James, P. D.

Molecular Biology of the Gene, Fifth Edition

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Am Studying for the Biochemistry GRE - This book is golden
Great Book
Good book
Don't buy this book
Readable and Thorough, An Excellent Reference

Molecular Biology of the Gene, Fifth Edition
James D. Watson , Tania A. Baker , Stephen P. Bell , Alexander Gann , Michael Levine , and Richard Losick
Manufacturer: Benjamin Cummings
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Molecular Biology of the Cell, Fourth Edition
Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry, Fourth Edition
Molecular Cell Biology
Genes VIII
Biochemistry

ASIN: 080534635X

Book Description

The long-awaited new edition of James D. Watson's classic text, Molecular Biology of the Gene, has been thoroughly revised and is published to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Watson and Crick's paper on the structure of the DNA double-helix. Twenty-one concise chapters, co-authored by five highly respected molecular biologists, provide current, authoritative coverage of a fast-changing discipline, giving both historical and basic chemical context. Divided into four parts: Genetics and Chemistry, Central Dogma, Regulation, and Methods. For college instructors, students, and anyone interested in molecular biology and genetics.

Customer Reviews:

Am Studying for the Biochemistry GRE - This book is golden.......2006-09-19

I got this book to assist for my prep for the Biochemistry GRE - I know a lot about Biology. So this is a great Book - First, It is very readable - I was surprised I was not able to put it down and knocked off 100 pages in record time. Besided that - it is enjoyable and not dull and boring - Second, The great experiments are given and insight into the science reasoning behind them also. This book makes the discover of genetics, DNA, RNA and protein building come alive. Third, this book is very current with research and cites the papers and journals where the important biology, Genetic, molecular & cell biology was published. That alone would save you the time to research and site these for your own research. Lastly, the pictures and recollections of the experimenters and "who knew who" are a total hoot.

Great Book.......2006-03-18

This book is an awesome teaching guide but the real prize goes to the CD and animations. Where a subject might be a bit hazy in the text, the flash animations on the CD are clear and concise.

Good book.......2005-11-05

Some books are just very well written-this is one of them!

I like that they leave space in the margin to write notes. Organized more like a book you can read in chapters compared to the Lewin Genes text. Concise and up to date.

Good disc included with lots of great animations.

Don't buy this book.......2005-09-24

Buy this book if you are really unintelligent and knows virtually nothing about biology. Really. if you are the person who wants to learn, find an alternative book.

Readable and Thorough, An Excellent Reference.......2005-07-13

I am a layman with a serious interest in biology. I read science news, especially in Nature and Scientific American, and I often find that I don't have enough background to understand articles at the level at which I want to understand them. I bought this book hoping to get that background, and I wasn't disappointed.

For example, once the human genome was sequenced, it appeared that there were far too few genes for an organism as complex as ourselves. But investigation shows that most genes occur in segments and that the messenger RNA must be cut and spliced before the protein can be formed. Often there are two or more ways the RNA may be spliced, so that one gene can specify more than one protein. Another problem is that the genome seemed to consist mostly of sections that don't code for proteins; these were called "junk". But it turns out that some "junk" DNA codes for RNA sequences that have catalytic and regulatory roles, roles which used to be considered the bailiwick of proteins alone. Articles about topics such as these used to confuse me thoroughly, but after reading this book I find them much clearer.

This book benefits from a great many illustrations and I recommend that you go through each one as you would a worked problem in a math text. Observe how the pieces fit together, how a particular group of atoms enhances or inhibits a reaction. The practice will help you to understand other things you will read later.

I called this a "reference" for good reason: I assume that I will come across many future articles which will send me back to it to fill in some background.

[Added 4 July 2006] As I assumed when I first wrote this review, I have used it for reference. I have read several books about what I call "enhanced evolution", where mechanisms that go beyond simple point mutations speed up evolution by providing more variation. For example, gene regulation, alternate splicing, and gene duplication all play important roles. I have surprised myself by remembering more than I expected to (thanks to the clarity of this book) but I have still used it for clarification.

Average customer rating:

Better Than the Movie
Dark and depressive with hope just dieing to burst through...
great characters, great description
The Children of Men
Beautiful and Exciting!

The Children of Men
P.D. James
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Children of Men (Widescreen Edition)
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The Lighthouse
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A Mind to Murder

ASIN: 0307279901
Release Date: 2006-12-05

Book Description

Told with P. D. James's trademark suspense, insightful characterization, and riveting storytelling, The Children of Men is a story of a world with no children and no future.

The human race has become infertile, and the last generation to be born is now adult. Civilization itself is crumbling as suicide and despair become commonplace. Oxford historian Theodore Faron, apathetic toward a future without a future, spends most of his time reminiscing. Then he is approached by Julian, a bright, attractive woman who wants him to help get her an audience with his cousin, the powerful Warden of England. She and her band of unlikely revolutionaries may just awaken his desire to live . . . and they may also hold the key to survival for the human race.

