Death Comes to Pemberley

By P. D. James

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.
 
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.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Dec 6, 2011
• ISBN: 9780307959867

P. D. James

P. D. James (1920–2014) was born in Oxford in 1920. She worked in the National Health Service and the Home Office From 1949 to 1968, in both the Police Department and Criminal Policy Department. All that experience was used in her novels. She won awards for crime writing in Britain, America, Italy, and Scandinavia, including the Mystery Writers of America Grandmaster Award and the National Arts Club Medal of Honour for Literature. She received honorary degrees from seven British universities, was awarded an OBE in 1983 and was created a life peer in 1991.

Reviews for Death Comes to Pemberley

[streamsong_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

”It was generally agreed by the female residents of Meryton that Mr and Mrs Bennett of Longbourn had been fortunate in the disposal in marriage of four of their five daughters.” p 1This murder mystery is a sequel taking place several years after Pride and Prejudice ends. The day before a great ball at Pemberley an univited guest showed up – Lydia Bennet Wickham, who not only did not have an invitation to the ball, neither she nor her husband were ever received socially by the Darcy's. She arrived in a coach tearing along the drive like the hounds of hell were after it. Lydia told a story of her husband George Wickham and another man rushing off into the woods and hearing shots fired.There is a murder, and the never-do-well George Wickham is the chief suspect. The story wasn't bad, but it could have been so much better. There was a lot of telling, instead of showing. The visual of the pages was gray due to the very long paragraphs – sometimes more than a page long. I missed Jane Austen's light and sparkling wit, although it did have its funny moments and the characters felt authentic. The mystery was good enough – I didn't have it figured out. But that is what well known mystery author P. D. James was best at.Recommended for fans of Pride and Prejudice who would enjoy a bit more, or fans of P. D. James.

[amaliagavea · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When it comes to re-writings or new versions of classical novels and classical characters, I am the least open-minded person imaginable, especially when we are talking about Pride and Prejudice. However, I really enjoyed P.D.James' treatment of Elizabeth, Darcy and Georgiana, because it is clear that she respected Jane Austen's creations and tried to breathe new life unto them, presenting their lives after their marriage. I liked the descriptions of the trials that took place, having the chance to see how justice was conducted at the time, something that I haven't come across in any other book I have read in such detail.

The mystery itself was nothing special, but it was enjoyable and ccomplex enough to keep my interest, and not have me roll my eyes every five minutes. The characters of Elizabeth and Darcy are well-written, and it wasn't difficult for me to picture them as if they'd sprung out of Jane Austen's book. I still would like to see more of Elizabeth's input, and less of the rumblings of her sister and Georgiana's lovesickness, but this is just me. Overall, it was a very good effort with respect to the original material, and for me, that is what mattered the most.

[emanate28 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I think PD James did a reasonable job in using Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice to create this mystery tale, although she went a bit overboard in my opinion in terms of almost quoting bits and pieces of P&P (was it to give this book credibility? For me, it was too distracting a reminder that it certainly *wasn't* P&P). I also confess I enjoyed the few 'cameos' she snuck in.But as far as mystery tales go...well, this one was mediocre at best. I'd recommend it only if you are curious, can keep your expectations down, and if you can borrow it from the library.

[hopeevey · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Lovely writing, lovely narration, but a very weak story. The author clearly loves the characters and the setting. I wish equal care had been taken to craft the plot.

[anissaannalise-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I decided to give this a read as I began watching the Masterpiece Mystery dramatisation on PBS. It's not unusual for me to do this, what I've experienced as a first was that upon finishing the book, I'd absolutely no desire to continue with the PBS series. I abandoned the television version because I simply didn't want to be bothered with this story any longer. I am disappointed. Lizzie and Darcy aren't my favorite Austen couple anyway (Anne & Captain Wentworth, for me please) so I'm not so beholden to the original material to be aggravated like this is some travesty against literature. With that said, I was a bit bored and it felt like this had very little life as reads go. I was excited for the mystery but once the reveal was done, there was still a bit to go to tie it all up and I didn't feel all that was warranted. Admittedly, it's a short book but I still think it was over long. I don't know that I'd recommend this as I believe most people do have other things they could be reading than a book that's a little less than okay and more middling than anything else.

[gingermama-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not terrible, but not great either. Certainly not what I expected of James. The "mystery" was so convoluted as to be almost indecipherable, even with the extended explanations at the end. It was a good imitation of Austen's writing style, just not a great story. 2.5 stars.

[pamdierickx · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Slow, very slow!

