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

Oh, honestly!

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

Nothing but a re-write!

What was most disappointing about P. D. James’s story?

Half of the story was just a recap of events from Pride and Prejudice--who would have read Death Comes to Pemberly if they weren't already intimately familiar with P&P? Honestly! And P.D. James--shame on you!

Have you listened to any of Rosalyn Landor’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No--but the performance was good despite the story.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Death Comes to Pemberley?

Every minute spent in reference to P&P.

Any additional comments?

What a waste of money and time. Very disappointing. Oh, and the murder story was lame, too.

So disappointed

I first started with audio books with my favorite author, Jane Austen. 70% of my books are mysteries and I love P.D. James so when I heard about this I thought it would be perfect. So wrong. Just about halfway through and not going to finish it because it is annoying. P.D.James has altered the personalities of the major characters. Darcy, Colonel Fitzwilliams, even Lydia, Charlotte--all going against the personalities developed by Ms. Austen. Maybe as a standalone...without the connection to Pride and Prejudice it might be better.

talking heads

it's admittedly a long time since I've read Austen but I don't remember feeling like all the action was described by other characters as opposed to actually unfolding. I don't know if it's the writing or the narration but this just feels like 8 hours of tell don't show.

Worst of PD James - don't spend money on this one

Like many people, I thought, "What could be better? The great PD James' plots with Jane Austen's characters?" You will be supremely disappointed. PD James can't get Jane Austen's voice and characters (not surprising, after all, since nobody else but Austen can), and she abandons her own wonderful characters, giving us the worst of both authors in a book that is boring, stiff, and tiresome. There is next to no plot; she spends about 1/3 of the book repeated "Pride & Prejudice" lines so that you know that she's familiar with the characters, and you keep waiting for something new and interesting but it never happens. The narrator is all wrong for anything of Jane Austen's characters, as she reads in an imperious tone for nearly every character, but which suits only one, Lady Katherine. All in all, it's tremendously disappointing but yet another example of why sequels to classic works, don't work. Get it from the library if you must, but don't pay for this one.

Simply dreadful

What disappointed you about Death Comes to Pemberley?

I love Jane Austen and all the spinoffs I've read so far. Couldn't finish. The story plodded along and none of the the characters were at all appealing.

Alas!

What a wonderful idea -- mix Jane Austen and P.D. James. Two great dames, right? Unfortunately, the result is unimpressive. James is so careful not to disrespect Austen that she creates a so-so imitation of Austen and an unexciting mystery as well. I was disappointed. This could have been so much fun, but it's not.

Disappointed

Any additional comments?

I was so excited about this book when I first found out about it, but after listening to the story, I am nothing but disappointed. These beloved characters were placed in a story that dragged on and on. There was no suspense to the story. Do not waste your credit. Do not waste your time looking for this at the library. Leave Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth with the happily ever after that everyone knows and loves.

Why?

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

I love P D James in general. But why did she write this? I was hoping for Jane Austen like prose - not even James can mimic the great Austen.

What could P. D. James have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Write more like Jane Austen

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

the male voices just don't work

The Worst of Everything

Any additional comments?

This book sounded most promising, but sadly, it contains neither the wit and polish of Jane Austen nor the craftsmanship of P.D. James's other mysteries. Instead it is an odd jumble of preciosity, sentimentality and clumsiness of plotting that makes one wonder what Ms. James had in mind in undertaking this work. It certainly does not do justice to the Jane Austen tradition, rendering Lizzie a virtual non-entity and her sisters merely props to a flimsy murder tale that winds up in an unconvincing maze of improbable occurrences reflecting the worst of the English style of mystery writing. Rosalyn Landor does a valiant job of staying awake and rendering the characters, such as they are, reasonably well, but no narrator can rescue a weak book that promises far more than it delivers.

Not Jane Austen's Pemberly

This is really one of the worst books dealing with Pemberly after Elizabeth's marriage. It is incredibly boring - the reader is excellent though but that does not make up for the poor plot and tedious details. I had expected better from P.D. James but this was not it. The characters are very one dimensional and the murder is quickly solved and there is little suspense to the book. The amount of detail about country life simply does not ring true of Jane Austen;s detail and instead of being delighted we are bored. There is relatively little action and conversation is stilted and unnatural. If you loved Pride and Prejudice then DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. There are other mysteries out featuring Elizabeth and Darcy which are must better done.