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Jan 29, 2012

Kim rated it:

Oh dear. What were PD James, her agent and her publisher thinking? And more to the point, what was I thinking, deciding to actually spend money on this book?

All I can say is that it seemed like a good idea at the time. I am in what I presume to be the target demographic for this novel: female, passionate about Jane Austen's novels, a long-time reader of crime fiction and a fan of PD James to boot. Indeed, if James' name had not been on the cover, this is a book I would not have cont More...

150 comments like (56 people liked it)

Jan 03, 2012

Damon rated it:

A hideous, plodding, ungraceful piece of mawkish fanfiction that succeeeds neither as a mystery or as a pastiche of Austen's most beloved novel. Oy.

Almost from page one, there are embarassing lapses of craft and tone. None of the economy or vibrance of Austen appears in these pages and the so-called plot is built around a "mystery" that was so hamhanded that I'd sussed the perpetrator within the first 50 pages. But that's not the worst of it. More than anything, this entire More...

24 comments like (71 people liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Susan rated it:

It amazes me how publishers are willing to print just about anything written by a best selling author. And apparently, in the case of Death Comes to Pemberley, without even bothering to edit it. Although I am not sure that an editor could have saved this silly piece of something, I would have felt better if they had tried.

The professional critics also amazed me, and made me long to get my hands on a copy of the book they were reading, because I did not recognize this one in the rev More...

4 comments like (6 people liked it)

Nov 09, 2011

Jodie rated it:

Authors note:

I owe an apology to the shade of Jane Austen for involving her
beloved Elizabeth in the trauma of a murder investigation,
especially as in the final chapter of Mansfield Park Miss Austen made
her views quite plain; 'Let other pens dwell on the guilt and misery.
I quit such odious subjects as soon as i can, impatient to restore
everybody not greatly in fault themselves to tolerable comfort,
and to have done with all the rest.' No doubt she More...

0 comments like (13 people liked it)

Jan 09, 2012

Kristen marked it as to-read

Heard about this book on NPR today. Sounds like a great read--Jane Austen and a murder mystery all wrapped up in one!

2 comments like (5 people liked it)

Jan 01, 2012

Gary rated it:

This is perhaps the worst of all the Pride and Prejudice sequels and prequels. Over the years I've read some outlandish stuff-Elizabeth and Darcy enjoying a quickie in the morning room, an insane woman haunting Pemberley and making Darcy unfit for Miss Eliza-and other such rubbish. But nowhere else did they seem so dull and lifeless, so devoid of charm and spark. Be forewarned, the death referred to in the title is really that of Elizabeth Bennett which is simply unforgivable.

4 comments like (13 people liked it)

Dec 13, 2011

Deborah rated it:

When I won an advance copy of this book on Goodreads I was thrilled. Perhaps I approached the story with expectations too high. I wanted so much to like it, but the more I read the more disappointed I became. The prose is very well-written and somewhat in the Austen manner, but without the subtle wit.

What I found tiresome was the story-telling. The first word of dialogue is not spoken for many, many pages and much of the dialogue is actually a series of lengthy monologues that More...

13 comments like (16 people liked it)

Jan 09, 2012

Alun rated it:

I expect I am not alone in having bought this book because I was attracted by the idea of a murder mystery set in Pemberley. I'd fondly imagined that Elizabeth Darcy (née Bennett) would be a witty and perceptive detective, and that P. D. James would successfully channel Jane Austen's muse. I was to be disappointed on both counts. The plot is dull but complex, the writing is mostly dull (and no more than occasionally a pale shadow of Jane Austen's) , worst of all, Elizabeth herself is dull and pa More...

1 comment like (6 people liked it)

Jan 09, 2012

Liz rated it:

I'm really torn about this book. One of my favorite mystery writers meets one of my favorite stories; it's gotta be good, right? And it is good. But it's not great, and I was hoping for great.

I shy away from a lot of the Pride and Prejudice follow ons--fan fiction legitimized by a publisher, and sometimes not nearly as good as amateur fan fiction. But this I was eager to read. And I will say, it held my interest. James does a good job of capturing the spirit and even language of Aus More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

Jan 23, 2012

Melissa rated it:

Stories about "what happened next" to the characters of Jane Austen's novels don't really do it for me. It's not like I object to pastiche*, because I love Sherlock Holmes stories in all their forms; I've just never felt that way about Austen. But I do like P.D. James's novels a lot, so I was excited about this one. I was a little let down not to love it, but I did like it.