[lissabeth21 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Loving all things Pemberley, I was intrigued to read a slightly different take on the topic. I am not generally a reader of mystery, and this proved only slightly less difficult for me. Getting through the Inquest and Trial sections was slow going and did not engage me much. There seemed to be too much repetition of the same information that did little to move the narrative forward. However, the beginning and the tying together of the loose ends was very satisfying.

[julie.bonjour · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

So much exposition! And the characters have an annoying tendency to speak in speeches. Still, all in all, it's a good read. I liked the plot of the book more then that of the tv mini series.

[quondame · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

For PD. James, this is bad. I really disliked her Elizabeth and Darcy, and the mystery is to faked up and arbitrary to justify the involvement of such a weighty cast.

[cemagoc · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I will begin by saying that I am not of the giant Jane Austen/P&P fan club, mainly composed of women, though I do appreciate the book's success as a literary classic. Nor have I ever read a PD James novel. I couldn't make it through this one: the jumps in narrative style, the obviousness of the murderer, and fan fiction that I couldn't bear to read. Though I love historical mystery, I hope to skip all other fan fiction murder mystery, particularly if it is based on Jane Austen.

[csmith0406-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Just OK, it seemed a bit of an unsuccessful mix of Austen and PD James.

[aine.fin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Easy read, not much to it.

[picardyrose · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

Is she crazy?

[nx74defiant · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not bad. I was glad to see the book didn't have the stupid scene from the mini-series of Elizabeth running to the gallows at the very last minutes. We got a better explanation of the story of the sister.

[booksinthebelfrey · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

If we needed proof that Jane Austen's characters are entirely subordinate to the mordant social observations she uses them to make, this unexpected venture into the realm of fan fiction by the august Baroness James would serve nicely. James's recreation of Austen's tone and style is nearly pitch-perfect, but she has nothing really to say with the characters, who in and of themselves are as lifeless and lacking in depth as a set of historically accurate paper dolls. The attempt in passing to link up characters from various Austen novels in one narrative is terribly clever, but again serves no purpose other than to afford those readers in the know a moment of or two of self-congratulatory recognition ("Look! It's Harriet Smith from Emma!"). P.D. James is too accomplished a writer to produce a truly bad novel, but this was something of a disappointment. She's given us lots of reading pleasure over the years, though, so perhaps she's entitled to a little late-career indulgence.

[raizel_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I think P.D. James spent a lot of time wondering what happened to all the characters in Pride and Prejudice and wanted to share her conclusions with us. The book lacks the clever comments of Jane Austen, but we learn a bit of what life was like in 1803, the pace is quick, and I did not guess whodunit.

[slmr4242 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I like the premise, but the execution was somewhat more formulaic than I expected. Also, the narrative bounced about a lot from one character to the next. It made it difficult to find a character with whom to sympathize.

[briandrewz · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a work that slides in nicely with the original "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen. P.D. James has written a very believably Austen-esque world in which we find our favorite characters grappling with a murder within the borders of Pemberley.Admittedly, I watched the mini-series before I read the book, and I'm glad I did. I felt the mini-series was better overall in the way in which the story was told. This book, however, was very enjoyable. I've seen mixed reviews on it, but I definitely thought it was fun.

[hobbitprincess · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Think of a continuation of Pride and Prejudice with a murder thrown in for good measure. That's what this book is like. It's written in the style of Austen's book and is thoroughly enjoyable.

[antao-3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

For Jane Austen ("Pride and Prejudice") and P .D. James Fans. I'm still waiting for the latest Adam Dalglish installment... This book is not vintage P.D James, but it's still a fine addition to her bibliography. Elizabeth Darcy should have been more full-fleshed that it is in the book. For me it's the only caveat of the book.

[jjaylynny · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Hmmm. Probably the best "sequel" to P&P since it's written by PD James, but I think I've learned my lesson: one should not fuck with the real thing.

[gayla.bassham · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Not great literature, and I didn't always think that James did a great job with Austen's characters or voice, but it's clear that she's having a great time and I enjoyed myself as well. I also loved the references to Walter Elliott and Harriet Smith. Worth picking up if you're an Austen fan.

[sarah_buckley-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This was just not a book for me. I knew going into it that it was going to be a challenge. I am not a fan of Jane Austen or any of her books. I've read them but they just don't do anything for me. I find them incredibly tedious and sometimes boring. I went into this book knowing the premise and intent on giving it a fair read. I just think it still suffered for the same problems as regular Austen.

It was reasonably interesting and entertaining, but it just couldn't hold my interest.

