plants next to it. Sidney and Inspector Geordie Keating investigate.
2. Authenticity: Sidney ponders the question if man can ever get to the roots of his true self & celebrates his 10th wedding anniversary. A new, overzealous, assistant is assigned to the chapter to sort out ecclesiastical finance and find a culprit who has been embezzling donation money. She also has the not-so-hidden agenda of becoming one of the first woman priest. - The Vicar of Dibley comes to mind, which is a welcome connotation, though the character of Vanessa Morgan is very different from Geraldine Granger. :)
3. Insufficient Evidence: a case of rape where the victim is Sidney's friend. We are in the 1970s, the case is handled by policemen, male barristers/judges/jury entertaining the disgusting, but overwhelming conviction that the "victim is to blame". :(
4. Ex Libris: The priceless Gospel Book of St. Augustine gets stolen from Sidney's former College, Corpus Christi in Cambridge. It happens to be the same religious text upon which the new Archbishop of Canterbury should take his oaths of office...
5. The Long Hot Summer: Sidney's nephew, a 16-year-old with radical ideas goes missing.
6. The Persistence of Love: Sidney's faith is put to the test in the heaviest crisis of his life & it is for the first time he truly realises the difficulty of practicing what we preach.

Now I am going the other way round, but I will definitely read the previous books in the series.

The Granchester Mysteries TV series passed me by, so I thought I would give this book a try. It is the sixth book in the series, and I hadn’t read any previous books, so I didn’t know what to expect.
This book contains a series of mini mysteries featuring archdeacon of Granchester, and amateur sleuth, Sidney Chambers. Married with a daughter, the book follows both his family life and the moral dilemmas he faces in his clerical life. He comes across lots of small and sometimes more serious mysteries which he likes to try and solve.
I really liked the setting and description of the 1970’s, I presume earlier books follow his life up until this point, and therefore are set in earlier decades. However, it was fun remembering the minutiae of life before the internet and mobile phones, which has made communication so much easier today and the 70’s were well described, it really took me back to those days.
I did find the pace of this book rather slow, and it took me a while to adjust to this more sedate style, but it was enjoyable once I did. I read mostly psychological crime, so it was a nice change to read this comfortable, warm and relaxing style of story.

This is the sixth Grantchester Mystery and I’ve read them all. In this latest book we’ve reached the 1970s. Sidney is now in his fifties and an archdeacon, still trying to balance the priestly life, family duties and his irresistible need to solve mysteries with his friend Geordie. The stories here are more of the same: Amanda in trouble again, a priceless manuscript stolen from a Cambridge college. No horrid murders this time but a dreadful shock which I can’t possibly reveal because it would be such a spoiler.

The book ends on something of a cliffhanger: Sidney offered a big promotion in the Church and resolving to give up his investigations. But can he? If James Runcie chose to end the series right here it would be a suitable place to do it. If he moves on into the 1980s, we’ll be in a period during which his own father was Archbishop of Canterbury. How will he deal with that? I’ve enjoyed all the books, especially for the religious and philosophical discussions which go on between characters and in Sidney’s head. Runcie himself has described the books as ‘moral fables’, which seems just right to me. He has also written that the writing is infused with ‘a liberal Anglican sensibility that understands ambiguity, seeks understanding and embraces tolerance.’ This is very obvious in the books but not, unfortunately, in the TV series, however enjoyable it is.

Sidney Chambers and the Persistence of Love will be published by Bloomsbury on 4th May.

Glad I read this book (but should have read in order) as I have heard great things about the television series. Good mystery book and with really likeable characters.

This is not so much one story but several short stories who are somehow interconnected. What makes this series really special is the quality of the writing. It is absolutely superb. There are wonderfull description of the Cambridgeshire countryside, well elaborated characters but also some thoughtful comments on religion,changing society (seventies) and human relations.Good.

I do like this series. James Runcie writes very well in an easy, readable style, he creates decent mysteries and there is often some genuine moral and spiritual weight to the stories. If you're not familiar with the earlier books in the series, I would suggest that you read at least some of them first; it's not essential but it will add to your enjoyment, I think. If you have read them, you won’t be disappointed in this latest episode.

By now, we know pretty well what we're going to get with a Sidney Chambers book. We have arrived in the 1970s; Sidney's marriage is well established, his daughter is growing up (she's six in 1971) and his personal life continues to develop. Life in Grantchester and Cambridge continues to be peppered with crimes, including murder, with which Inspector Keating requires Sidney's help, as bodies, missing manuscripts and the like are interspersed with pastoral duties and Sidney's personal moral musings…all of which we have grown used to and which continue to be very well done.

It's worth saying that although I haven't always been completely convinced by Runcie's period detail, especially in his characters' use of language, I think he captures the period very well here. I was in Cambridge during this time and the picture he paints seems very convincing to me.

Probably all that really need be said is that this is an enjoyable addition to a very good series, which is well up to the standard of its predecessors. Warmly recommended.

(I received an ARC via Netgalley.)