An omnibus edition of three of PD James' best-loved and best-selling Adam Dalgliesh mysteries: A Taste for Death, Devices and Desires and Original Sin.
Commander Dalgliesh is recuperating from a life-threatening illness when he receives a call for advice from an elderly friend who works as a chaplain in a home for the disabled on the Dorset coast. Dalgliesh arrives to discover that Father Baddeley has recently and mysteriously died, as has one of the patients at Toynton Grange. Evidently the home is not quite the caring community it purports to be. Dalgliesh is determined to discover the truth of his friend's death, but further fatalities follow and his own life is in danger as he unmasks the evil at the heart of Toynton Grange.
The second book to feature Scotland Yard investigator Adam Dalgliesh, A Mind To Murder is a “superbly satisfying mystery” (Chicago Daily News) from bestselling author P.D. James. On the surface, the Steen Psychiatric Clinic is one of the most reputable institutions in London. But when the administrative head is found dead with a chisel in her heart, that distinguished facade begins to crumble as the truth emerges. Superintendent Adam Dalgliesh of Scotland Yard is called in to investigate and quickly finds himself caught in a whirlwind of psychiatry, drugs, and deceit. Now he must analyze the deep-seated anxieties and thwarted desires of patients and staff alike to determine which of their unresolved conflicts has resulted in murder and stop a cunning killer before the next blow.
This is a collection of three crime stories by P.D. James. At Nightingale House Training School one of the nurses dies and a second murder leads Chief Superintendent Adam Dalgliesh into a poisonous case of blackmail. Another tale finds Dalgliesh investigating the death of a friend.
A WASHINGTON POST NOTABLE BOOK • Six stories from the beloved "Queen of Crime"—swift, cunning murder mysteries from throughout her extraordinary career. "A sophisticated collection. . . . Stylishly told and worthy of being read aloud by the fire.” —The New York Times Book Review “An unexpected delight. . . . This small collection is indeed a gift. . . . James’ skills at complicating the genre are never more apparent than here.” —USA Today When it comes to crime, it’s not always a question of “who dunnit?” Sometimes there’s more mystery in the why or the how. And what about the clever few who carry out what appears to be the perfect crime? Or whose most essential selves are changed by the crimes they commit? And what about those who know the identity of the murderer but keep the information to themselves? These are some of the questions that these six stories begin to unlock as they draw us into the inner workings—the thoughts and emotional machinations, the recollections and rationalizations, the dreams and desires—behind both murderous cause and effect. And no one gets inside the head of a perpetrator—or makes it a peerlessly thrilling and entertaining read—like the incomparable P. D. James.
An omnibus volume of P.D.James' work which features An Unsuitable Job for a Woman, Death of an Expert Witness and Innocent Blood. The author has also written a special preface for this edition in which she reflects upon her work and the significance of the crime genre in which she writes.
On the day she turned seventy-seven, internationally acclaimed mystery writer P. D. James embarked on an endeavor unlike any other in her distinguished career: she decided to write a personal memoir in the form of a diary. Over the course of a year she set down not only the events and impressions of her extraordinarily active life, but also the memories, joys, discoveries, and crises of a lifetime. This enchantingly original volume is the result. Time to Be in Earnest offers an intimate portrait of one of most accomplished women of our time. Here are vivid, revealing accounts of her school days in Cambridge in the 1920s and '30s, her happy marriage and the tragedy of her husband's mental illness, and the thrill of publishing her first novel, Cover Her Face, in 1962. As she recounts the decades of her exceptional life, James holds forth with wit and candor on such diverse subjects as the evolution of the detective novel, her deep love of the English countryside, her views of author tours and television adaptations, and her life-long obsession with Jane Austen. Wise and frank, engaging and graceful, this "fragment of autobiography" will delight and surprise P. D. James's admirers the world over.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A “superbly executed mystery” (The Philadelphia Inquirer) from the award-winning master of literary crime fiction. “Within the setting of a great Victorian mansion set on crumbling cliffs—a large cast of variously unscrupulous men and women is brought together in a tangle of murder, mayhem, betrayal, incest, and generally bad behavior.”—The New York Times Book Review NOW IN DEVELOPMENT FOR SEASON THREE OF DALGLIESH On the East Anglian seacoast, a small theological college hangs precariously on an eroding shoreline and faces an equally precarious future. When the body of a student is found buried in the sand, the boy’s influential father demands that Scotland Yard investigate. Enter Adam Dalgliesh, a detective who loves poetry, a man who has known both loss and discovery. Having spent many happy boyhood summers at the school, Dalgliesh is the perfect candidate to look for the truth in this remote, rarified community of the faithful—and the frightened. And when one death leads to another, Dalgliesh finds himself steeped in a world of good and evil, of stifled passions and hidden pasts, where someone has cause not just to commit one crime but to begin an unholy order of murder.
