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Death Comes to Pemberley [Hardcover]

Baroness P. D. James (Author)
2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (456 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 3 Nov 2011

The year is 1803, and Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for six years. There are now two handsome and healthy sons in the nursery, Elizabeth's beloved sister Jane and her husband Bingley live nearby and the orderly world of Pemberley seems unassailable. But all this is threatened when, on the eve of the annual autumn ball, the guests are preparing to retire for the night when a chaise appears, rocking down the path from Pemberley's wild woodland. As it pulls up, Lydia Wickham - Elizabeth's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered.

Inspired by a lifelong passion for the work of Jane Austen, PD James masterfully recreates the world of Pride and Prejudice, and combines it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly-crafted crime story. Death Comes to Pemberley is a distinguished work of fiction, from one of the best-loved, most- read writers of our time.

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Faber and Faber; 1st edition (3 Nov 2011)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0571283578
  • ISBN-13: 978-0571283576
  • Product Dimensions: 16.1 x 2.8 x 24 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (456 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 18,917 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

'As might be expected from a celebrated crime novelist, her follow-on to Pride and Prejudice introduces a detective story into Austen's world; but without any tremor of incongruity. An acute admirer of Austen's novels (which, her autobiography makes clear, she has been re-reading for more than 80 years), she keeps her sequel close to their ironic spiritedness, moral toughness and psychological finesse ... brimming with astute appreciation, inventiveness and narrative zest, Death Comes to Pemberley is an elegantly gauged homage to Austen and an exhilarating tribute to the inexhaustible vitality of James's imagination.' --Peter Kemp, Sunday Times

'P. D. James has the advantage in having both the skill and the intelligence to hold her own in Austen's company. Her charmingly conceived murder mystery unfolds like a big soft comfort blanket just in time for the nights drawing in: the nation's best-loved crime writer and best-known romance in a magic meld, with Downtony moments below stairs, spooky moonlit bits and some police procedural thrown in for good measure ... James takes Pride and Prejudice to places it never dreamed of, and does so with a charm that will beguile even the most demanding Janeite.' --Claire Harman, Evening Standard

The story is accomplished and witty, naturally, but to see James s sensibility at work on the character of Jane Austen is a wonderful treat. I find the merging of these two women of literature from such different ages to be totally intriguing. --Melvyn Bragg, New Statesman >>
A tribute to Jane Austen and a sheer delight. A book to banish Boxing Day blues. --Allan Massie, Spectator

Book Description

P. D. James masterfully recreates the world of Pride and Prejudice, and combines it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly-crafted crime story.
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Baffled 27 Jan 2012
By B. Hicks
Format:Hardcover
I was sadly disappointed by this book. It is difficult to imagine how a writer of P D James' standing came to make such an error of judgement. The cast of my favourite novel have been hard used. None of the characters rang true as being a continuation of the lives depicted by Jane Austen. No wit or sparkle from Elizabeth. No magnetism or power from Darcy. All two-dimensional and totally unconvincing. The passing introduction of characters from other Austen novels also seemed very amateurish and pointless to me. Sadly,I think many readers will find this book a very poor read.
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113 of 118 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars Sad 6 Nov 2011
By F. M. Stockdale
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Should one's admiration and respect for a highly successful author lead one to turn a blind eye to a disaster (cf Agatha Christie's Postern Gate)? Surely not, since if these Amazon reviews have any purpose, it is surely to offer advice to would-be purchasers.
In this case my advice is clear: don't!
Re-read 'Cover Her Face' instead.
To write a thriller in the style of Jane Austen is about as useful an enterprise as telling the story of the Eurozone troubles in the style of Beatrix Potter. But knowing and enjoying PD James' earliest books, and sharing her love of Austen, I was very hopeful. As it happens, PD James abandons Austen-speak immediately after the Prologue and never recovers it, illustrating perhaps the imperishable brilliance of the original.
The result is a very dull and predictable story of detection with white soup and crinolines, hamstrung by the presence of so many characters above suspicion: the murderer therefore being signposted from early on.
I kept hoping for the appearance of some passing Lakeland poet, one Master Ebenezer Dalgliesh, to rattle the Pemberley shades. No such luck. It made me sad.
I can see from the Publishers' point of view that when a fine and profitable author sets off on an unexpected route, they may have little choice other than to follow and try to make it work. But in that case, why no proper copy-editing, which would have removed the several absurd repetitions and, for example, the strange situation on p81 when Darcy is placed in 2 separate parts of the house - at the same time?
The interpolation of characters from Emma and Persuasion was particularly ill-judged.
Let's hope we may escape 'The Massacre at Mansfield Park'.
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135 of 142 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Too much to expect. 20 Jan 2012
By Valentine Gersbach
Format:Hardcover
I imagined "Death Comes to Pemberley" was going to be a cosy read for myself and Madame Gersbach to saunter through over Christmas. Here we have an "acclaimed" writer taking the characters from a wonderful Austen novel and playing about with them in a crime story. I didn't expect anything comparable to the real thing in terms of quality of prose or effortless wit but I did expect something light and amusing with an intriguing and entertaining plot.

