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A Presumption of Death: The new Lord Peter Wimsey Novel
 
 
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A Presumption of Death: The new Lord Peter Wimsey Novel [Paperback]

Dorothy L Sayers , Jill Paton Walsh
3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
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A Presumption of Death: The new Lord Peter Wimsey Novel + The Attenbury Emeralds + Thrones, Dominations: The new Lord Peter Wimsey Novel
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Product details

  • Paperback: 384 pages
  • Publisher: New English Library; New Ed edition (26 May 2003)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0340820675
  • ISBN-13: 978-0340820674
  • Product Dimensions: 11.3 x 2.5 x 17.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 71,155 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

'Jill Paton Walsh has...given us a Lord Peter story in the true Sayers' style and tradition' (Norma Major - The Week on Thrones, Dominations )

'An engrossing, intelligent and provocative novel in the guise of a conventional mystery.' (Joyce Carol Oates, New York Times Book Review )

'Could this be the best book Dorothy L. Sayers never wrote? She has done a splendid job - certain to please the legions of Sayers loyalists as well as readers new to the Wimsey canon . . . Lord Peter has been made much more human and interesting by marriage. . . and the story is full of twists and connivance.' (Chicago Tribune on THRONES, DOMINATIONS )

'A must for all Wimsey lovers...an entertaining read which offers some longed for insight into the lives of the Wimseys after their marriage' (Northern Echo (Presumption of Death) )

'Vintage whimsey ... Wimsey lives on in delicious familiarity in this triupmh not just of one writer's art, but of two' (Huddersfield Daily Examiner (Presumption of Death) )

'An admirable page-turner with some fascinating detail' (Publishing News )

'Jill Paton Walsh excels as Ms Sayers' posthumous voice. As before the two authors blend seamlessly and the intricately woven plot would grace anything from the golden age of detective writing' (Norfolk Journal (Presumption of Death) )

"Undeniably fascinating reading for lovers of good crime novels - nad, in particular, those who loved the Lord Peter Wimsey series." (Liverpool Echo )

"A must for all Wimsey lovers, this beautifully written novel is a murder mystery in the style of Agatha Christie." (Lancashire Evening Post )

"A truly engaging read" (Lancashire Evening Post )

Norma Major - The Week on Thrones, Dominations

'Jill Paton Walsh has...given us a Lord Peter story in the true Sayers' style and tradition'

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Customer Reviews

20 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (8)
3 star:
 (3)
2 star:
 (5)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.4 out of 5 stars (20 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars An enjoyable mystery to delight Wimsey fans!, 25 Oct 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: A Presumption of Death (Hardcover)
This book is a must for all Wimsey-lovers as we are reunited with Peter and Harriet in the first two years of the Second World War. Peter makes his appearance late in the novel but Harriet is as engaging as ever taking centre stage. Her longng for her husband keeps Lord Peter firmy in the reader's consciousness. He may not appear quite enough for everyone's taste, but his reappearance at all more than makes up for it.

The mystery itself is not particularly thrilling; most of your suspicions or hunches will prove to be right. The book compensates for this with a delightful development of the relationship between Peter and Harriet and with a real sense of period. The fear of the early was years is vividly brought home and the uncertainty felt will strike a chord with society after September 11. This is not enough to make it a great read for those unfamiliar wth Wimsey - the Wimsey uninitiated would be well advised to start elsewhere - but Jill Paton Walsh has tied the book carefully with the Wimsey Papers published in The Spectator in 1939-1940 and sets the stage more clearly for the short story Talboys (in "Striding Folly"). As with Dorothy L Sayers books, the characterisation is endearing.
Jill Paton Walsh may not have produced another work like "Thrones, Dominations", (her completion of Dorothy L Sayers unfinished Wimsey novel) but it is nevertheless an entertaining read which offers some longed for insight into the lives of the Wimseys after their marriage.

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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Seems like a Sayer's collaboration, 7 Oct 2007
By 
M. A. Ramos (Florida USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   
This review is from: A Presumption of Death (Hardcover)
This book takes place mainly in a small village in the countryside of England. The time, Wartime England, covering the end of 1939 through early 1940. While the village has its first air-raid practice, a crime is committed. They return to the streets to find a young lady murdered.

Lord Peter Wimbsy is off on a Secret Mission for his country. Leaving the short-handed police to turn to his wife for assistance, Writer and amateur detective Lady Peter Wimsey, known before her marriage as Harriet Vane.

We follow Harriet as she tries to solve this mystery. The story is well woven and just when we figure out who did it, we are thrown a curious twist. The cast of characters in the village makes for a fun read. We are also given a good look at life in England during the early part of World War II.
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47 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Not Dorothy L Sayers, 4 April 2005
By 
Davywavy2 - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   
This review is from: A Presumption of Death: The new Lord Peter Wimsey Novel (Paperback)
There is an excerpt of this book on Amazon. You might read it and think "Good heavens, this catches the tone of Sayers perfectly!". Well, of course it does. That's because the excerpt is lifted directly from Sayers' short story "The man who knew how" with just names and a few details changed and then inserted into this new book. The rest of the book doesn't live up to the writing of Sayers by a long chalk and this sort of underhand marketing ploy to make the reader think they're getting something they're not really ticks me off, especially when it is my money that they're taking.
Sayers had a delightful gift for characterisation and dialogue which few authors can manage. Jill Paton Walsh deserves credit for trying, but ultimately the fact that the publishers knew they had to run original Sayers dialogue to promote the book tells the potential buyer all they need to know.
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