Customer Reviews:

Better Than the Movie.......2007-06-20

The book is everything that the movie is not: complex, thoughtful, and filled with suspense over the future of the human race. Although many fans of P.D. James have apparently been disappointed by this book based on the reviews that I've read, anyone who has an open mind for dystopian science fiction will be pleasantly surprised. The first part of the book is pretty slow, but it serves to set the stage for the roller coaster ride in the second part--so don't give up on this book early!

Dark and depressive with hope just dieing to burst through..........2007-06-07

There's a scene in the beginning of this novel so heartbreaking it almost brought me to tears. It's a scene involving a mother and her child, a mother gripping her child in her arms only to have that child torn from her grasp by another woman and slammed against a wall. That child is merely a doll and that woman is not in any literal sense a mother, but P.D. James writes with such harsh sympathy that the reader feels every ounce of pain that dear woman felt, having everything she longs to have, that child she'll never birth but only dream of, like a child dreams with her dolls, ripped from her soul and destroyed before her eyes in a fit of jealous and maybe even rationalistic rage. This scene is one of many that set the tone for what proves to be a harrowing journey through the soul.

The first half of James' novel is mostly read through the eyes of Theodore Faron. As the reader delves into Faron's diary entries they are brought up to speed with the circumstances the world in general is finding itself nowadays. There hasn't been a single birth since 1995. The population is dying and many are finding that there is just nothing left in life to look forward to. Faron explains well how the universal sterilization has affected the masses. The older ones have realized life may as well end for them. Without the prospect of children, grand children or even great grand children there's no need for sex, no need for relationships and in effect, no need for life. The Omegas (or lastborns if you will) have reacted ruinously. Knowing the world is there's for the taking and no one and nothing can take it from them they have run rampant, killing and being killed.

We also learn about the changes in the political system that has ensued since life stopped. England is run under the thumb of a Warden, that Warden being Theodore's half-cousin Xan. Under Xan's control decisions are made that distress the people, particularly a group of five who go by the name `The Five Fishes' who have demands they feel must be met by the Warden. Enlisting the help of Faron, hoping that he may have some luck with persuasion beings that he is related and at one time was very close to the Warden, these five (six if you count Faron) embark on a life threatening journey to change the future for a dying breed.

Where James excels is in the first half of this novel. Here descriptions of life post infertility are brilliant. Every change, every strange and unheard of practice comes off reasonable when masked by her brilliant writing. When we read of birthing parties held for animals and mass suicides so that those who wish no longer to live in a world with no spark of life can pass with those closest to them we, the reader, can begin to sympathize and even understand where these people are coming from. But like some reviewers have already mentioned, the second half of this book almost reads like an entirely different novel. I feel that a big reason for this is that none of the characters aside from Faron are fairly fleshed out and so we are lost as to what makes them tick, why they are doing what they are doing and most importantly, why should we care.

Despite that flaw the novel as a whole is wonderfully written and deserves some notice. With the release of the critically acclaimed film (which from the looks of things differs in many ways from the novel, but I can't say much for I have not seen it) there is a renewed interest in the reading of this novel, and I suggest that anyone with that interest take it up and read what proves to be a thrilling and worthwhile ride. With an ambiguously delicious ending `The Children of Men' may not be perfect but it's well worth the time invested. It's a quick paced read, engrossing and rewarding. It may read like two novels, but they are two novels worth reading!

great characters, great description.......2007-06-06

description of Rawlings, an investigator for the secret police:
"I thought I understood his kind: the petty bureacrates of tyranny, men who
relish the carefully measured meed of power permitted them, who need to walk in the aura of manufactured fear, to know that the fear precedes them as they enter a room and will linger like a smell after they have left, but who have neither the sadism nor the courage for the ultimate cruelty. But, they need their part of the action. It isn't sufficient for them, as it is for most of us, to stand a little way off to watch the crosses on the hill."

The character does not have the power to insert the lance in the side, rather he'll menace; perhaps he walks around the cross tapping his spear on the ground, or poking the man on cross.
Most of us are content with a distant view. We dare not.

Setting a scene:
"Daylight, tenative and bleak, stole like a chill breath into the wood, wrapping itself round barks and broken boughs, touching the boles of the trees and the low denuded branches, giving darkness and mystery form and substance."

Hmmm, dark, threating and suspensful.

These are examples found on nearly every page of this book.

Notwithstanding the story, the brillance of the writing makes this a book to own and study.