Oh,how wrong can a poor boy be!

After an amusing and breezy prologue which introduced the main protagonists and filled in the interim between Austen's conclusion and James' commencement, the book hit the buffers.From the start,Darcy and Elizabeth were transformed into a cross between the Oxo Couple (Katy and Phillip?)and the Glums,Darcy having lost most of his haughty confidence and Elizabeth her feisty wit.The Pemberley they are given here had curiously been translated into an early nineteenth century version of "Downton Abbey" where servants held the stage alongside their crushingly boring employers in a way that I can't remember them doing in any of the Austen that I've read.The "crime" element is feeble where it isn't farcical.From time to time,the author also treats us to lectures on various aspects of the society of the time which suggest both a low opinion of the knowledge of her readers and a lack of skill in historical scene-setting.Somehow Austen managed to give us all we need to know about her world without getting out the history books and hitting us over the head with them.

In short,"Death at Pemberley" could most charitably be described as a damp squib.I wanted to like it because I admire P.D.James for having the energy,let alone the marbles, to produce novels at her age and I think Jane Austen,beneath the gaudy layers of cinematic misinterpretation of recent years, is a true giant in English literature.Unfortunately I found this misconceived and stodgily executed product of their meeting impossible to love.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Pride & Prejudice continued
An excellent follow on to Jane Austen's book. The characters are life like and the situations very plausible. JA would be proud.
Published 3 hours ago by Sandie Wood
1.0 out of 5 stars A sadly unsuccessful revisiting of Austen characters.
From such a wonderfully talented writer, this was a serious disappointment. Had her editors been genuinely serious, they would have advised her against publishing. Read more
Published 1 day ago by R. RUTHERFORD-SMITH
3.0 out of 5 stars Not Austin
The wit of Elizabeth and the starchiness of Darcy was missing from the story. I didn't dislike it but I wouldn't read it again.
Published 1 day ago by Dm Harrison
3.0 out of 5 stars NOT JANE AUSTEN
I tried very hard with this - often returning to it in case I hadn't been in the right mood before. Sorry to say that it just didn't 'grab' me.
Published 6 days ago by mel1
5.0 out of 5 stars An absolutely superb parody of Austen's writing style - spot on.
It was as if Jane Austen had been resurrected in order to write this sequel to Pride and Prejudice for her fans to enjoy. An absolutely amazing feat on the part of PD James. Read more
Published 9 days ago by F. Wilshere
3.0 out of 5 stars Too many details.
I think P.D. James thought that her readers wouldn't be familiar with the particulars of Pride and Prejudice and, in my opinion she gives too many details about the Darcys, the... Read more
Published 10 days ago by Alix
3.0 out of 5 stars Death Comes to Pemberley.
This novel is interesting in terms of showing what happens to Austen's characters after they all get married and live happily ever after. Read more
Published 10 days ago by N. L. Ellam
2.0 out of 5 stars Not what I hoped for.
Disappointed. As a crime story competent. However well known characters came across as insipid particularly Elizabeth. Much of book looked to explain. Read more
Published 12 days ago by Angela Marie MacDermid
3.0 out of 5 stars Heavy going
IN any sequel there is the initial interest of bringing the characters up to date and in this novel there is the excitment of Lydia's dramatic arrival at Pemberley with news of... Read more
Published 14 days ago by reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
I love P D James, I read all of her books and can't wait until new books come out, she is a wonderful writer.
Published 14 days ago by supergran
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