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Death Comes to Pemberley Paperback – January 1, 2013

3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 5,018 ratings

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NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A rare meeting of literary genius: P. D. James, long among the most admired mystery writers of our time, draws the characters of Jane Austen’s beloved novel Pride and Prejudice into a tale of murder and emotional mayhem.

“A glorious plum pudding of a whodunit.” —NPR,
Fresh Air
 
It is 1803, six years since Elizabeth and Darcy embarked on their life together at Pemberley, Darcy’s magnificent estate. Their peaceful, orderly world seems almost unassailable. Elizabeth has found her footing as the chatelaine of the great house. They have two fine sons, Fitzwilliam and Charles. Elizabeth’s sister Jane and her husband, Bingley, live nearby; her father visits often; there is optimistic talk about the prospects of marriage for Darcy’s sister Georgiana. And preparations are under way for their much-anticipated annual autumn ball.
 
Then, on the eve of the ball, the patrician idyll is shattered. A coach careens up the drive carrying Lydia, Elizabeth’s disgraced sister, who with her husband, the very dubious Wickham, has been banned from Pemberley. She stumbles out of the carriage, hysterical, shrieking that Wickham has been murdered. With shocking suddenness, Pemberley is plunged into a frightening mystery.
 
Inspired by a lifelong passion for Austen, P. D. James masterfully re-creates the world of
Pride and Prejudice, electrifying it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly crafted crime story, as only she can write it.
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“A magnificent novel. . . . Incomparably perfect.” —USA Today

“A glorious plum pudding of a whodunit.” —NPR,
Fresh Air

“The queen of mystery has taken on the queen of literature, [and] the combination sings. . . . [James’] elegance and sly wit are in top form.” —
The Plain Dealer
 
“The greatest pleasure of this novel is its unforced, effortless, effective voice… Not infrequently . . . one succumbs to the impression that it is Austen herself at the keyboard.” —
The New York Times Book Review

“[James] is the greatest living writer of British crime fiction, and probably that genre’s most talented practitioner ever.” —
The New York Times
 
“A novel of manners par excellence.” —
The Boston Globe
 
“A major treat for any fan of Jane Austen . . . [and] a solidly entertaining period mystery.” —
The Washington Post
 
“A novel of dark intrigue. . . . [which] Ms. James presents with informed assurance and in fine period detail.” —
The Wall Street Journal
 
“If you appreciate mysteries as well as the Mighty Jane, this pleasant entertainment will do nicely. . . . It is a universe of dark meanings [and] hidden relationships.” —
Los Angeles Times

“James rises well above the ever-growing pack of Austen-inspired authors, not only for her intimate familiarity with Austen’s work, but for her faultless replication of time, place and, most notably, Austen’s trademark writing style.” —
Newark Star-Ledger
 
“With well-laid clues, James weaves a credible tale with a satisfying conclusion. . . . She stamps this enticing blend of two authors’ minds with her formidable intelligence and the generosity of spirit that has marked all her work.” —
Richmond Times Dispatch
 
“Dazzling . . . Meticulously plotted . . . In my view
Death Comes to Pemberley is as good as anything P.D. James has written and that is very high praise indeed… Long may she continue to delight and surprise us.” —Simon Brett, Sunday Express
 
“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.” —The Sunday Times (London)
 
“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.” —London Evening Standard
 
“The final working-out shows all James’s customary ingenuity. . . . The stylistic pastiche is remarkably accomplished.” —
Kirkus Reviews
 
“A pleasing and agreeable sequel… Historical mystery buffs and Jane Austen fans alike will welcome this homage… Attentive readers will eagerly seek out clues to the delightfully complex mystery, which involves many hidden motives and dark secrets.” —
Publishers Weekly
 
“Satisfying. . . . [James is] an impeccable stylist and a psychological ins-and-outs maven.” —
The Huffington Post

About the Author

P. D. James was the author of twenty books, many of which feature her detective hero Adam Dalgliesh and have been televised or filmed. She was the recipient of many honors, including the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Award and the National Arts Club Medal of Honor for Literature, and in 1991 was created Baroness James of Holland Park. She died in 2014.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Vintage; Reprint edition (January 1, 2013)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0307950654
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0307950659
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.9 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.8 x 7.9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 5,018 ratings

About the author

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P. D. James
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P. D. James is the author of twenty previous books, most of which have been filmed and broadcast on television in the United States and other countries. She spent thirty years in various departments of the British Civil Service, including the Police and Criminal Law Departments of Great Britain's Home Office. She has served as a magistrate and as a governor of the BBC. In 2000 she celebrated her eightieth birthday and published her autobiography, Time to Be in Earnest. The recipient of many prizes and honors, she was created Baroness James of Holland Park in 1991 and was inducted into the International Crime Writing Hall of Fame in 2008. She lives in London and Oxford.