In yet another page-turning installment in the bestselling Adam Dalgliesh mystery series from P.D. James, “the reigning mistress of murder” (Time), the Inspector must investigate the murder of a twisted forensic scientist and explore the dark secrets within his laboratory. When a brilliant forensic scientist is found murdered in his own laboratory, Scotland Yard is called to the scene. The victim, a well-respected, authoritative member of the scientific community, was unpleasant to and greatly disliked by those who worked closest to him, leaving detectives with a wealth of suspects and murderous motives. P.D. James’ beloved detective Adam Dalgliesh is the one man who can sort through the lies, chasing down the truth to the book’s powerful climax. P.D. James deftly weaves another tale of intrigue in Death of an Expert Witness. Engaging and thrilling, she takes readers along with her troubled detective on a case rife with psychological thrills.
Acts is the sequel to Luke's gospel and tells the story of Jesus's followers during the 30 years after his death. It describes how the 12 apostles, formerly Jesus's disciples, spread the message of Christianity throughout the Mediterranean against a background of persecution. With an introduction by P.D. James
The third installment in the classic Adam Dalgliesh mystery series, Unnnatural Causes is another must-read page-turner from bestselling author P.D. James, “the reigning mistress of murder” (Time). Maurice Seton was a famous mystery writer—but no murder he ever invented was more grisly than his own death. When his corpse is found in a drifting dinghy with both hands chopped off at the wrists, ripples of horror spread among his bizarre circle of friends. Now it’s up to brilliant Scotland Yard inspector, Adam Dalgliesh, and his extraordinary aunt to uncover the shocking truth behind the writer’s death sentence, before the plot takes another murderous turn. Unnatural Causes inspired Cosmopolitan to fervently hope, “if we’re lucky, there will always be an England and there will always be a P.D. James.”
P. D. James, the undisputed queen of mystery, gives us an intriguing, inspiring and idiosyncratic look at the genre she has spent her life perfecting. Examining mystery from top to bottom, beginning with such classics as Charles Dickens's Bleak House and Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White, and then looking at such contemporary masters as Colin Dexter and Henning Mankell, P. D. James goes right to the heart of the genre. Along the way she traces the lives and writing styles of Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Dashiell Hammett, and many more. Here is P.D. James discussing detective fiction as social history, explaining its stylistic components, revealing her own writing process, and commenting on the recent resurgence of detective fiction in modern culture. It is a must have for the mystery connoisseur and casual fan alike.
The first in the series of scintillating mysteries to feature cunning Scotland Yard detective, Adam Dalgliesh from P.D. James, the bestselling author hailed by People magazine as “the greatest living mystery writer.” Sally Jupp was a sly and sensuous young woman who used her body and her brains to make her way up the social ladder. Now she lies across her bed with dark bruises from a strangler’s fingers forever marring her lily-white throat. Someone has decided that the wages of sin should be death...and it is up to Chief Inspector Adam Dalgliesh to find who that someone is. Cover Her Face is P.D. James’ delightful debut novel, an ingeniously plotted mystery that immediately placed her among the masters of suspense.
Come celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of P.D. James, the undisputed “Queen of Crime,” with a dark, twisted take on how the best revenge is served ice cold. Willing to wait decades to dispatch the bully who tormented his youth, our narrator has a plan—and the unwavering patience and brutal fortitude to enact its every chilling step. With merciless, meticulous efficiency, James takes us into the mind of a seemingly ordinary man, beneath whose unassuming guise lurks a true Machiavellian genius—for murder.
Headstrong and beautiful, the young housemaid Sally Jupp is put rudely in her place, strangled in her bed behind a bolted door. Coolly brilliant policeman Adam Dalgliesh of Scotland Yard must find her killer among a houseful of suspects, most of whom had very good reason to wish her ill. Cover Her Face is P. D. James's electric debut novel, an ingeniously plotted mystery that immediately placed her among the masters of suspense.
On the surface, the Steen Psychiatric Clinic has always been one of the most eminent institutions in London. But when its administrative head is found with a chisel in her heart, and a weird wooden phallic symbol in her arms, the terrifying truth begins to emerge. In the midst of an explosive mixture of psychiatry, sex, and drugs, the unenviable task of analyzing the clues falls to Superintendent Adam Dalgliesh -- clues that lead him to a diabolically cunning killer bent on proving that the first slaying was no Freudian slip.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A secure and secluded retreat for the rich and powerful becomes the setting for an unsettling series of murders • Part of the bestselling mystery series that inspired Dalgliesh on Acorn TV Combe Island off the Cornish coast is a restful haven for the elite. But when one of its distinguished visitors is found hanging from the island’s famous lighthouse in what appears to have been a murder, the peace is shattered. Commander Adam Dalgliesh is called in to handle the sensitive case, but at a difficult time for him and his depleted team. He is uncertain about his future with his girlfriend Emma Lavenham; his principle detective Kate Miskin is going through an emotional crisis; and the ambitious Sergeant Francis Benton-Smith is not happy about having a female boss. After a second brutal killing, the whole investigation is jeopardized, and Dalgliesh is faced with a danger even more insidious than murder.