[tedwitham · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I’ve had to have been persuaded to read Jane Austen; despite the enthusiasm of some friends for the 19th Century novelist, I have been put off by her high style and the brittle world she builds of English class distinctions at the end of the 18th Century. I was anticipating the next police procedural of P.D. James, a modern stylist and great crime writer, and I admit to some disappointment when I read the advance publicity for _Death Comes to Pemberley_: an amalgam of a Jane Austen novel and a crime thriller. Elizabeth Bennet has married Darcy and settled at Pemberley. They have two sons in the nursery and their marriage is a happy one. Each year, Pemberley Hall is the scene for a grand ball, named in honour of Darcy’s late mother, Lady Anne. Pemberley is thrown into disarray on the night before Lady Anne’s ball by the bloody death of an army officer in the estate woods. The scene needs much untangling as Wickham, a man never to be received at Pemberley is found kneeling over the body, drunk, and exclaiming that it is his fault that his friend is dead. Wickham is married to Elizabeth’s sister Lydia, and causes ongoing distress to the Darcys by living irresponsibly beyond his means. Darcy as a paterfamilias has in the past been obliged to pick up the tab. In the subsequent investigation and trial, family loyalties are stretched to breaking point, and Pemberley looks set to be shamed for generations to come, until the final resolution, which – in Jane Austen fashion – is a set of happy outcomes for all.James’s writing is so good that I was drawn into this complex web of family relationships and intrigue and enjoyed this novel almost as much as her other crime novels. (I don’t think she can better _Death in Holy Orders_, but then I'm a priest of the Anglican persuasion.) I was amused that Darcy consulted his wrist-watch and Elizabeth her bedside alarm clock: they were needed to establish times of alibis. The year in which _Death Comes to Pemberley_ is set is 1803, well before the mass production of wrist-watches and the miniaturisation of alarm clocks. Darcy, as a gentleman, would much more likely have a pocket watch, if any time-piece on his person, and Elizabeth would more likely be used to consulting a maid who might know the time from a large hall clock. I can’t help feeling there’s a joke element here. P.D. James is too careful to have simply made a mistake. The incongruity of the time-pieces emphasise how complete the world is that James has created. I believed her portrayal of reactions to death among the British upper-class of the time. I suspect Baroness James has some nostalgia for a time when gentlemen lived on their estates and as magistrates kept good order throughout the realm. The downside to this nostalgia is that _Death Comes to Pemberley_ lacks some of the social edge of James’s earlier novels. This has been a divertissement, a thoroughly enjoyable one at that, but I do hope she returns to more modern settings if we are blessed with future novels.

[milliehennessy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, as I’ve read some disappointing sequels and reimaginings of Pride and Prejudice, but from the start I found myself pleasantly surprised by the tone of characters. James has done an excellent job keeping the narrative voice true to the original and the characters behaved as I think they would have should Austen have decided to pursue this genre. I expected a murder mystery involving the Darcy family would have been a bit hokey, but I was interested in the story and constantly trying to guess who the murderer was.James sets the scene by revisiting some of the events from the original novel and detailing how Elizabeth and Darcy have children now and how they’ve fared since their marriage. There’s also some speculation from the neighborhood as to why Elizabeth and Darcy married and this felt like a natural follow up to the end of the original. James also has Mary happily married and though she’s really not mentioned beyond that in the book, it was nice to see her settled rather than turned into an even more obnoxious character, as is common in other renditions of Pride and Prejudice. As usual, I can’t stand Lydia or Wickham and James managed to make me dislike the couple even more throughout the events in her book.Lady Catherine even makes a small appearance and has a fantastic little monologue on life and death which made me chuckle:“The de Bourghs have never gone in for prolonged dying. People should make up their minds whether to live or to die and do one or the other with the least inconvenience to others.”There’s even a nod to characters from Persuasion and Emma, implying they run in some of the same social circles as the Darcys.The mystery turned out to be more complex than I expected and my only real complaint with this book is with the latter portion where all is revealed. A murder trial is held and of course the witnesses are asked to speak and in doing so they repeat a lot of what has already been revealed to the reader. After the trial, even more details are revealed and due to the conversational nature of how everything took place, it turned into a massive infodump. The book really slowed down and was dull for me, despite the interesting details being discussed. I don’t think there was any other way the story could have wrapped up other than everyone talking about what happened, but it was tough to get through.If you’re an Austen fan and the idea of her characters being involved in a murder trial sounds interesting, I think you should give this book a chance. It didn’t disappoint me and if James has any other Austen-inspired work I’d certainly read it.