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Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
5,018 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers praise the author's talent and consider her work excellent. However, some find the book boring, repetitive, and pointless. They describe it as devoid of wit and magic like Jane Austen novels. Opinions differ on readability, storyline, and writing quality. Some readers find it an enjoyable read with a predictable mystery, while others find it disappointing and poorly executed.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

26 customers mention "Talent"26 positive0 negative

Customers praise the author's talent and creativity. They find the book excellent and brilliant. The clever writing and plot capture the spirit and intrigue of Pride and Prejudice.

"...While it was neatly and professionally done, as you might expect from an author of this calibre, it lacked much of the charm, humour and lightness..." Read more

"...This book is a courageous but unsuccessful attempt to take known characters from one world view and let them play out a story in a very different one..." Read more

"...the only one I've found to be fun, smart, elegantly written, and true to the spirit of Austen.I only wished it was longer." Read more

"...James, as always, writes well and does a very credible job of expanding on Austen's book using a distinctly Austen style...." Read more

310 customers mention "Storyline"187 positive123 negative

Customers find the storyline enjoyable and suspenseful. However, some readers feel the plot could have been more engaging.

"...a novel that is both high quality literature and a suspenseful and engrossing murder mystery, has succeeded with this volume in capturing all of the..." Read more

"...Also, the murder mystery did not make much sense...." Read more

"I found this book quite entertaining...." Read more

"...In the hands of a professional detective writer, the plot jogged along nicely and I followed a couple of red herrings before being pleased to find I..." Read more

301 customers mention "Readability"203 positive98 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book. Some find it enjoyable and engaging, saying it's a satisfying read. Others find it disappointing, boring, and poorly executed. The plot has weaknesses and lacks warmth, charm, humor, or insight into human nature that the author is known for.

"...an author who is able to write a novel that is both high quality literature and a suspenseful and engrossing murder mystery, has succeeded with..." Read more

"...of us who have (and those who have read all Austen's works), this was great fun...." Read more

"...I found this book highly disappointing and dare I say, boring...." Read more

"...being considerably better written than most sequels and is perfect for a rainy afternoon with a box of chocolates to hand.[..." Read more

215 customers mention "Writing quality"139 positive76 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the writing quality. Some find it well-written and full of Jane-like writing and turns of phrase, while others say the prose lacks wit, subtlety, and evocative understatement found in other works. The language is fine and doesn't call attention to itself. However, some readers feel the pace is slow and the descriptions are overly descriptive.

"...us see Mary and her marriage and how it came about, which was very believable...." Read more

"...The language occasionally grated. Jane Austen's language was immensely complicated at times but all to good purpose and never unnecessarily so...." Read more

"...James alternates between dignified narration and a delicately wry tone, without overdoing the Austen cadence...." Read more

"...This however is not Ten Little Indians. This is a well written, high minded, reasoned and consistently portrayed tale told in alternate (character)..." Read more

127 customers mention "Character development"56 positive71 negative

Customers have different views on the character development. Some find the characters wonderful and fun to see evolve, with excellent casting and acting all around. Others feel the characters lack charm and depth, feeling flat and stilted. The characterizations of Elizabeth and Darcy are also weak.

"...As other reviewers have commented, the characters felt very flat and stilted, perhaps because I have expectations of how they should behave, speak..." Read more

"...After all the book is only 300 pages. Despite this, character development is complete, if perhaps subliminal, and the juggling of preexisting..." Read more

"...but no plot development, no story arch, no character growth, no twists, and no payoff at the end...." Read more

"...It was fun seeing how characters had evolved as well as how they hadn't: Initially, Lydia's attitude and expressions surprised me, but after..." Read more

76 customers mention "Pacing"30 positive46 negative

Customers have different views on the pacing of the book. Some find it quick and enjoyable, with a proper tempo that keeps time moving quickly. Others feel the first part of the novel is a bit slow, and the narrative feels rushed at times.

