An Unsuitable Job for a Woman

Leisurely but exceptionally engrossing story of Cordelia Gray, who proves the books title wrong in so many ways. It isn't so much the case itself, although it is interesting enough, but it is the way Ms. Gray uses her own unconventional upbringing, superior intelligence, and lessons learned from her deceased mentor to figure out the truth behind the suicide of a student who left Cambridge to become a gardener, while interacting with an intriguing cast of complex, well-drawn characters. It goes without saying that James could write circles around most people, and she certainly did here. I'm hooked and can't want to see what the admirable Ms. Gray is up to next. (The audiobook is very well read and highly recommended.)

I wanted to like this more than I did...James is a trailblazer, the book's title proudly calling the world out on its bullshit. I thought a lot about why it never really grabbed me--have I become immune to narrative that isn't hyper-adrenalized, has the genre so completely cannibalized James that I've just read this book a hundred times already, does it lack an essential luridness that I need to become truly interested? I think perhaps all of these things are true, but mainly there was never much chance that the people--the characters--were going to impact one another in any significant way. Nothing was ever really going to happen in the book. I mean, the mystery would be solved but the real mystery is what would happen to the main show more character along the way. And nothing was going to happen. Cordelia is in a bubble through out. There's no chance she will fail or learn anything about herself. It's just an obstacle course, no real risk for her or the reader. I liked the sections best when she was with the rich, spoiled Cambridge kids. The chance she might get sucked into their current brought energy to the book. It remained me of so many books in those moments--The Talented Mr.Ripley, The Secret History, The Likeness...a million horror films. There's something spooky about a group of priveldged, young beauties apparently. Narrative loves to stare at them. Anyway, I hope I remember what left me flat here and can learn from it. show less

I think Cordelia’s repugnance for things a little slimy, is more faked than anything in her character. She hates Callender Sr. for his callousness toward her when he reveals his motives for killing his son, but readily agrees to conceal his murder by his mistress. At the end, when a slightly seedy client is waiting outside her office and she politely invites him inside, it’s a pretty clear indication of her future. She won’t mind getting her hands dirty from now on, after all, they can’t get much worse. Thank you Ms. James.

There are many wonderful things about older crime novels. Without hi-tech gadgets, in-depth forensic analysis and overly sadistic killers, the writer nearly always has to rely on incredible language and story telling skills to keep the reader engaged and excited. P D James wrote the first Adam Dalgliesh novel in 1962 and her novels continuously make best selling lists over 40 years later. I really, really enjoyed An Unsuitable Job for a Woman in so many ways - sadly it is the first of only two books in the Cordelia Gray series, but I definitely will read more of James' Dalgliesh novels in the future.

Life for Cordelia is, in my opinion, quite wonderful. She is young, described to be quite pretty, and she is a partner in a fun but show more unconventional private investigation agency. This is the case until her partner Bernie unexpectedly kills himself. Not a great start to the novel. After Bernie's affairs are set in order, Cordelia receives an unexpected client. The wealthy and well-known Sir Ronald Callender's son has recently committed suicide, and Mr Callender wishes to know why his son would choose to end his life. Without many options, Cordelia accepts the case and ends up staying in the cottage the young Mr Callender lived in before he died. Cordelia's keen eye for detail reveals that certain things don't add up to suicide, and she starts to suspect foul play was involved.

This is where the novel really begins to shine. Cordelia is not a trained policewoman, nor is she a specialist in any kind of medical or legal field. Her only understanding of detection came from her unpredictable mentor and partner Bernie. She is essentially a normal, everyday person who has to make do with logic and intuition. She is sharp, sassy and knows what to ask, when to ask it, and how to interpret the ways people respond to her. Her hunt for the truth surrounding the Callender suicide takes her all over Cambridge and on a wild chase that gets her noticed by the wrong person. After a nearly fatal accident, pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into place in rapid succession, leading to an explosive climax that was somewhat predictable but expertly delivered all the same.

James' stellar knowledge and use of the English language made this novel a delight to read. It is remarkably both well written and easy to understand at the same time, putting it in a well-deserved class of its own. Reading quality writing almost makes some more mainstream novels easier to handle... almost. James is a superstar in her own right and after reading An Unsuitable Job for a Woman I completely understand what the fuss is about. If all modern authors wrote half as well as this, I think the book industry would be in an incredibly different situation. There is a lot of rubbish out there. This, however, is quality literature at its finest. show less

I first read this decades ago and didn't remember a thing about it, but I vaguely recalled that I didn't like it as much as the Adam Dagleish books (although he makes a brief appearance in this one). This time around I liked it quite a bit. Cordelia Gray takes over the detective agency run by her and her partner after he commits suicide. Her first case is to determine why a young man committed suicide. There are many very unlikeable characters in this, but Cordelia isn't one of them. She is smart, determined and empathetic. I liked her a lot. And the story was good, not in the least predictable, and enough conflicting motivations to keep one guessing.

It's a shame P.D. James didn't do more with Cordelia Grey: she's much more interesting as a protagonist than Dalgleish. This was her first outing, in 1973, and she very quickly demonstrates that she's no weak and feeble Harriett. Perhaps the ending here is a little bit too contrived, but it's all good fun, and it just about makes sense, so why not?

Cordelia Gray, age 22, shows up to work one morning to find her boss, Bernie Pryde, dead by suicide; he has chosen this over suffering through cancer. While she’s handling this sorrow and the details, she is hired to find out why Cambridge dropout Mark Callendar has killed himself. The man who hires her is his father, and it doesn’t take Cordelia long to realize that murder is the far more likely cause of Mark’s death.

The search Cordelia undertakes reveals surprises, twists, elements of danger and all that you’d want in a well written murder/suspense/mystery/thriller novel. True, it doesn’t rush through things at a breakneck speed designed to give one nightmares after staying up all night reading it, but it doesn’t need to show more do so. The writing is at once simple and well done; moving along at a clip that does speed up at times, naturally, or it would merely be a cozy mystery. Since it is written in the 1970s there are no cell phones or electronic tracking means, which is such a refreshing change. I like Cordelia and am strongly considering reading the next one. show less