Døden kommer til Pemberley (edition 2012)

Hmm, I'm not really convinced by this book. It is a sequel to Pride & Prejudice, involving a murder. The story was rather flimsy for a detective, and there were large pieces of text that were superfluous. I assume this was done to try to get the Jane-Austen-feel, but with Austen, it doesn't feel contrived. With Austen, it isn't superfluous, but part of the story. James' story, however, is a detective, and there it does not fit.
Another beef: the book was quite repetitive. First, the book repeats a lot of P&P. I understand the desire to explain some things in the beginning for those readers who haven't read P&P. But I really don't believe there was any need to do it throughout the book, nor was there any need to have all characters of P&P show up for no other reason than to show that they are there. Not to mention the characters from other Jane Austen books. There was definitely too much name-dropping for me. On top of that, even the story itself was repetitive: first something happens, then it is repeated at the inquest, and then we hear it a third time when it is told at the trial.

Overall, I believe this is a failed attempt to mix two styles of book. It was ok to read, but certainly nothing more. ( )

How could I pass this one ?
P. D. James - one of my favorite authors.
However, must admit I've never ever read any (shame on me) of the Jane Austen books.
So, I waited a few months to cram in as many Jane Austen movies, TV specials as possible in order to have more background. That wasn't necessary, as James writes a complete and stand-alone novel/mystery. Jane Austen background enriches but isn't a necessity to this book.
(Now maybe I should read the Austen books, too!)
A much lighter,fluffier read than the Dagliesh series, and I missed the psychological complexities of those, but for 90 yr old author, it's not lacking anything. ( )

I liked this book. In spite of all the negative reviews, I'll read anything PD James sends my way.
Perfection for Austin purists , no.
Just felt very nice to be among the characters at Pemberley with a little mystery drama tossed in. ( )

Short review: Too much Darcy, not enough Elizabeth.

Long review: I found the writing uneven, and at times heavy-handed. The first half seemed clunky. The best part was the last 30 or 40 pages when all the action (the denouement) took place, but I was bored along the way. I liked best the writing in the conversation at the end between Darcy and Elizabeth when they share notes on what had taken place, both in this book and the original Jane Austen; however, I did have a problem with this (see below).

I also found the content of the book problematic: Jane Austen's original work took place largely in the women's world, and from it she subtly revealed the larger society. This instead was from the men's world, and did a poor job of revealing that of the women. The world revealed was crass, not subtle. I also felt the author was attempting to get the odd nod, wink and political statement in, but was not quite successful. And if Darcy and Elizabeth had been already married for so many years, why were they just now revealing their feelings leading up to their engagement? This ending, although nicely written, seemed too contrived.

It saddens me that my introduction to the well-respected author P.D. James was this poorly conceived project. ( )

Six years have passed since the wedding which so joyously concluded the narrative of Pride and Prejudice. Elizabeth, now mistress of Pemberley and the mother of two robust sons, is assiduously engaged in the minute preparation that the annual Pemberely ball demands. The food must be properly cooked and presented, the decorations lush and fresh, and a hundred other things must be attended to. It is well that Pemberley is plentifully staffed, for Elizabeth’s mind is distracted from her planning by another pressing issue. That issue is the bestowment of Georgiana’s hand in marriage.

Two men, Colonel Fitzwilliam and Henry Alveston, have been discretely courting Georgiana. Elizabeth recognizes that Colonel Fitzwilliam is by far the better match, but she cannot help feeling that Georgiana is more attracted to Alveston. What advice should she give if either Georgiana or Darcy consult her on the matter? What would she do?

But these thoughts are all dispelled from her mind when her sister Lydia tears up Pemberley’s driveway screaming bloody murder. Lydia believes that her husband Wickham has been killed, and Mr. Darcy instantly organizes a search party to verify her claim. What they find is not a dead Wickham, but a dead Captain Denny with Wickham bending over the corpse, deliriously confessing to Denny’s murder.

Did Wickham really murder Captain Denny? And will this grotesque murder pollute the shades of Pemberley?

Discussion.

I was ready to love this book. Seriously. You know how, usually, if you decide how you’ll feel about a book before you start reading it, you can’t change your mind? Well, this was one of the few times that I changed my mind. Or, rather, the book changed my mind. Here’s how.

In a word, it was vapid. I know that’s an awful charge to throw at an author, especially a seasoned, celebrated author, but it’s the truth. Neither the setting nor the characters were James’ own, and it showed. The work felt shy. It has none of Austen’s pulsating emotion. The characters, it is true, speak very much as they did in their Austenite existence, but James never provides us with the passion that provokes these words. It is as though she was scared of misrepresenting the characters and bringing down a horde of angry Austen enthusiasts down on her back. And so, instead of playing a bold hand, she allowed the characters to fade into the back and relied upon the story to hook her readers. Which…

I’m not sure how this happened, but I hold the same complaint against the story. There was no emotion. Captain Denny is murdered. As a matter of propriety we all feel very sorry for Captain Denny. But who is Captain Denny, anyway? A secondary character from Pride and Prejudice who is used mainly as a tool to introduce Wickham into the story. Has anybody ever read Pride and Prejudice and come away raving about Captain Denny? I think not.

So, a person that we don’t really care about is murdered. Now, the story still could have been interesting if we were all in love with the person suspected of committing the murder. But here again, we are disappointed. The only two people who are suspected are Wickham and Colonel Fitzwilliam. The Colonel is a nice enough fellow, but life at Pemberley would continue just as usual if he were hanged. As for Wickham – who feels sorry for him after his lascivious nature was exhibited in Pride and Prejudice? I know I certainly didn’t. When Wickham was imprisoned, I felt that, given his previous sins, murder probably wasn’t beyond his conscience. And even if he didn’t commit this murder, he’s still a bad lot and is probably getting what he deserves.

But no, oh, no, we are told. Wickham would not have murdered a man. He may be a seducer, a gambler, a drunkard, a liar, and an absconder, but he would not have committed murder. All of the characters aver this, from his wife all the way through to the Darcys and Bingleys. Even Lady Catherine does not believe that he has committed this murder. So we believe them. The Colonel is immediately ruled out as a suspect based on his honor, and Wickham, we are told is not a proper suspect either. But there aren’t any other suspects. We are left with no one to suspect and no clues to work with.

And who turns out to be the murderer? A fourthary character who appeared only once a hundred pages before the denouement. Then, the mysterious circumstances are explained to the reader. The resolution was news, yes, but hardly surprising. It fit in perfectly with everyones’ character. There was no twist to redeem the plodding dullness of the narrative. Oh, bother.

Now, don’t get me wrong – Death Comes to Pemberley isn’t horrible as a story. It’s just all right. Perhaps part of why I am so disappointed is because I expected so much from it. It was really a very clean story, which I appreciated.

Conclusion. I’m glad that I read Death Comes to Pemberley, but as a story it did not engage or interest me nearly as much as either Pride and Prejudice or other mystery novels.

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http://www.lauraverret.com/blog/category/adult-fiction/ ( )