P. D. James

[a novel]

Death comes to Pemberley

Jackie Cunningham

An entertaining return to the world of Pride and Prejudice. Never having read James before I cannot compare to other mysteries written by the author but I found this enjoyable particularly as an Austen fan.

Sonia Grgas

Florence

I have read better fanfictions and they respected the original work way more.

Elizabeth is just a woman named Elizabeth, who loves her husband and her sister. She is a shadow of her original character. She is not witty nor bold. Okay she grew 6 years older but she is just bland. And it applies to all characters. Some even did a 180, they just changed so much, you would not recognise them. They did not deserve that, even Mrs Younge, the "personification of evil" according to Mr Darcy.

Apart from the main intrigue (Denny's murder), the main conflicts are all from the original Pride and Prejudice, events that should have happened more than 6 years ago if we follow the timeline. It's like time stopped for 6 years (except that they all have kids and that Colonel Fitzwilliam's older brother conveniently died).

The world is classic Jane Austen. The mystery is vintage P.D. James. The year is 1803, and Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet 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 Bennet's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered. Two great literary minds - master of suspense P.D. James and literary icon Jane Austen - come together in Death Comes to Pemberley, a bestselling historical crime fiction tribute to Pride and Prejudice. Conjuring the world of Elizabeth Bennet and Mark Darcy and combining the trappings of Regency British society with a classic murder mystery, James creates a delightful mash-up that will intrigue any Janeite. From the bestselling author of The Murder Room, Children of Men and A Certain Justice, comes a wonderful mixture of the nation's greatest romance and best-loved crime fiction. In 2013, this novel was adapted as a miniseries by the BBC, starring Matthew Rhys as Darcy, Anna Maxwell Martin as Elizabeth Bennet and Jenna Coleman as Lydia Wickham.

Enhanced Edition

Death Comes to Pemberley

Sonja H

Ich mag die Bücher von P.D. James wirklich gern. Sie sind durchdacht, es gibt am Ende keine offenen Handlungsstränge und die Geschichten sind spannend - zumindest die, die ich vor dieser gelesen habe. 
"Death comes to Pemberley" hat sich für mich wie Kaugummi gezogen. Wirklich interessant fand ich nur die Auflösung des Rätsels und den Epilog, der besser war, als es zunächst schien. Aber ansonsten habe ich keinen Einstieg in das geschehen gefunden und konnte auch nicht die Personen richtig zuordnen. Letzteres wäre mir vielleicht leichter gefallen, hätte ich zuvor "Stolz und Vorurteil" von jane Austen gelesen, deren Orte und Charaktere P.D. James sich hier bedient. Hab ich aber nicht...
Wer Jane Austen kennt und mag wird vielleicht mehr Gefallen an diesem Buch finden als ich.

Kwan Ann Tan

Brigid Hogan

Totally forgot I had previously read this published fan fiction. Still reread. Fun for what it is. Skimmable.

Tracey O’Rourke

This book started reading very much like Pride and Prejudice, but veered off to read much like a typical period mystery. While I enjoyed it, it did not give me the period feeling of its inspiration, which I just read a few weeks ago. More of a 2 1/2.

laura

so good looking foward to more stuff by her

Pemberley is thrown into chaos after Elizabeth Bennett's disgraced sister Lydia arrives and announces that her husband Wickham has been murdered. Reprint. 200,000 first printing.

Francesca

The world is classic Jane Austen. The mystery is vintage P.D. James.The year is 1803, and Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet 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 Bennet's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered.Two great literary minds - master of suspense P.D. James and literary icon Jane Austen - come together in Death Comes to Pemberley, a bestselling historical crime fiction tribute to Pride and Prejudice. Conjuring the world of Elizabeth Bennet and Mark Darcy and combining the trappings of Regency British society with a classic murder mystery, P.D. James creates a delightful mash-up that will intrigue any Janeite.From the bestselling author of The Murder Room, Children of Men and A Certain Justice, comes a wonderful mixture of the nation's greatest romance and best-loved crime fiction. In 2013, this novel was adapted as a miniseries by the BBC, starring Matthew Rhys as Darcy, Anna Maxwell Martin as Elizabeth Bennet and Jenna Coleman as Lydia Wickham.

Ditipriya Acharya

Maelys

Lisa

The world is classic Jane Austen. The mystery is vintage P.D. James. This enhanced ebook of Death Comes to Pemberley contains video and audio that can be viewed and heard on a tablet device such as the iPad. There is a video interview with P. D. James, a longer audio interview, and an audio author reading. The year is 1803, and Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet 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 Bennet's younger, unreliable sister - stumbles out screaming that her husband has been murdered. Two great literary minds - master of suspense P.D. James and literary icon Jane Austen - come together in Death Comes to Pemberley, a bestselling historical crime fiction tribute to Pride and Prejudice. Conjuring the world of Elizabeth Bennet and Mark Darcy and combining the trappings of Regency British society with a classic murder mystery, James creates a delightful mash-up that will intrigue any Janeite. From the bestselling author of The Murder Room, Children of Men and A Certain Justice, comes a wonderful mixture of the nation's greatest romance and best-loved crime fiction. In 2013, this novel was adapted as a miniseries by the BBC, starring Matthew Rhys as Darcy, Anna Maxwell Martin as Elizabeth Bennet and Jenna Coleman as Lydia Wickham.

Death comes to Pemberley [a novel]

Reviews