The Children of Men.......2007-05-26

One of the most depressing books I have ever come across. How can such a gifted crime novel writer write a book which could drive weaker souls to perhaps fatal dispair?
Best regards
Jan Ditlevsen

Beautiful and Exciting!.......2007-05-22

This novel is told alternatively between first and third person of Theodore Faron, Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Oxford. Faron is a historian of the Victorian age. Further, he is divorced and childless. His claim to fame later in the novel when the rebels contact him is that he happens to be the cousin of England's dictator.

It has been 25 years since the last children were born into the world and with no children to care for and no future to care about, the people are totally self-absorbed and have no time for politics. Therefore, they turn control of politics over to a dictator. In return their safety is guaranteed and the novel reminds us of the time before dictatorship when women were afraid to walk the streets alone and old people were attacked.

The last generation of children born are now 25 years old. They are spoilt and have a great sense of entitlement. In the novel they are called Omegas. As they become older the world becomes a sadder place because everyone realizes the Omegas will be the last humans left on earth. The whole book is rather haunting but especially the notion that people living out their lives realize once they are gone the planet goes on without them.

In the novel Faron becomes involved with rebels and the book becomes a thriller. As the rebels are on the run we discover one of the women is pregnant and the excitement grows. I don't want to give too much away but it is a great book to read.

The ASCRS Textbook of Colon and Rectal Surgery

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The ASCRS Textbook of Colon and Rectal Surgery

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Laparoscopic Colorectal Surgery
Principles and Practice of Surgery for the Colon, Rectum, and Anus, Third Edition
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Colon and Rectal Surgery

ASIN: 0387248463

Product Description

THE ASCRS TEXTBOOK OF COLORECTAL SURGERY is the first official textbook of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) (www.fascrs.org) that adheres to the principals of evidence-based practice and utilizes ASCRS practice parameters. Written by top experts in the specialty, each chapter correlates with the core curriculum developed by the Program Director's Association in Colorectal Surgery. Chapters include Anatomy, Physiology, Genetics, Diagnostic Evaluation, and Perioperative Management. In addition, a ground-breaking online component is updated periodically with new information for the busy surgeon.

A distinguished editorial group includes Dr. James Fleshman, Dr. David Beck, Dr. Steven Wexner, Dr. Bruce Wolff, and Dr. John Pemberton. There are also five associate editors who bring their expertise and experience to the textbook: Dr. Julio Garcia-Aguilar, Dr. James Church, Dr. Patricia Roberts, Dr. Rob Madoff, and Dr. Ted Saclarides.

With 56 chapters and over 800 illustrations, including 64 color, THE ASCRS TEXTBOOK OF COLORECTAL SURGERY is destined to become a classic. It is a must-have reference for residents and fellows in training, as well as practicing surgeons.

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textbook of hyperbaric medicine
A uniquely critical technology for modern medicine

Textbook of Hyperbaric Medicine
K. K. Jain , and Richard A., M.D. Neubauer
Manufacturer: Hogrefe & Huber Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (Neubauer and Walker - Dr. Morton Walker Health Book)
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Hyperbaric Medicine Practice, Second Edition-Revised

ASIN: 0889372772

Book Description

This textbook, now appearing in its 4th, fully updated, and expanded edition, has become widely known as the best exposition available on the topic of hyperbaric medicine and the wide range of applications of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) techniques. In addition to explaining the basic principles of HBO therapy, and its application in carbon monoxide poisoning and decompression sickness, the textbook looks objectively and critically at its use in numerous other areas, such as stroke, CNS and neurological disorders, traumatology and wound healing, infectious diseases, rehabilitation and sports medicine, plastic surgery, emergency medicine, obstetrics, and cancer treatment. With over 2000 up-to-date references and an extensive index, the volume is not just a textbook suitable for those seeking an introduction to this expanding field but also an invaluable resource for specialists. Also included is a chapter on hyperbaric medicine as a specialty, with recommendations on training, practice, and research.

Customer Reviews:

textbook of hyperbaric medicine.......2002-07-02

best, up to date book I have read on HBO.
for those who practice its an excellent guide and for the
layman it will open your eyes to what hbo can do( and
cannot do) as well letting you know who cannot use
the hyperbaric chamber.

A uniquely critical technology for modern medicine.......2002-01-24

Summary:
A well-founded research based textbook on the medical science, techniques, and varied applications of hyperbaric medical treatments ("HBO"). Written for specialists, clinicians and students.

This is a seminal textbook for understanding the medical and scientific facts of hyperbaric medicine, as well as implementing hyperbaric medical technologies to patient care. HBO has widely varied disease and condition applications with a commonality of pressure technology.

Medical Economics
In the modern world of medical economics, HBO can save Third Party Payers significant costs on patient treatments while delivering significantly improved outcomes and quality of life.

HBO is one of those medical sub-specialties that is left behind by the biases of modern medical economics and science. Modern medicine is primarily based on pharmaceutical economics. Significant research investments are powered by the manufacturing and distribution economics of successful drugs. This is a great and tremendous system, delivering research, understanding and successful treatments that unquestionably alleviate disease and conditions on a broad basis. But, this system is not perfect and is not without isolated failings.