*I apologize for using this oh-so-pretentious word, but I didn't want to keep writing "books-writte More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 20, 2012

Laurel rated it:

I consider it more than a bit perplexing when an author begins their book with an apology. In this case, it is to author Jane Austen for using her characters. Since Death Comes to Pemberley is a sequel to Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, it is like apologizing for snow being cold. If you are going to write a sequel to a classic of world literature, it is, what it is. Don’t apologize for it. It really puts me off my reading game from the get go.

Okay, I got that off my chest, so now on to m More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 12, 2011

Shannon rated it:

This book was absolutely delightful. Perhaps not to an Austen purist, of course. But as a PD James fan and an Austen fan, this was a fantastic read.

4 comments like (7 people liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Betsy rated it:

I bumped this up from 2 stars to 3, because it was an easy and entertaining story and 2 stars seemed awfully low. But I have to admit I ended the book with a rather distinct feeling of "meh". I'm not hugely familiar with PD James (I'm sure I've read her before - though I can't recall a specific book) but I feel like an author of her popularity must have strongly realized characters. So I'm blaming this on the character-detachment-syndrom that often strikes "professional" f More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 07, 2012

Alicia rated it:

I enjoyed the meticulous "world-building" in this book set a few years after Pride and Prejudice. It was almost like a police procedural set in 1806! I learned a lot about how investigations and trials worked in that time period in England. That was the best thing about this book. Otherwise, it didn't really work for me.

If you're looking for an actual sequel to P and P, this isn't it. While there are characters named Darcy and Elizabeth, et al, they aren't really very much li More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Jennifer rated it:

What the hell, P.D. James? She's an excellent writer, I cannot understand why she completely failed to capture any trace of the personalities of Darcy and Elizabeth. I've loved her books in the past, and this was really a big disappointment. The intro chapter is ridiculously long, really is there anybody who doesn't know the story of Pride & Prejudice who is going to be reading this book? And if there was, she could have worked all that info in in a more interesting fashion instead of the tremen More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 31, 2012

Nancy rated it:

I am not sure what to say. It's P.D. James, a fine writer, and it's Jane Austen, one of the greatest of writers, and it seemed, at first, like a winning combination, for the first few chapters at least. I have never been interested in seeing Elizabeth, Jane, Darcy, Bingley thrust into a future created by some other author and do not as a general rule read Austen spin-offs. (It surprises me that so many Austen fans do, and to such a degree.) I made an exception here, but after what seemed like a More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 19, 2012

Anmiryam rated it:

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a good writer attempting to emulate a great writer will invariably fail. Even if that good writer is considered to be the doyenne of her genre, readers seeking the focused wit and social observation of the original creator will close her book frustrated, especially if many reviewers extoll the sequel's virtues as entertainment and fitting homage.

A few brief passages sparkle with the reflected brilliance of Austen and most of them have been More...

1 comment like (8 people liked it)

Feb 20, 2012

Mia rated it:

What a disappointment--somebody at Knopf should give up their job, as they clearly don't want to do it. I asked for Death Comes to Pemberly as a Christmas gift because I have long enjoyed both James and Austen. It's so poorly edited that I wanted to throw it across the room. The backstory was so clumsily inserted. The characters say things no one (not just not Darcy and Elizabeth)would ever say. The servants deliver pedantic lectures to all and sundry. I'm not great at solving whodunits, but wit More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 08, 2012

Rita added it

This was a Christmas gift, so I am reading it. I usually love PD James, but even though I made it past the synopsis of P&P and what happened since, it still feels really stilted & awkward. Gonna stick it out though.

OK I'm done, and it didn't get much better. The imitation of her style made me wonder how I could have voluntarily read Jane Austin, but I did, so PD James must be missing the spark. Whatever you call that point of view in a novel, kind of overhead, rationalizing, indirec More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 09, 2012

Hilary rated it:

I was ready to love this book - one of my favorite contemporary authors indulging herself with one of the best ever. Still, for me it was just OK. Elizabeth and Darcy have lost their tension. I enjoyed the clever Austen references, but prefer Adam Dalgliesh. Expect she had fun writing it though...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Feb 19, 2012

S rated it:

I searched the Internet for honest reviews of this book and found a lot of fawning and insincere compliments or just a bland synopsis of the plot. Really, are the major literary critics that silly? I finally found some intelligent critiques on this site.