Adam Dalgliesh takes on a baffling murder in the rarefied world of London book publishing in this masterful mystery from one of our finest novelists. • Part of the bestselling mystery series that inspired Dalgliesh on Acorn TV Commander Adam Dalgliesh and his team are confronted with a puzzle of impenetrable complexity. A murder has taken place in the offices of the Peverell Press, a venerable London publishing house located in a dramatic mock-Venetian palace on the Thames. The victim is Gerard Etienne, the brilliant but ruthless new managing director, who had vowed to restore the firm's fortunes. Etienne was clearly a man with enemies—a discarded mistress, a rejected and humiliated author, and rebellious colleagues, one of who apparently killed herself a short time earlier. Yet Etienne's death, which occurred under bizarre circumstances, is for Dalgliesh only the beginning of the mystery, as he desperately pursues the search for a killer prepared to strike and strike again.
New York Times Bestseller When distinguished criminal lawyer Venetia Aldridge defends a young man for the brutal murder of his mother, she views the case as simply another opportunity to demonstrate her brilliance in the courtroom. But within weeks of the trial Aldridge is found dead at her desk, a bloodstained barrister’s wig on her head. And as Commander Adam Dalgliesh of Scotland Yard attempts to make sense of events, the murders continue, inexorably spiraling into fresh complexities of horror.
In 1997, P. D. James, the much loved and internationally acclaimed author of mysteries, turned seventy-seven. Taking to heart Dr. Johnson's advice that at seventy-seven it is "time to be in earnest," she decided to undertake a book unlike any she had written before: a personal memoir in the form of a diary. This enchanting and highly original volume is the result. Structured as the diary of a single year, it roams back and forth through time, illuminating James's extraordinary, sometimes painful and sometimes joyful life. Here, interwoven with reflections on her writing career and the craft of crime novels, are vivid accounts of episodes in her own past — of school days in 1920s and 1930s Cambridge . . . of the war and the tragedy of her husband's madness . . . of her determined struggle to support a family alone. She tells about the birth of her second daughter in the midst of a German buzz-bomb attack; about becoming a civil servant (and laying the groundwork for her writing career by working in the criminal justice system); about her years of public service on such bodies as the Arts Council and the BBC's Board of Governors, culminating in entry to the House of Lords. Along the way, with warmth and authority, she offers views on everything from author tours to the problems of television adaptations, from book reviewing to her obsession with Jane Austen. Written with exceptional grace, this "fragment of autobiography" has already been received with enthusiasm by British reviewers and readers. The thousands of Americans who have enjoyed P. D. James's novels will be equally charmed. Diary or memoir or both, Time to Be in Earnest is a delight.
Now a major Channel 5 series 'The Queen of Crime.' New York Times When the notorious investigative journalist, Rhoda Gradwyn, books into a private clinic in Dorset for the removal of a disfiguring scar, she has every prospect of a successful operation and the beginning of a new life. But won't leave Cheverell Manor alive. Dalgliesh and his team are called in to investigate the murder, and later a second death, which raises far more complicated problems than merely the question of innocence or guilt . . . 'An exercise in impeccable detection.' New York Times 'James's skill as a yarn-spinner gives plenty of suspense to this intriguing mystery.' Financial Times
An Unsuitable Job for a Woman introduces bestselling mystery author P.D. James’s courageous but vulnerable young detective, Cordelia Gray, in a “top-rated puzzle of peril that holds you all the way” (The New York Times). Handsome Cambridge dropout Mark Callender died hanging by the neck with a faint trace of lipstick on his mouth. When the official verdict is suicide, his wealthy father hires fledgling private investigator Cordelia Gray to find out what led him to self-destruction. What she discovers instead is a twisting trail of secrets and sins, and the strong scent of murder.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Murders present meet murders past in this harrowing, thought-provoking thriller • Part of the bestselling mystery series that inspired Dalgliesh on Acorn TV Commander Adam Dalgliesh is already acquainted with the Dupayne—a museum dedicated to the interwar years, with a room celebrating the most notorious murders of that time—when he is called to investigate the killing of one of the family trustees. He soon discovers that the victim was seeking to close the museum against the wishes of the fellow trustees and the Dupayne's devoted staff. Everyone, it seems, has something to gain from the crime. When it becomes clear that the murderer has been inspired by the real-life crimes from the murder room—and is preparing to kill again—Dalgliesh knows that to solve this case he has to get into the mind of a ruthless killer.