HBOT cannot be packaged into a pill, has minimal manufacturing economies, and high ongoing service costs and high overhead, while associated with nominal patient volumes, and nominal billing rates. These economics have long held back this very promising technology (HBO) and its successful applications. Further, double blind studies are virtually impossible - patients perceive pressure changes, or lack thereof, technicians are required to implement pressurization, and oxygen delivery systems may not be able to deliver less than 100% oxygen.

Ironically, HBO can power pharmaceutical and surgical applications to higher levels of treatment success bringing cures where partial successes were the norms. (Chapters 9, 13 14, 15, 23, 24, 27, 33).

Controversially, HBO has demonstrated good clinical success on incurable diseases and conditions, including Crones Disease, stroke, CP, MS, and others. While modern medicine debates the etiologies and optimal treatment protocols, curative HBO applications can be given today. These applications (esp. Crones, and MS) can further illuminate etiologies therefore, furthering and accelerating alternative and supportive therapies.

HBOT supports diabetic wound healing, preventing amputations; enhances infectious disease therapies, saving lives and reducing hospital stays; is used for various poisonings; can provide accelerated surgical recoveries (up to 30-40% faster); and can ameliorate strokes and brain injuries by up to 40% when applied within 4 hours of injury.

Medical Physics
Simply, under pressure, oxygen dissolves in blood serum, and therefore can diffuse to poorly supported disease areas, or injuries. Further, HBO acts as an immuno-suppressant, relieving acutely injured tissues of oedema, preventing further injuries (if applied on a timely basis), as well as supporting the natural healing process.

Angiogenesis occurs within 15 - 20 minutes of HBO. It is not known if angiogenesis is initiated by the increased pressure effects, or by the oxygen dissolved in the serum. However, angiogenesis is felt to be a factor supporting accelerated healing in injuries, chronic wounds, and surgical recoveries. Further, little is known about these growth factors and their involvement with healing.

Neurological Applications
The chapters on neurological applications are some of the most significant in this text and should be required reading for all neurologists because they hold the greatest single promise to modern healthcare. These chapters are steeped with extensive (and largely ignored) animal and human research papers, extensive clinical studies with supportive SPECT scans and associated clinical outcomes.

The brain remains the final frontier of science and brain injuries are the most destructive and expensive to society (#1 killer of children and teenagers, #1 birth defect, #2 killer for adults).

We do not understand the brain's response to injury, or disease, much less detail its response to treatments and recoveries. But, we can accept the overwhelming clinical observations made by trained physicians world-wide of positive outcomes to HBO when applied to brain injuries, and cerebral palsy patients.

Hopefully, one day we will be able to manufacture a drug, or drug regimen that can replace HBO treatments for brain injuries. However, that day is probably 50 years from today. Therefore, today, we need to apply HBO to brain injuries, note the clinical outcomes, optimize the treatments, and develop ancillary supportive therapies.

Diagnostic Imaging is propelling objective clinical research for neurological applications of HBO by demonstrating underlying metabolic activity changes in brain tissues with HBO. Clinical observations significantly correlate with SPECT scan changes. (SPECT using HMPAO have become the scan of choice.) Chapter 18 written by Dr.'s Neubauer and Harch provide an excellent foundation for understanding and support for using HBO for brain injuries and CP.

Table of Contents

Forward: by Edward Teller, Director Emeritus Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories

(In a personal communication to me, Dr. Teller assures the empirical physics of HBO, and is convinced that HBO enabled him to recover from a serious stroke. Dr. Teller is also convinced that his daily HBO regimen has enabled him to continue working full time at 93 years of age).

Part I: Basic Aspects
1 History of HBO
2 Physical, Physiological and Biochemical Aspects
3 Effects of Diving and High Pressure on Human Bodies
4 Physical Exercise under HBO
5 Hypoxia
6 Oxygen Toxicity
7 HBO Chambers, Equipment, Techniques, Safety
8 Indications, Contraindications, and Complications
9 Drug Interactions

Part II: Clinical Applications
10 Decompression Sickness
11 Cerebral Air Embolisms
12 Carbon Monoxide and other Tissue Poisons
13 Infections
14 Wound Healing, Plastic Surgery, Dermatology
15 Radionecrosis
16 Neurological disorders
17 Stroke
18 Global Ischemia / Anoxia and Coma
19 Neurosurgery
20 Multiple Sclerosis
21 Headache
22 Cardiovascular Diseases
23 Hematology and Immunology
24 Gastroenterology
25 Endocrinology
26 Pulmonary Disorders
27 Pediatric Surgery
28 Traumatology and Orthopedics
29 Otolaryngology
30 Opthamology
31 Obstetrics and Neonatology
32 Geriatrics
33 As Adjuvant in Rehabilitation and Sports Medicine
34 Cancer Radiosensitivity
35 Anesthesia
36 Emergency Medicine
37 HBO as a Speciality: Training, Practice and Research
38 HBO Around the World
39 HBO in Japan

Book Description

A secure and secluded retreat for the rich and powerful becomes the setting for an unsettling series of murders.