[sweetiegherkin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Some six years after their marriage at the end of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Elizabeth and Fitzwilliam Darcy are planning a ball. The evening before the big day, Elizabeth's youngest sister Lydia appears on their doorstep in hysterics, shouting that her husband is dead. A search party scours the woods of Pemberley where it is found that not Wickham, but his friend Captain Denny, has been murdered. Wickham is the only viable suspect but as his case is brought before the justice system, no one at Pemberley can believe that Wickham, despite his many flaws and faults, is capable of murder.This book is one in a many myriad of Jane Austen-based sequels, spin-offs, and re-writings. The clout of P.D. James's name made it seem like it could be a contender but, alas, this title is just another one in the pile of dreadful, not-even-close Austen wannabees. The mystery is blase -- for most of the novel, no person other than Wickham is given as a possible suspect and the crime seems completely straightforward. (Note to authors: A big twist at the end does not make up for hundreds of pages leading to a seemingly inevitable conclusion.) Much of the book seems to be treading water. The same bits are repeated almost ad nauseam. For example: First we are privy to the search party's steps on the night in question; then we have those actions recounted in the local hearing; and yet again we hear about it for the trial in London -- with practically the same word usage each time. It seems like a better editor would have known to cut down on much of this redundancy to keep the book sharper and more edge-of-your-seat readable. In this book, we get a great deal of insight into the inner workings of Darcy's mind, which was an interesting perspective, especially given that Darcy has a tendency for reserve, which usually keeps his thoughts hidden from the reader. On the other hand, Elizabeth is a dull character not at all in keeping with the feisty young heroine of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Instead, she is far too busy worrying about what the neighbors will think, doing what is proper, and running a large household, complete with her two little children, to really do much about the terrible events before her. However, James does a fairly decent job of keeping the spirit alive of many of Austen's minor characters, particularly the delightfully horrible Lady Catherine, although sometimes all she does is simply lift lines almost verbatim from Austen's original novel. Speaking of the original novel and its various characters, James's approach to this novel is a bit odd. She begins with a prologue that quickly recaps the events of Pride and Prejudice and serves as a reminder of who relates to whom and how. This seemed like a good start to me as I picked up the book. However, then as the book proper launches, she once again gets bogged down in details about the pasts of these characters -- most of which have nothing to do with the story at hand. In addition, detailing the fates of minor characters -- such as the middle Bennet sisters, Mary and Lydia -- ultimately seemed unnecessary. The total lack of Austenesque prose is sure to make Janeites unhappy anyway and the diversions into these characters that play no role in this book serves to simply confuse and bog down the uninitiated reader who is just trying to tackle the plot of this novel. While this book had some moments here and there that shone brightly or promised potential or just made a clever turn of phrase, it was overall marred by a slim plot, too much repetition of that basic plot, and flat or one-dimensional characterizations. I wasn't actually expecting something as good as Jane Austen with Death Comes to Pemberley, but I was hoping for something at least a little more entertaining than this actually was.

[cissa_5 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

While this was not a bad book, I was disappointed with it.I have read and enjoyed most of James's novels, and "Pride and Prejudice" is one of my top favorite books. I was very excited to learn about a novel that combined them!Sadly, this did not live up to my hopes and expectations at all.Far too much of the first parts of the novel were devoted to reiterating- many times over- the basic plot of P&P. Since I think it unlikely that anyone who is not a fan of P&P would read this, we really did not need the constant harping on its plot- and even if someone had no familiarity with P&P, repeating its plot at least 3 times does not show respect for the reader.And while the characters in P&P are vivid, here they all fade to gray. "Workmanlike" is the best way I can summarize what James did with Austen's vivid personalities. Even Lady Catherine was toned down!Also, the murder mystery did not make much sense. I suppose it was a decent excuse to revisit the characters- and redeem some of the awful ones to some degree- but I found the resolution very unsatisfying, and the tying up of loose ends- especially as it pertains to the characters in various other Austen novels- to be a fairly pointless clever trick.Darcy is not going to turn into a Sensitive New Age Guy. Lizzie is not going to turn into an indulgent helpmeet for him. Wickham is not going to change his spots. Et cetera.James did do a lot of research into the way "great houses" worked, and the current legal system; I wish she had integrated that better with the vivid characters in the original P&P.

[leticia.toraci · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I would surely recommend this book to anyone who has read Pride and Prejudice, even if you aren't into the Mystery genre. It is what I would call a "modern classic". It is also a fun, surprising book. The kind you won't manage to stop reading and you will feel sad when you finish because you can't dwell longer in its world with its great characters.

[anakurland · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting sequel to Pride & Prejudice. I loved the references to Persuasion and Emma. :-) I found the repeating of parts of P&P slow, but I guess they're in there in case someone has not read it Quite enjoyable read.