I have enjoyed every one of P. D. James books. She is a very skillful writer and develops interesting characters. ( )

James is always a good read ( )

James's mystery is well conceived and written. We meet the jerk who will be murdered, and see reasons for almost anyone who had ever met him to have done it. The real reasons, however, will have to be uncovered, and then evidence found to prove it.

Dalgleish is his usual erudite but wounded self. Working with a marginally compatible detective, he doesn't display much emotional investment in the case, but simply goes about his work. As he does, we are given reasons to suspect several characters, some of whom seem to be delibreately unpleasant. In the end Dalgleish stumbles upon a piece of very good luck that enables him to finish off the case.

The book begins with a very atmospheric scene in a "clunch pit," a type of fen, but doesn't continue in that mode. We see Dalgleish's musings on the furnishings and artwork in characters' homes, presumably to emphasize his expertise and characterize the people with whom he is interacting. We don't see a lot of his thought processes.

The book is well written but not a standout among Ms. James's works. ( )

P. D. James has had many of her mysteries take place in small isolated communities where the murder victim could have been killed by several people that knew the victim. This time the setting is in a small village near Cambridge in a forensic science laboratory. The locked front door of the laboratory means that only the other staff members working at the laboratory could have killed Dr. Lorrimer, who was essentially a jerk. The author introduces all the other members of the staff, explains some of the reasons why they may have killed Dr. Lorimmer, and then Adam Dalgliesh arrives. He is methodical, discplined, and intelligent. He slowiy uncovers all the secrets that others have tried to keep hidden and in three days uncovers the killer of Dr. Lorrimer and of the second victim as well.

In later books, Adam Dalgliesh has assembled a special unit that goes with him to the scene of the crime. This time he has one other detective assigned to the case with him. They are not a particularly well matched team. But the lack of chemistry between them is not one of the emotional cores of the story as it is in many other mystery series. The mystery is the core of the story and how Dalgliesh uncovers the killer is what the book concentrates on. P. D. James does a great job setting up the story, slowly telling the personal stories of each of the characters, then lets you watch Dalgliesh unravel the plot.

The only real problem in the story is that a Perry Mason courtroom moment has to occur in order to catch the killer. For very little reason a character has to spill her guts at the very end in order for Dalgliesh to prove who the killer is. He knows who did it but has no proof until just like the killer used to do in the courtroom for Perry Mason, they spill their guts. It does detract from the book as a whole to have this happen, but it is still a well told story. ( )