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.

Download Description

P. D. James is the author of 18 books, most of which have been filmed for television. Before her retirement in 1979, she served in the forensics and criminal justice departments of Great Britain’s Home Office, and she has been a magistrate and a governor of the BBC. The recipient of many prizes and honours, she was created Baroness James of Holland Park in 1991. In 2000 she celebrated her 80th birthday and published her autobiography, Time to Be in Earnest.

From the Hardcover edition.

Customer Reviews:

Masterfully Written.......2007-06-01

I would have gone with 5 stars if not for the first 80 or so pages. If you get past the long drawn out introduction of the characters, the story is excellent, as is the writing & setting. A novel that grips you to the very end

Lights Out!.......2007-05-17

More cookie cutter PD James, with an antiquity threatened by an obnoxious person who goes around giving everyone reasons (convincing ot not) to kill him, with endless detail on everything under the sun, including the contents of people's pantries (James seems to take an increasing interest in food in her later books--everyone drinks fresh-squeezed orange juice and freshly ground coffee, by the way). Dalgelish, who has not beeen interesting in twenty years, continues to fret, in a dull way, over his tepid love affair with the lovely and brilliant Emma. Kate Miskin gets a love life of her own (she should be well into her forties by now), but it's dull too. The rest of the characters, from the high-born old lady to the young street waif and the various morose but well-spoken middle-agers are all types we've seen from James before, done this time with little energy. The mystery itself is not bad, but one loses interest as the pages go on and on and on. James has done much better in A Mind To Murder, Unnatural Causes, Shroud for a Nightingale, The Black Tower and A Taste for Death. Her last three books suggest an elderly author simply going through the motions. This may be good enough for the fawning print reviewers, but it you want the Great James, you must read her earlier work.

Masterful Mystery of the Traditional Kind.......2007-04-11

P.D. James, master of the traditional English mystery, is back again with "The Lighthouse," another in her Adam Dalgliesh mystery novels. While forensics, of course, is the latest fashion in whodunits, and while TV shows like "Cold Case" feature sympathetic victims whose fates make you tear up, Ms. James continues to do what she does best: the dogged Dalgliesh solves cases the old fashioned way; the victim is unsympathetic, and all the suspects have a reason to want out him of the way.

But Ms. James does pay homage to the "new" police procedural style by at least offering an explanation of why the CSIs (called SOCO's in Brit-speak, for I think Scene of Crime Officer) do not appear--the crime takes place on an isolated (fictional) "Combe Island," off the coast of Cornwall, and then . . . ah, but best not to say any more.

As always, the characters are expertly drawn (my favorite is the young woman, Millie, who Ms. James, now in her 80s, seems to understand very well), the scenes expertly set, the clues all there for you. But will you guess whodunit before Ms. James is ready to tell you? That, of course, is always the pleasure in a James novel. It's always a treat to play along, perhaps re-reading certain scenes when something comes to "AD's" mind. Or your own.

And, again as always, the novel is very cinematic--many of the books in the series have been seen on BBC television--and maybe you'll start casting the movie version in your head.

It gives away nothing to say that at the end of "The Lighthouse," Adam Dalgliesh and his associates Kate Miskin and Francis Benton-Smith leave the scene by helicopter. In your mind maybe you'll hear the noise of the chopper, as it "soars above a white tumble of clouds into the shining air."

Roll the credits.

A truly wonderful book.......2007-03-29

I like this author's work so much that I actually bought the hard cover since I couldn't wait for the pb to be issued. However, P. D. James' view of life as expressed by her characters can be very pessimistic at times (a contrast to her autobiography). In this one, there is still the feeling that the characters are going through the motions of living, never really feeling any joy--or often even happiness. However, when Adam and Emma come together at the end, there was a ray of hope. Please, Ms. James give us a new book ASAP!

Character development! :-).......2007-03-12

I've always enjoyed P.D. James Adam Dalgliesh mysteries, but have always wished for a little bit more information about the characters. I got my wish with "The Lighthouse"! Dalgliesh moves forward, and so does Kate, his loyal assistant. The end is more of a new beginning for the characters, instead of being just a mystery resolved.

I got the feeling that maybe P.D. James is trying to complete the cirlce in this book. Maybe it's the last AD mystery? I hope not, I love all of them.

Death of an Expert Witness (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)

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Near Perfect
A Touchstone British Murder Mystery
Haiku Review - 4 1/2 stars
Lacked A Punch
Who can resist Adam Dalgleish?

