Death comes to Pemberley (by PD James)

(Amazon UK link)

For Christmas 2021, my son and daughter-in-law gave me both the DVD and the book of ‘Death Comes to Pemberley’, which they had enjoyed and thought I might like. We hadn’t heard of the title, but learned that the book was essentially Jane Austen fan fiction by the late PD James. She’s not an author I had read before; crime fiction isn’t one of my favourite genres. But I was intrigued. We decided to watch the DVD first; it was a BBC series adapted from the book, and we thought it extremely well done. 

It’s taken me this long to decide to read the book, however. That’s partly because I didn’t want the television adaptation too fresh in my mind, and partly because I wasn’t at all sure how much I would like crime fiction written in the style of Jane Austen. I very much like 'Pride and Prejudice', and felt it unlikely any author would capture the characters as originally intended. 

I thought 'Death comes to Pemberley' well-written, clearly based in the correct period and well-researched. However I didn’t feel that the language was anywhere close to authentic Austen. The people from ‘Pride and Prejudice’ are there, but they feel somewhat flat; there’s minimal characterisation, and a lot more ‘showing’ than ‘telling’. Part of Jane Austen’s brilliance lay in her conversations and monologues, revealing people’s personalities without having to say anything about them. That’s missing from this book, as is the ironic humour that pervades Austen’s work. 

However, once it had become clear that this wasn’t Austenesque writing, I was able to appreciate the story for what it is. And it’s quite a cleverly-written plot - as one would expect from a popular crime writer. Darcy and Elizabeth have been married for a decade or so when the book opens, and have two young sons although they don’t seem to spend a lot of time with them. The annual ball in honour of Darcy’s late mother is planned for a few days’ time, and the household is busy with food preparation, cleaning and organising. 

Then, on the eve of the ball, a coach races up to the front door, with a hysterical Lydia crying that her husband Wickham has been killed. She has no evidence of this, as becomes clear: they were travelling with Wickham’s friend Denny, when Denny ran into the woods and Wickham followed. Shots were heard… but nobody returned. So she told the coachman to bring her to Pemberley. 

Darcy and a couple of others set out to find out what has happened, hoping to find the two men walking towards an inn… but, as is not unexpected, given the title, a tragedy unfolds. The ball is cancelled, and the rest of the book is taken up with investigations from the police, magistrates, and eventually a judge and jury. 

Once I was into the book I found I did remember the main outline of the plot, although I’d forgotten much of the detail; or perhaps some of it was omitted in the TV adaptation. My memory of it is that it was pretty close to the novel, albeit with more scenes that are only recalled or spoken of in the book. And while I hesitate to admit it, I think the TV series was better.  It’s quite an action-packed book and I’m glad I saw the DVD first to give me a vague idea of the different locations. 

I found some of the book a bit long-winded and tedious, and with the lack of any real characterisation it was hard to sympathise with anyone. Watching the TV version, I felt a lot more empathy for several of the people, and the outcome - if a little surprising - seemed quite believable. In the novel it felt a bit contrived, not something I could possibly have guessed, and with a somewhat too neat and tidy ending. 

Worth reading, certainly, if you like both crime fiction and Jane Austen; but I wouldn’t recommend it as highly as the DVD.  

Review copyright 2023 Sue's Book Reviews