Customer Reviews

Original Sin (Adam Dalgliesh Mystery Series #9)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Not since I saw "The Sixth Sense" a few years ago has the solution of a mystery so satisfied me as P.D. James's "Original Sin". It is one of those resolutions that makes you close the book with a satisfied snap, wondering and admiring a style that can lead you to so obvious a conclusion without giving it away too soon.

Themes of sin and justice weave in and out of the plot of this mystery, which is set at a London publishing house. The publisher has been murdered, gassed to death by a fireplace accident, with a stuffed snake wrapped around his neck. Suspicion centers around the publisher's various employees and a disgruntled midlist author whose contract has been cancelled. The publisher's death comes close on the heels on on on-site suicide of a longtime employee of the firm. By the novel's end, several more corpses make an appearance, maybe one more than is necessary.

Then there's the solution. I won't say anything about it except that it has been perfectly set up, and yet somehow the conclusion is just outside the grasp of the reader's mind, giving you one of those "Of course!" reactions.

Well worth the read... I can now see why James is considered the best in her field.

A practical joker is afoot at Innocent House, a Venetian-style palazzo on the Thames that houses England's oldest independent book publisher, Peverell Press. This engrossing crime drama effectively plays out against the self-contained setting of Innocent House. Poison pen letters are circulating, rare illustrations are being lost, important proofs are being tampered with, and minor mischiefs abound; added to the mix is the disconcerting fact that two of Peverell Press' authors and one editor have died in less than twelve months. Then, another death occurs, this one with bizarre overtones. Is it natural death, suicide, accident or murder? Is it the work of the malicious prankster,or perhaps one or more of the various people associated with Innocent House who harbor animus against the victim? Enter Commander Adam Dalgliesh and his Special Squad.

P.D. James has written that, for her, "... one of the fascinations of detective fiction is the exploration of character under the revealing trauma of a murder enquiry." In 'Original Sin,' James deftly explores a diversity of complex characters (the directors and those among the staff at Innocent House who are central to the plot, as well as several sharply delineated secondary characters) as they undergo the sagacious questioning of Dalgliesh and his team.

Besides the splendid palazzo, James treats the reader to another strikingly effective mood-setter: the River Thames itself, arcane, enduring and somewhat sinister, the compelling secrets of its dark past forever threatening to surface before our eyes (and in one memorable scene, they do). Architectural descriptions and historical anecdotes weave seamlessly throughout the narrative, as another bonus.

Further, there is an interesting look at a small London publishing house as it evolves from the "preserve of gentlemen" (Henry Peverell and Jean-Philippe Etienne) to the present-day leadership of a 21st Century Machiavellian (Gerard Etienne).

P.D. James has expressed the view that rather than feel sympathy for the murderer, the reader should feel empathy and understanding. Here in 'Original Sin' she has provided such a murderer. It is the reader's ability to empathize that makes this murderer's motivations credible.

At its heart, 'Original Sin' is about redress. In this instance, we learn that revenge (which the killer calls "justice") is not sweet, that it sometimes requires multiple acts of murder, and that it may necessitate sacrificing the innocent. The lucky reader, however, gains this harsh lesson by way of the impeccable prose of this distinguished writer.

Original Sin, PD James' 12th novel takes place within the modern publishing world.
There's a Dickensian charm to the setting, Peverell Press on the grounds of Innocent House, built to mimic a Venetial palace in 1792 by the firm's founder. One can almost feel the damp, smell the nearby Thames, and hear the click of heels down a foggy alleyway.
When a recently fired senior editor's murder is quickly followed by that of the new director who fired her, Dalgleish is called. Turns out there are plenty of motives and plenty of suspects to keep the investigators busy - and to keep PD James' loyal readers entertained.

Original Sin provided me with further confirmation (as if I needed it) of why P.D. James is among my favorite authors. This book is well plotted and written beautifully. The book's pace is leisurely without ever being slow -- and it is this pace which allows James to develop a "classic" mystery that at the same time serves as a character study and morality play. I have always enjoyed James' use of the character study (some of the finest chapters in this book involve the inner workings of the most peripheral characters). As with A Taste for Death, the last 100 pages are perhaps the most exciting, although as soon as I read the first chapter, the prose grabbed me and I knew I was in another James work.