Death of an Expert Witness (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)
P.D. James
Manufacturer: Touchstone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Similar Items:

A Mind to Murder
A Certain Justice: An Adam Dalgliesh Novel
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A Taste for Death

ASIN: 0743219627
Release Date: 2001-10-30

Book Description

An evil-tempered forensic scientist is put to death, putting many of his colleagues out of misery. Commander Adam Dalgliesh must exhume the secrets of Dr. Lorrimer's laboratory in order to lay bare the murderous motive hidden in one human heart.

Death of an Expert Witness led Newsweek to crown P. D. James "the new queen of crime."

Customer Reviews:

Near Perfect.......2007-04-28

This is my third James novel. The present work was written over 30 years ago by a James in her prime. It is short and compact; and, it has a nicely balanced structure with good characters. It is written with straightforward and simple prose and it is a compelling read that is hard to put down. In short, it is what one can describe as a masterpiece as are some of her other early novels.

The book opens with the literary hook: a murder in a field in the countryside. But it quickly switches to a second murder in a science laboratory.

The novel has an interesting set of characters, and as in other James novels, there are half dozen suspects with various financial and emotional motivations to be involved with the killings. The mystery unfolds slowly, and the reader is given a few clues just ahead of the Dalgliesh. By the way, Dalgliesh does not play a dominant role in the book.

Readers will not be disappointed, and the book demonstrates the fame and ability of James as a crime writer. Most will want to keep the book and set it aside to read again in the future. Also, the book demonstrates again that more is not always better than less. In the elaborate 550 page slow moving story told in The Murder Room, the author has a 95 page introduction and no crime until around page 130. We wait as Dalgliesh does not enter the investigation until almost page 200. Thankfully, all of that type of writing is missing here. The story is well underway and the reader is fully engaged by page 10. James tells a well balanced and a compelling tale in half the space.

This is a masterpiece.

A Touchstone British Murder Mystery.......2007-01-11

Perfect. In this sixth of her Adam Dalgliesh mysteries, the author has achieved a flawless blend of the requisite elements. Dalgliesh is now a fully developed character and is given a sidekick that provides a fine complement to Dalgliesh's naturally dark character. I would also note without any spoilers that a grasp of Dalglish's background adds greatly to the enjoyment of the work. Our author is now able to avoid providing excessive and distracting detail regarding her protagonist as well as provide themes and plot lines that resonate with the Inspector's experience. Suffice it also to say that there is a strong and unifying theme running throughout the book that neatly ties everything up in an edifying and powerful manner. As befits first-rate fiction (of any genre), the book provides a worthwhile lesson in the nature of the human condition.

In short, a Forensic Biologist is whacked over the head with a mallet in his own police laboratory. Thus, the investigation of other murders must be put on hold while the police sort out their own business. The setting is well-matched to the events, the characters are diverse and excellently drawn, the plot moves nicely--but what sets this book apart are the constant red herrings. Upon encountering what appears to be a significant clue, you have not yet finished congratulating yourself on solving the mystery before your speculation is revealed to be flawed.

What makes this a masterwork is that the diversions and complications appear entirely natural. Nothing is out of place and the book is seamless in its relentless march to the ultimate revelation, the tragedy of which is developed in much greater detail than in prior works.

Thus far, my favorite P.D. James mystery. Highly recommended.

Haiku Review - 4 1/2 stars.......2006-06-30

scientist murdered
many suspects, one killer
thrilling to the end

Lacked A Punch .......2006-03-24

I find P.D. James' stories adapt better to television than they do novels. She is a fine writer and I admire the heck out of her ability to render a story's setting as important (and usually moreso) than any of the characters who inhabit the spaces of her creations. However, in this novel, as in the three others I've read, I felt slightly bored because it was as if the settings, being so lovingly, artfully described, overpowered the events and cried out for adaptation to the screen, and simply failed when confined to the single dimension of the flat page. James is a better screen writer than a novelist. She tells a fine story and tells it with imagination, but I can't help but confess, I find her books a little slow moving and dull. Here I wanted to find out more about the crime lab and its experiments. I also wanted to follow the life of the young girl who is the featured character at the very start, but alas, she drifts into the background soon after the opening pages, and we don't encounter her again except as a prop at the very end. I think Death of an Expert Witness needed a few more sub-plots and deviations from the main story. It was too little mystery and too much verbiage. Sorry...