"Death Comes to Pemberley" is a witless attempt to place a pulpy, Nancy Drew-ish, junior high mystery in Austin period. One of the reasons that Austin is timeless was her skill at adroit social commentary and witty dialogue More...

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Feb 18, 2012

Kimberly rated it:

From my blog: I love an epilogue and a sequel is even better. England's grande dame mystery writer P.D. James has written a follow-up to Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Checking up on old friends is always fun and Baroness James provides a bit of an update in her prologue. Then we are off and rolling with the family and staff of Pemberley preparing for the annual ball. Trouble is not far off which is where Baroness James really excels.

At times, James More...

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Feb 16, 2012

Marlyn rated it:

n the author's note prefacing the story, P.D. James apologizes for involving Jane Austen's characters in a murder. She quotes Austen (from the final chapter of Mansfield Park)

Let other pens dwell on guilt and misery. I quit such odious subjects as soon as I can, impatient to restore everybody not greatly in fault themselves to tolerable comfort, and to have done with all the rest.

James concludes her apology by saying

No doubt [Jane] would have replied to More...

0 comments like

Feb 11, 2012

Tim rated it:

How audacious! Who could resist? P D James channeling Jane Austen, what a treat.

And much of it is lovely, but none lovelier than the opening sentence:

It was generally agreed by the female residents of Meryton that Mr and Mrs Bennet of Longbourn had been fortunate in the disposal in marriage of four of their five daughters.

Pitch-perfect, the pithy Jane Austen voice masking one's true feelings behind some pleasant and amiable discourse.

We also learn what various char More...

0 comments like

Feb 12, 2012

Melissa rated it:

From reading other reviews of this book, it seems that many readers felt downright betrayed and cheated. I didn't quite feel those things, but I was left feeling a bit hollow after reading it. Before I continue, let me first say that I wanted to love this book. I love Austen, and I've recently come to love P.D. James's acclaimed Adam Dalgleish mysteries. I find it inspiring that James is still writing and publishing original material at the age of 98. Finally, when I want to like something, I us More...

0 comments like

Feb 08, 2012

Carolyn rated it:

What a disappointment. I was really looking forward to this, thinking James is one of the few people who could attempt such a task. Unfortunately, I see all the signs of an editorial committee convincing a successful author to put out one more book that they know will cash in on the Austen fever - and so she produces something by their deadline.

That's the problem. Something. It's dry, boring, laden with recapitulations of "Pride & Prejudice," lacking all the sparkle and wit More...

0 comments like

Feb 08, 2012

Mary Lou rated it:

I was hesitant to begin this book. Jane Austen and P.D. James are both great favourites of mine, and I didn’t want either of them to be tarnished. This is not James’ finest book, but she has done her homework on the period and the author, and she shows a deep respect for and understanding of Austen. I read each of the last three Adam Dalgleish mysteries assuming I was reading the last novel James would write. As she is now well into her nineties, I may finally be correct - but I hope not. I More...

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Feb 07, 2012

Martin rated it:

A major disappointment. If I could give it 0.25 of a star I would!

My girlfriend asked me to read this novel to see what I thought of it and to see if her response was valid although she did not indicate her opinion of the novel at the time.

Like my girlfriend, I think the backcover recommendation that claims PD James has created a 'pitch-perfect recreation of the world of 'Pride and Prejudice' ' is blatantly wrong. Using the names of places and people does not equate to recre More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 07, 2012

Kathleen rated it:

Amazing to think that P.D. James is now 90 and has just published this book! Kudos!

It is six years after the close of Pride and Prejudice, and Elizabeth has settled into her role as mistress of Pemberley. As it turns out, the "shades of Pemberley" weren't polluted after all. There are two heirs in the nursery, and Lady Anne's Ball (named after Darcy's mother) is scheduled for the next night. The Wickhams have not been invited, but then a hysterical Lydia shows up in a rented More...

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Feb 04, 2012

Jennifer rated it:

I wanted to like this very much. I did not like it very much. I am a huge Jane Austen fan and an admirer of P.D. James work as well, so I had high hopes for this volume. I figured if anyone could manage a Pride and Prejudice sequel, it was P.D. James. As a result of my optimism, I had to get through about a third of the book before I realized that it wasn't delivering. The new characters that James has invented were not distinct or interesting, and the old characters from Austen's novel were not More...

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