A Certain Justice (Inspector Adam Dalgliesh Mystery)

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And yet, there's something even more fulfilling about reading a cheesy novel in the guise of literature. Sure, it may not be Doestoevsky, but it's an "intellectual activity" nonetheless (even if it's done on the beach while sipping iced tea). David Bamber (Flesh and Blood) as Edgar Froggart - a teacher who knew Venetia's father and has followed her career

Despite its unconventional beginning, A Certain Justice is, in most respects, patterned like the classical British mystery on which James’s books are modeled. One-fourth of the way through the book, the murder is committed, and then the detectives take charge. Their investigations uncover a great deal about the lives of everyone connected with Aldridge, but, eventually, they find out who killed her as well as who committed a second murder obviously connected with the first. In the last section of the novel, however, James abandons the traditional mystery format for sheer suspense. In “The Reed Beds,” Ashe takes Octavia to a remote area of Suffolk, where he will surely kill her if someone does not arrive in time to save her. Unfortunately, this episode results in still another killing, for which the dead Aldridge must bear some responsibility since it was she who arranged for Ashe’s release; fortunately, however, Octavia is saved. Once that scenario is established, however, PDJ seems to forget almost all the suspects and we barely see them again. Dalgleish and his team seem to have someone in mind based on alibis but they don't share their thoughts with us and I have no idea whether they had identified the right person or not. To be honest, the ending manages to be both overwrought and an anticlimax and I'd kind of lost interest by then. As was the case with the introduction of a Jewish detective in the last book, this time we open with Kate and new-boy Piers on a shooting range, so we know immediately how the book will end. THE AUTHOR: P. D. James, byname of Phyllis Dorothy James White, Baroness James of Holland Park, (born August 3, 1920, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England—died November 27, 2014, Oxford), British mystery novelist best known for her fictional detective Adam Dalgliesh of Scotland Yard. A Certain Justice is an Adam Dalgliesh novel by P. D. James, published in 1997. A three episode 1998 TV mini-series was made based upon the novel.

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MY THOUGHTS: This is only my second PD James. I did not enjoy the first at all and was reluctant to read this. But it is faster paced and more intriguing than her book I read previously. She will not become one of my favourite authors. I find her a little predictable, and her writing style too formal for my liking. Even though I say this is faster paced than my previous read by this author, it is still slower than I like.

The book also explores the psyche of a pathological criminal, the moral dilemmas of the defence lawyer and the repercussions of a successful defence of a murderer on those who are alive, including the victim's survivors and the defence lawyer herself. It is also a comment on the limitations of the criminal justice system. However, as the case unravels, there’s another intriguing possibility. Dalgliesh’s colleagues find out that Garry Ashe recently proposed to Venetia’s daughter, Octavia. The sole heir to Venetia’s estate, now, everyone thinks that Garry murdered Venetia to get Octavia’s money. Dalgliesh knows that they have only circumstantial evidence, and although it’s compelling, it is not enough to arrest him yet. Michelle Duncan (Elizabeth Is Missing) as Caroline Dupayne - Neville's sister. She's the headmistress at Swathling Girls' Academy A Certain Justice (1997) is a crime novel with mystery elements by P.D. James. The 10th book in the Adam Dalgliesh series, it follows the series’ protagonist as he struggles to find out who murdered a prominent criminal lawyer before the murderer strikes again. The book received widespread critical praise for its attention to detail and complex character development. Baroness James was a popular mystery and crime novelist best known for the Adam Dalgliesh series. She left school at 16 and worked in hospital administration for many years before working as a civil servant for the British Department of Home Affairs. But even after the first day he was beginning to suspect that it could turn into one of those cases which all detectives abhor: the inquiry in which the murderer is known but the evidence is never sufficient in the eyes of the DPP* to justify prosecution. And the police team was, after all, dealing with lawyers. They would know better than most that what condemned a man was the inability to keep his mouth shut. - * DPP = Department of Public Prosecutions.

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Then Venetia is found murdered in Chambers, stabbed through the heart with a stiletto knife. I enjoyed this book the most because we knew Venetia's story before Adam Dalgleish, I have said before PD James's books can be difficult to follow but this made it easier. In a 1997 book review for The New York Times, Ben Mcintyre called the book "vintage James" and summarized it as "a book in which revenge is not quite sated and deserts are not always just. That may not be the most satisfying conclusion, but it contains a certain truth." [1] Adaptations [ edit ] Another ploddy mystery from PDJ which opens with an excellent trial scene but how did Ashe know about the glasses? but which ends with melodrama and an unsatisfying series of confessions. Sadly, the most interesting character gets stabbed to death in her chambers and there's the usual heavy-handed laying out of motives for everyone. Please, somebody tell me that this is the worst book written by P. D. James, because if it isn't this one then people are even more gullible than I think. Richard Goulding (The Windsors) as Lord Martlesham - he's interviewed by Dalgliesh after his name crops up