Who can resist Adam Dalgleish?.......2005-05-02

This is an old P.D. James that I had somehow missed when I read her continuously in the mid-1990s. Although I love the James character Cordelia Gray, who appears in all of the "Unsuitable Job for a Woman"-type mysteries, my favorite James character is Inspector Dalgliesh. Since BBC/PBS did a series of "Mystery" episodes years ago based on the Dalgliesh character, I have him firmly fixed in my mind as the troubled Inspector (aren't they all?) who is also a brilliant poet and lover of all things fine in life. This book is a Dalgliesh book, not his best (that would be "A Taste for Death" or perhaps "Shroud for a Nightingale"), but even the worst Dalgliesh (I can't think of one) would be better than the best of most other people. This one takes place at a forensic laboratory where criminal and other evidence is processed and gives us a bit of a glimpse into how the Brits do Crime Scene Investigation (CSI). These are country people, not slick American city types, and that's OK. The countryside hides lots of interesting characters who have all sorts of motivations. Keep in mind that this was first published in 1986 and the world has changed rather tremendously since then!

Aerial Photography and Image Interpretation

Average customer rating:

An excellent academic introduction to aerial photography

Aerial Photography and Image Interpretation
David P. Paine , and James D. Kiser
Manufacturer: Wiley
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Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0471204897

Book Description

Includes new material on orthophotography, soft photogrammetry, and digital image capture and interpretation.
* Introduces the latest non-photographic and space-based imaging platforms and sensors (Landsat, LIDAR, thermal, multispectral).
* Provides new information on elementary sampling techniques and statistics.

Customer Reviews:

An excellent academic introduction to aerial photography.......2004-08-25

This book is an outstanding, in-depth introduction to the science of aerial photography. At the outset, it must be said that this book does not tell you how to bring in, register, or project your aerial photo in a particular GIS application. What it does tell you is how that photo came about and how it might be interpreted or used. The text reads well, but does require the reader's full attention to absorb all the information.

Average customer rating:

SHADES OF GRAY
"What's there to be afraid of? After all, we're only dealing with men."
Dalgliesh Echoes beyond His Reach
Cordelia is Worthy of the Challenge
Top Notch Whodunit

An Unsuitable Job for a Woman
P.D. James
Manufacturer: Scribner
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Binding: Hardcover

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The Skull Beneath the Skin
Innocent Blood
The Black Tower
Shroud for a Nightingale
Death of an Expert Witness

ASIN: 0743222040

Book Description

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.

An Unsuitable Job for a Woman introduces 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).

Customer Reviews:

SHADES OF GRAY.......2006-08-08

Despite its rather mundane and unalluring title and the name of her lead character, Cordelia Gray, PD James has concocted a fairly riveting tale of murder, deception and betrayal.
She introduces us to Cordelia Gray, a 23 year old private detective who inherits her own agency when her older partner commits suicide due to untreatable cancer. Her first solo case comes in the form of investigating the suicide death of a young man. His father, a noted scientist, wants Cordelia to find out why he killed himself.
James' mainstay Adam Dalgleish is a ghost in most of the book but he does come in for the final section. Of course, Cordelia's digging leads her to believe the suicide is really a murder, and finds her own life in danger.
James' prose is highly atmospheric and she fills the book with interesting, if somewhat unlikeable, characters (Are Brits really as self-centered and pompous as they appear in these mysteries?).
AN UNSUITABLE JOB FOR A WOMAN is a well written mystery and again demonstrates the popularity of Ms. James.

"What's there to be afraid of? After all, we're only dealing with men.".......2006-08-06

Written in 1972 and winner of the Best Novel Award by the Mystery Writers of America in 1973, this clever mystery by P. D. James features a female detective who is no Miss Marple. Cordelia Gray, is a contemporary detective, liberated and independent. An attractive young woman in her early twenties, she has inherited a detective agency from her partner Bernie Pryde, and she intends to keep it running, make it profitable, and create a career for herself. Polite and at ease in elegant circumstances, Cordelia is also willing to take chances and do all the dirty work--and carry a gun.

On her first case following the death of Bernie Pryde, Cordelia is hired by famed environmentalist Sir Ronald Callender of Garforth House, to find out why his son Mark has hanged himself. Sir Ronald has had little interest in or affection for his son during his lifetime but now seems determined to understand the reasons for his son's shocking suicide. Cordelia soon learns that just prior to his death, Mark dropped out of college and found work as a gardener, severing relations with his father from whom he declared he would accept no money or support. Further investigation leads Cordelia to believe that Mark was murdered.

The characters, though "thin" and somewhat stereotypical, are quirky and memorable enough to keep the reader interested in their behavior--Mark's friends, who know more than they are willing to reveal; Sir Ronald's household, including Elizabeth Leaming, his secretary, formerly a student of literature; Miss Markland, the sad single mother who once lived in the cottage where Mark's body was found; and Christopher Lunn, assistant to Sir Ronald at the scientific foundation where they both work. Soon an attempt is made on Cordelia's life, and three more deaths occur before Mark's murderer and motive are revealed.

