A Mind to Murder [Mass Market Paperback]

P. D. James (Author)

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Penguin Books Canada, Limited (1990)
• ASIN: B000GYUI6G
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)

More About the Author

P. D. James is the author of twenty previous books, most of which have been filmed and broadcast on television in the United States and other countries. She spent thirty years in various departments of the British Civil Service, including the Police and Criminal Law Departments of Great Britain's Home Office. She has served as a magistrate and as a governor of the BBC. In 2000 she celebrated her eightieth birthday and published her autobiography, Time to Be in Earnest. The recipient of many prizes and honors, she was created Baroness James of Holland Park in 1991 and was inducted into the International Crime Writing Hall of Fame in 2008. She lives in London and Oxford.

Photo credit Ulla Montan

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Neat and tidy, May 13, 2002

By 

"justplainnancy" (Minnetonka, MN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Mind to Murder (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries, No. 2) (Paperback)

I'm always on the lookout for books for my 92-year-old mother -- still a sharp woman, but less able to handle complexity than she once was -- and very much a lady, who objects to an excess of blood and/or vulgarity. The early P.D. James mysteries are perfect! They're very well-crafted, nicely written, but lacking the sprawl and complexity of her later works. This one, set in a psychiatric clinic, is a classic in the sense that a murder was done by one of a limited number of characters, whose movements and motives are key. There are a satisfying number of clues, including some red herrings, dispensed at regular intervals. The characters are nicely sketched. The routines -- and the politics -- of the psychiatric clinic make for an especially strong setting. The whole thing unfolds in just over 200 pages and reaches a satisfying, sufficiently logical conclusion. Originally written in the early 1960s, "A Mind for Murder" has a decidedly old-fasioned feel, but is fun to read nonetheless. And for those who love the later P.D. James books, taking another look at her early work makes it doubly fun. My mother liked the book; so do I.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Simple and Straight-Forward, June 12, 2004

By 

C. T. Mikesell (near Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Mind to Murder (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries, No. 2) (Paperback)

I found this early mystery by P.D. James to be quite an enjoyable read. In her later books she tends to go a little overboard giving her characters interior monologues, but she doesn't do that much here. We learn a little about Superintendent Dalgliesh's late wife and his feelings for her, but there's no angsty-ness to it. Dalgliesh does worry that he won't be able to crack the case, but with the number of correct hunches he plays James does well to keep him humble.

The mystery, like the characters, is pretty straightforward too. James fairly well leads you down the path of whom to suspect, but throws in a couple inconsistencies to keep you guessing. Ultimately those inconsistencies are explained and the ending is given the obligatory twist. The story could have done with a few less characters: Keeping track of who's who and to whom they're doing what got muddy a couple times. Still, James does a good job of isolating the few key characters and if you keep steadily marching forward it's not too hard to keep up.

There is a charming naivete about this story. A modern author would have to have some of the LSD (medicinal purposes only) get mixed in with Dalgliesh's tea, and the electroshock therapy room and creaking dumbwaiter would have to be put to equally sinister purposes as well. While there is a lot of sexual activity going on at the clinic, nothing prurient takes place within the pages of the book; there's one morning-after scene and James does bring herself to write the word "thigh" a couple times, but that's about as smutty as it gets.

At this point in her writing career, James hasn't quite found her voice yet. Nevertheless, she's able to craft an above-average mystery with well-developed male and female characters. Having read some of her more-complicated novels before reading this, I wasn't put off by the simplicity of it. I don't know if the reverse would hold true: If you read this before books like "A Taste for Death" or "Skull Beneath the Skin," you might find her later work overwhelming. Regardless, this stands on its own as a good mystery by a great mystery writer.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Short, but very sweet, October 9, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Mind to Murder (Adam Dalgliesh Mystery Series #2) (Paperback)

A great introduction for readers to the world of P.D. James, this is a serious, literate mystery, though it's still considerably lightweight fare. Not at the same level as her later books, but not as mind-boggling, either. The story features Adam Dalgliesh, who is investigating the stabbing murder of one of the staff at a London psychiatric clinic. Fairly well-developed characters, intelligent use of medical and clinical knowledge (James had a lot of life experience, making her one of today's most realistic writers), a clever whodunit plot with intriguing detection, and a jarring twist ending. That James sparkle is already starting to show at this point.