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47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
P.D. James' Debut Novel, 15 Nov 2003
Sally Jupp is unexpectedly attractive--and an unwed mother in an era when such still carries considerable stigma. After a sterling record at a home for "fallen women," she finds work as a maid for the aristocratic but somewhat impoverished Maxie family, and once installed shows another aspect of her personality: a perverse pleasure in creating unpleasantness for virtually every one who crosses her path. The Maxie family is largely impervious to her machinations... but when Sally goes so far as to tantalize a proposal of marriage from the Maxie son, her game of troubling the water turns lethal, and Scotland Yard's Inspector Dalgliesh is on the job. This 1962 effort was P.D. James' first novel, and at the time it drew enough praise to immediately place among the foremost mystery writers of the day. And indeed there is much to be said for it: the story is well-constructed, the characters well drawn, and the crime is appropriately mysterious; on the whole it is a fast and fun read. But not all P.D. James fans will be impressed. Although there is more than a hint of the distinctive style and convolutions James will bring to her later work, it borrows a great deal in construction from Agatha Christie and not a little from Dorothy Sayers in terms of literary style, and Inspector Dalgliesh is not as well developed here as he will eventually become. On the whole, I recommend the novel--but I recommend it to established fans of P.D. James, who will be interested to see her working in the "classic English murder mystery" style and enjoy comparing this debut work to the author's later and more impressive work. First timers would do better to select one of the many novels that find James at the peak of her form--with DEATH OF AN EXPERT WITNESS or A TASTE FOR DEATH particularly recommended.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tension at Table, 9 Feb 2006
The distinguished Adam Dalgliesh stories begin with Cover Her Face. Few will find this their favorite book in the series. I decided to read Cover Her Face again to provide perspective on P.D. James's latest, The Lighthouse. From that retrospective look, I came away even more impressed with The Lighthouse. But I do recommend that you read Cover Her Face. Although it isn't going to be a favorite of yours, it will be good reading. The book's main weakness is that the detailed development of the place and characters doesn't quite have rich enough material to work with. The plot itself has some marvelous twists and turns that build around the character of a most unusual murder victim, Sally Jupp, a marginally acceptable servant in a wealthy home. The other interesting aspect of the story relates to several interesting variations on the locked room mystery subgenre. In later stories in the series, Baroness James let her imagination run freer . . . with superb results.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Tension at Table, 9 Feb 2006
The distinguished Adam Dalgliesh stories begin with Cover Her Face. Few will find this their favorite book in the series. I decided to read Cover Her Face again to provide perspective on P.D. James's latest, The Lighthouse. From that retrospective look, I came away even more impressed with The Lighthouse. But I do recommend that you read Cover Her Face. Although it isn't going to be a favorite of yours, it will be good reading. The book's main weakness is that the detailed development of the place and characters doesn't quite have rich enough material to work with. The plot itself has some marvelous twists and turns that build around the character of a most unusual murder victim, Sally Jupp, a marginally acceptable servant in a wealthy home. The other interesting aspect of the story relates to several interesting variations on the locked room mystery subgenre. In later stories in the series, Baroness James let her imagination run freer . . . with superb results.
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