Four previously uncollected stories from one of the great mystery writers of our time--swift, cunning murder mysteries (two of which feature the young Adam Dalgliesh) that together, to borrow the author's own word, add up to a delightful "entertainment." The newly appointed Sgt. Dalgliesh is drawn into a case that is "pure Agatha Christie." . . . A "pedantic, respectable, censorious" clerk's secret taste for pornography is only the first reason he finds for not coming forward as a witness to a murder . . . A best-selling crime novelist describes the crime she herself was involved in fifty years earlier . . . Dalgliesh's godfather implores him to reinvestigate a notorious murder that might ease the godfather's mind about an inheritance, but which will reveal a truth that even the supremely upstanding Adam Dalgliesh will keep to himself. Each of these stories is as playful as it is ingeniously plotted, the author's sly humor as evident as her hallmark narrative elegance and shrewd understanding of some of the most complex--not to say the most damning--aspects of human nature. A treat for P. D. James's legions of fans and anyone who enjoys the pleasures of a masterfully wrought whodunit.
Two bodies, their throats cut with brutal precision, lie in a waste of blood in the dingy vestry of St Matthew's Church, Paddington. One is an alcoholic tramp; the other, Sir Paul Berowne, a recently resigned Minister of the Crown. Dalgliesh arrives to begin his investigations.
A serial killer of women is on the loose on the Norfolk coast in a community overshadowed by the Larksoken nuclear power station. Commander Dalgliesh, who is staying at his aunt's converted windmill, becomes in-volved in the hunt for the murderer, a search that implicates him in the concerns and dangerous secrets of the headland community. "From the Trade Paperback edition.
THE MULTIMILLION-COPY BESTSELLING ADAM DALGLIESH SERIES FROM THE 'QUEEN OF ENGLISH CRIME' ( Guardian) WINNER OF THE CWA SILVER DAGGER 'A legend.' VAL MCDERMID 'P. D. James took the classic crime novel and turned up the dial.' MICK HERRON 'Written with the precision of cut diamonds.' IRISH TIMES PERFECT FOR FANS OF VAL MCDERMID, RUTH RENDELL AND ELLY GRIFFITHS __________________________________________________________________________________ Dalgliesh recognised with weary resignation the first lie and wondered how many more there would be before the investigation was complete. On a crisp January morning, a group of third year nursing students gather in Nightingale House for a clinical lesson. One student will play the patient, while the others practice their nursing skills. But none of them is prepared for the demonstration's gruesome end. Later, when a student dies by apparent suicide, Superintendent Adam Dalgliesh is sure her death must be connected to what happened during that fateful demonstration. But in order to prove this and uncover the truth, he must sweep away a cloud of secrets, lies and blackmail at the nursing school - before there are any more deaths. __________________________________________________________________________________ 'P. D. James at the top or her form, the twisting plot laid out with clarity and an acid wit.' 5* reader review 'Outstanding . . . a classic closed community of suspects, plenty of scrupulously laid false trails, credible detectives and a totally unexpected ending.' Telegraph 'Probably the best Dalgliesh.' 5* reader review **Now a major Channel 5 series** __________________________________________________________________________________ READERS LOVE THE ADAM DALGLEISH SERIES: 'Adam Dalgleish is one of the best characters in modern detective fiction.' 5* reader review 'If you are not already an Adam Dalgliesh fan, I urge you to become one . . . James can describe a scene or delineate a character with precision and depth, like no other writer I have read . . . I usually stay up all night to read a P. D. James novel once I start one.' 5* reader review 'I would never give less than 5 stars to any P. D. James book. She is one of a kind, always constant, always wonderful writing, always great characters, and always a good mystery that you cannot put down.' 5* reader review 'P.D. James writes mysteries for ordinary people. Her characters are relatable and her hero is dynamic. But don't expect cell phones or computers. Her stories are strictly old school, which is what I love about them.' 5* reader review 'Crime writing at its very best!' 5* reader review PRAISE FOR P. D. JAMES: 'P. D. James is the crème de la crème of crime writers. Her books are shrewd puzzles, full of wit and depth.' IAN RANKIN 'Nobody can put the reader in the eye of the storm quite like P. D. James.' SUNDAY EXPRESS 'One of the literary greats. Her sense of place was exquisite, characterisation and plotting unrivalled.' MARI HANNAH 'James manages a depth and intelligence that few in her trade can match.' THE TIMES 'There are very few thriller writers who can compete with P. D. James at her best.' SPECTATOR 'The queen of English crime.' GUARDIAN
Eighteen-year-old Philippa Palfrey, adopted as a child, believes herself to be the motherless, illegitimate daughter of an aristocratic father. When she exercises her right to find out the truth, she is shocked to discover her birth mother is very much alive—and about to be released from prison. Philippa soon enters a new and terrifying world, and comes to realize that she is not the only one interested in her parents' whereabouts.
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