Death Comes to Pemberley

By: P. D. James

Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor

Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

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.

©2011 P. D. James (P)2011 Random House Audio

Only so-so. So, so sorry!!

I wanted to love this. I thought I would love this. One of my favorite mystery authors, writing like one of my favorite classic authors. What could be bad? Well, it ISN'T great P.D. James writing as you know it from her other fantastic, intriciate, super smart mystery-thrillers. And it ISN'T great Austen writing. James has the Austenian syntax and vocabulary down pat, but not the Austenian irony and wit.

So--if you want Austen, get the real Austen. If you want great mystery writing, get anything else by P.D. James.

Sorry!!!!

sad to say, but i was very disappointed.

i am not a fan of Rosalyn Landor, but hoped i could get over this because of the author. sadly, the story was lacking on all accounts. some characters are defined by the story they were created for. could not finish the book.

Awful.

I hated this. It was nothing like PD James usual style and her portrayal of Jane Austen's characters didn't ring true at all. In my opinion, a bizarre verbose mess. However Roaslyn Landor was excellent as usual.

Boring

Big disappointment after Children of Men. This book was repeative .

I do not recommend it.

Narrator Sinks Story

What would have made Death Comes to Pemberley better?

Replacing the narrator who could not do men's voices, and read all characterizations in a stilted and pushed way. She was, in a word, terrible.

What do you think your next listen will be?

A Prayer for Owen Meany

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Rosalyn Landor?

Timothy West. But then I'd cast Timothy West for every book. The man is brilliant.

The novelty quickly wore off

What a shame! At first it was fun to revisit these great characters, but the fun of that wore off for me and the story became tedious. It was a good idea, I think, that just went wrong. I liked the narration, until it came to Darcy's voice, which was just so wrong.

Doesn't do justice to Austen's characters

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

I was quite disappointed with this audiobook, both for the weak story, which was not really a mystery, and the narrator, which seemed a little too pompous. Regarding the story, it made me sad that the Austen characters, who are so likable in Austen's book despite their flaws, seem so pompous, arrogant and self-serving in this book. I would think that the writer would have respected the people that Austen created (e.g., Colonel Fitzwilliam) and work them into her story rather than making them totally different to suit the plot. It might have been better just to create a whole new set of characters. As for the narration, the English accent seemed fake and mocking and didn't seem to lend any likability to the characters, which was really needed. Very disappointing.

Irresistible to P&P fans but utterly disappointing

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Problems with the flimsy and pointless story aside, the narrator's male voices were horrible-they all sounded the same and made it impossible to enjoy the story.

Has Death Comes to Pemberley turned you off from other books in this genre?

No. I am a sucker for all things Elizabeth and Darcy, and love mysteries - this book was completely disappointing in both genres. Having said that, curiousity will always win me back-I can't resist a P&P story!

What didn’t you like about Rosalyn Landor’s performance?

Male voices were beyond bad. BAD. The men all sounded like unhealthy, overweight seniors. It was impossible to like any of them.

What character would you cut from Death Comes to Pemberley?

The thin story combined with the bad narration never allowed me to care enough about any of them to cut. The relationship between Elizabeth and Darcy had little to do with the story and the exchanges between them were devoid of any connection - you could easily have cut either of them and not noticed!

Any additional comments?

Don't be tempted to buy this one or use a credit. Rent it at the library if you must - it's free so you won't feel cheated.

Not much of a mystery

Let me start off by saying that I am by no means a Jane Austen purist. That said, I have to admit I had quite a few hangups with this mystery. For one, it didn’t feel like a mystery at all – a courtroom drama perhaps – but not a classic whodunit. I was expecting our beloved Elizabeth Darcy to put on her gumshoes and crack the case, yet she barely had a role in this book at all. The inquest was tedious. Plus I had to force myself to concentrate on all the long-winded descriptions of characters and convoluted backstories. Listening to this on audiobook proved to be a big challenge! As for the narrator, I'm giving this a couple extra stars because she was great.

It doesn't work

I can see a hundred ways this supposition could have worked, but the one the author chose didn't. Would be an okay read on an otherwise boring day, but not worth spending money for.