"...almost in the same words and with lots of quotes, are unnecessary and turgid...." Read more

"...This book is very enjoyable, properly paced and would be ideal for committed book clubs. 3.25* GIBO" Read more

"...very little happened throughout the majority of the chapters, the pace was slow and overly descriptive - and then, finally, much of the resolution..." Read more

"...itself, and the story moved quickly.I would have liked more descriptions of the beauty of Pemberley andmore wit from Elizabeth." Read more

87 customers mention "Boredom"0 positive87 negative

Customers find the book boring and unengaging. They describe it as a pointless excursion with lack of passion and insight. The quotes are unnecessary and turgid, and the resolution lacks suspense.

"...plot, almost in the same words and with lots of quotes, are unnecessary and turgid...." Read more

"...As other reviewers have commented, the characters felt very flat and stilted, perhaps because I have expectations of how they should behave, speak..." Read more

"...Lots and lots of exposition, endless repetition that should have been edited out, a great deal of hand-wringing, and a few frankly lame discursions..." Read more

"...For that, I thank James. The mystery was viable, albeit not particularly thrilling...." Read more

42 customers mention "Wit"3 positive39 negative

Customers find the book lacks the wit and magic of Jane Austen's novels. They describe it as repetitive, frustrating, and silly. The murder mystery lacks drama and the resolution doesn't make much sense. Readers also mention that the writing is anachronistic and amateurish. Overall, they feel the book is not a faithful adaptation of the author's work.

"...It was too modern and an editor should have been onto that very sharply...." Read more

"...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...." Read more

"...The premise (murder mystery at Pemberley) is incompatible with original Austen, and James clearly feels the constraint and never gets comfortable..." Read more

"...The worst is, that it never once made me laugh." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Reviewed in the United States on May 22, 2012
    P. D. James, considered by many to be the queen of murder mysteries, an author who is able to write a novel that is both high quality literature and a suspenseful and engrossing murder mystery, has succeeded with this volume in capturing all of the literary qualities of Jane Austen's classic Pride and Prejudice and more. She continues the story of Elizabeth after her marriage to Darcy, as the two are living together with their children at their estate in Pemberley, and she uses the same language, turn of phrases, and sometimes antiquated terms, as Jane Austen. The characters from Pride and Prejudice reappear in this novel and we read how their and their family's life continued. However, James introduces a murder committed on the Pemberley grounds and we read how one of the people we know well from Pride and Prejudice is charged with and tried in court for the murder.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2012
    I found this book quite entertaining. For those reviewers who do not feel that James captured Austen's prose, I disagree, and I have read all of Austen's texts and Pride and Prejudice several times (and many of its sequels, some good and some bad), so I feel I speak from an Austen background. I felt that she created a strong background for her characters' lives from when we left them on Jane and Elizabeth's wedding day. I loved the way that James used her opening chapter to provide a background for those who may not have read "Pride and Prejudice" (I cannot imagine that these readers exist!). She did an especially good job of letting us see Mary and her marriage and how it came about, which was very believable. However, I thought that Colonel Fitzwilliam came off to a disadvantage, for I remember him as a much nicer character in the original. For those reviewersw who did not feel that James did a strong enough character building novel, remember that the murder is the primary focus.

    I also loved the way James dropped in moments from "Persuasion," Sense and Sensibility," and "Emma" without hitting her readers over the head. If some readers (again, I cannot imagine whom these are!) have not read P & P, this would not spoil their enjoyment, but for those of us who have (and those who have read all Austen's works), this was great fun. I give this book a 4 1/2 for I felt that at the trial, Darcy acted in a way that I would not imagine him acting. His sense of decorum slips a little and he becomes agitated. I did not feel he would do this.