I thought the premise was great, an office prankster may have gone too far and committed murder. But the complexity of trying to unravel three possible murders with so many suspects is exhausting. Here is a short list of suspects: Peverell, DeWitt, the Etiennes, Dauntsey, Blackie, Mandy, George, Mr. Bartrum Mrs Bartrum or both, Sister Agnes, and Pitt-Cowley.
I loved the first 300 pages, but lost steam and finally ran out of gas on page 435.

Having said the above, a high point for me was the desription of the chapel at Othona. I guess I never thought of a church which was built in 635.

There are parts of this novel that deserve 4 or even 5 stars, and other parts that deserve no stars at all; the "2" rating I've given is an average. Below, the good, the bad, and the ugly. The Good: Interestingly drawn characters who operate in a convincingly realized and detailed world. James evokes mid-90s London perfectly and creates fully dimensional people with realistically complex motivations. James also throws in the occasional extraneous but deeply insightful comment on human psychology and behavior. The Bad: Much time is spent in exposition of people, places, and things that have no bearing on the plot or its resolution. This might have been intentional misdirection but it seemed meandering. The plot becomes more implausible as the body count rises - as does the long-maintained device of whether the initial victim's death was accidental. The Ugly: One of the main characters, an ambitious detective working the murders, is hyper-conscious of perceived social exclusion based on his religion. [[PARTIAL SPOILER ALERT]] When the detective finds out that the perpetrator is motivated by a desire to avenge the detective's co-religionists killed in WWII, the detective tries to derail the investigation and warn the suspect - who by now has killed 4 people, all of them wholly innocent. The extreme implausibility of the detective's actions, combined with James' descriptions of him as perpetually angry and physically unattractive, come together to perpetuate ugly religious stereotypes. And that's a form of Original Sin.

I enjoyed this book immensely. The book starts with a suicide, spends several pages establishing the motives of every character, then gets down to murdering the person everyone has reason to kill. The rest of the book involves itself with figuring out whodunnit.

This is my first Adam Dalgliesh mystery, but it won't be my last. Ms. James spends a lot of time with all of the characters, and you get a real feel for what everyone is going through. The ending is logical, and I found myself staying up late at night trying to finish the book.

This is a good English 'murder most foul' mystery. It has all the characters, all the deadly sins of greed, resntment, the casual using of women, lies, cheating, manipulation, and all the patience of the best. And in that regard it is one of the best.

My own preference is the Elizabeth George novels (brilliant) and of course the Grandmother of them all, Christie. I like especially the double and triple agent series by Deighton and Higgens and of course (perhaps not lately) Ken Follett.

But James is so detailed that you feel sometimes you have fallen asleep in the barber's chair and awakened to find someone has deftly removed your copy of Sports illustrated and replaced it with the section on 'selecting the right colour of mulch' from Better Homes and Gardens. I felt if I heard one more reference to the marble flooring in Innocent House I would revert back to Marvel Comics.

An excellent novel. A bloody terribly long way to get across the Tower Bridge. 4 stars. Larry Scantlebury

A publisher dies of carbon monoxide poisoning in a locked room at the firm's offices. The denouement of the mystery takes place on the Essex marshes and the word "lugubrious" is bandied around. A lost work by Margery Allingham combining Flowers for the Judge and Mystery Mile? Or a homage from one great dame of mystery to another? Apart from spotting the Allingham references, I mainly liked this book, especially the atmosphere and exposure of character types. Also Allingham-esque is the understated theme: Original Sin? "Innocent" House? Is that a snake in the Garden of Eden? And, as someone else pointed out, old sins have long shadows. I found the solution forced, though, and the ending melodramatic.

This is my 3rd PD James book and I have to say I was quite disappointed. (The other 2 were Murder Room and A Certain Justice.)

I found most of the characters to be not terribly believable and one dimensional. Even Dalgliesh was not well drawn.

And to make it worse, the plot was not believable.

I agree with someone else who said borrow this from the library, don't buy it.