    Altogether, I was not disappointed in this novel, and I found it refreshing coming from James, whose books are deeper, darker, and sometimes just a little long winded--and here, too, I have a background, for I have read all of P.D. James and have watched all her novels that have been televised, mourning when the character of Dalgleish was taken over by a new actor in the last two productions. I so missed Roy Marsden and his Dalgleish. I cannot even remember the name of the other actor!
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2011
    I have read many sequels to Jane Austen novels - most of them dreadful - and was very much looking forward to this one because it is by an author I respect and enjoy. I do however suspect that she had more fun writing this book than I did reading it. While it was neatly and professionally done, as you might expect from an author of this calibre, it lacked much of the charm, humour and lightness of touch of the original. Indeed, in stating categorically that Elizabeth Bennett was not imaginative, I was left wondering if the author had read the same original novel that I had.

    The language occasionally grated. Jane Austen's language was immensely complicated at times but all to good purpose and never unnecessarily so. Too many writers of fan fiction seem to feel they must emulate the complexity simply for the sake of it and that was a little the case here at times. Also, freely using contractions such as 'I'm and it's' for the dialogue so constantly, grated on me. It was too modern and an editor should have been onto that very sharply.

    There was far, far too much retelling of the original story. If the reader has not read the original, they are highly unlikely to be buying this sequel. Whole chapters devoted to slavish retelling of the original plot, almost in the same words and with lots of quotes, are unnecessary and turgid. I also understand the clever thinking behind using some of the characters from other Jane Austen books as a crossover, but it simply doesn't work in this book. It has the effect of making those sections slightly cartoonish.

    We needed far more of Jane and Bingley. They are not exciting characters in their own right but it would have been interesting to know what had happened to them in the intervening years and for them to have gained some colour during that time. They scarcely figure in this book and detail about their lives would have been far more welcome than a humourless and hysterical Lydia and the deeply uninteresting Wickham. Even his heroic reinvention is uncompelling and seems motiveless. He was far more interesting as a roue and blackguard than as a petulant and half-reconstructed irrelevance.

    Elizabeth and Darcy have lost their original spark, perhaps natural after years of marriage and two children, but disappointing to readers who admired her wit, wisdom and wonderful sense of humour, the last of which is entirely missing in this book. Elizabeth has sunk into a life as a pattern wife, subsumed into a bland and subservient character, put on earth only to serve and admire her husband and show him love. She is indistinguishable from Jane in this respect.

    And yet to a large extent I enjoyed, although would not re-read this book. In the hands of a professional detective writer, the plot jogged along nicely and I followed a couple of red herrings before being pleased to find I had been neatly fooled. I wanted very much to find out how the plot ended. But the ends were too neatly tied and no one left suffering so it was in no sense a very challenging plot. However, it was reasonably satisfying and I would never say to any Jane Austen fan that it was not worth a read. It has the merit of being considerably better written than most sequels and is perfect for a rainy afternoon with a box of chocolates to hand.

    The Cinnamon Snail
    10 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Katrin Wartenhorst
    5.0 out of 5 stars Toller Text, großer Lesepaß
    Reviewed in Germany on May 12, 2023
    Schnelle Zusendung, inhaltlich hervorragender Roman Bin sehr źufrieden
  • Mª del Carmen Echevarría Santamaría
    5.0 out of 5 stars It could be made from a more gothic Jane Austen.
    Reviewed in Spain on May 27, 2021
    P.D. James was a great writer so nothing she wrote could be a bad book. Here she described an unusual situation in a family as the Darcys, she expresed the worries, the anguish, the doubts, the fears, in fact you live those situations with the family.
  • SAIRAM MURTHY
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in India on July 12, 2018
    good sellere
  • Jacques Paturle
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great book! I loved it.
    Reviewed in France on November 26, 2017
    One could never have imagined the add-up story made by PD James to Jane Austen's best book. I totally enjoy that brilliant combination . Thank you PD James! As you can see, I am not an English. May be this is why I can accept Mrs James's trial so well.
  • M. Aguilar
    5.0 out of 5 stars Jane?!
    Reviewed in Mexico on July 29, 2015
    Es Jane Austen con la perfecta dosis de misterio. Está escrito de una manera tan Jane que por momentos se me olvidaba que este libro es solamente la imaginación de una Austeniana más y no las propias palabras de Jane. Tiene una dosis perfecta de misterio con todo lo que puedes esperar de Jane Austen.