James is a master at keeping the reader guessing till the very end, creating numerous plot twists which change the reader's perceptions and expectations at every turn. The tension remains high throughout, and the conclusion, in which Cordelia has to make a report to Adam Dalgiesh, Bernie Pryde's mentor (and the main character of James's best-known series), allows James to connect Cornelia's story with that series and, perhaps, give it additional credibility. Cordelia Gray is an engaging detective conveying just the right balance of ingenuousness and fierce determination, traits that continue her appeal in James's The Skull Beneath the Skin. One of James's best novels, "Unsuitable Job" will keep even jaded mystery readers on the edge of their chairs. n Mary Whipple

Dalgliesh Echoes beyond His Reach.......2006-05-03

Baroness James deserves great credit for coming up with this most unusual and interesting novel. Her detective, private investigator Cordelia Grey, is a landmark in the history of female detective fiction. The clever way that Ms. James connects this unlikely operative to the mighty Adam Dalgliesh adds great insight into both characters. The story itself is full of the unexpected . . . while maintaining touch with the ordinary. The combination is enough to keep you misdirected and fascinated until the very end.

I recently decided to reread the book to see if it still ranks up there as one of my favorite detective novels . . . and came away even more impressed than ever.

Cordelia Gray is a young woman learning her investigatory trade when her partner, Bernie Pryde, cuts his life short. Bernie has set up matters to give her as good a chance as possible to prosper in sole detection, including leaving her an unregistered gun. But will she have any clients?

It's a relief when a prospective client shows up looking for Bernie and takes Cordelia back for an interview with the famous father of Mark Callender, who recently killed himself. What father wouldn't want to know why? Cordelia in short order finds herself off on a five pounds a day assignment.

As she tracks backwards through the last days of Mark Callender, Cordelia finds that she likes him and wants to do right by his memory. Using the lessons that Bernie taught her, that he, in turn, learned from Dalgliesh, Cordelia soon has her suspicions about the suicide. Before long, she's being threatened as well.

What's it all about?

Bring a big imagination, grab a very comfy chair, turn on a good reading light and settle down for a treat!

Cordelia is Worthy of the Challenge.......2005-10-11

As an ardent fan of P.D. James and her prolific detective Adam Dalgliesh, I was a little hesitant to stray from that series into the first one devoted to Cordelia Gray. Yet "An Unsuitable Job for a Woman" is a richly rewarding read, with the classic elements that mark James' writing and a mystery as twisted as anything that Dalgliesh would find himself up against (and the fact that he makes an appearance later in the book is a boon). James went out on a limb crafting a new detective, a young female one at that, but succeeds in establishing Cordelia Gray in easy company with her more reknowned detective.

"An Unsuitable Job for a Woman" introduces readers to Cordelia Gray, a twenty-two year old private investigator who has just inherited the entire investigation buisness from her partner after his suicide. She finds herself at odds with how to make ends meet, when a case is thrown her way that was originally intended for her partner. Cordelia makes her way to Cambridge, at the request of the famous scientist Ronald Callender. He is at a loss to explain the suicide of his young son and hires Cordelia to find out why his son killed himself. As soon as Cordelia starts searching and asking questions regarding the young heir's death, she finds herself convinced that the case is one of murder, not suicide, and that her own life may be at risk.

Cordelia Gray has her work cut out for her. Secrets abound everywhere, and she must make her way in a 'man's world' to uncover the truth behind the mystery. The writing is surprisingly fast-paced for a novel that is introducting a new character, but James throws in the necessary information about her new sleuth as the novel progresses. It is told in natural flashbacks through Cordelia's thoughts on the case at hand. I look forward to reading the other Cordelia Gray mystery and am sure I will find myself wishing there were more.

Top Notch Whodunit.......2005-09-07

P.D. James, aka Phyllis Dorothy James White, has painted the mystery genre with a literary hue which has delighted fans for decades. Her writing is stylish and extremely well-crafted. Her characters are so fully developed that they seem almost like friends the reader delights in meeting again. James' heroine in this book, Cordelia Grey, lacks the long and rich legacy of Adam Dalgliesh - the author's usual sharp-witted and charming P.I., but she does pack a wallop in the two books she appears in.

Mature and wise beyond her years - Cordelia is only 22 when we meet her - this heroine knows how to draw us into the murder at hand - in this case the neglected but privileged son of a powerful scientist. Brave and insightful sometimes, scared and confused often, Cordelia soldiers through this mystery from one deduced fact to the next and arrives at a somewhat unusual (for this genre) denoument. I won't tell you what that is but it causes a bemused Adam Dalgliesh to pop up at the end of the book in a half-hearted attempt to break down Cordelia's defenses.

Cordelia is an appealing and well-drawn character who only appeared in two of James' novels. She later, mistakenly she says, sold Cordelia, or the rights to her existence anyway, to the BBC, which subsequently did a TV series based on the character.

I picked up this book as a dog-eared paperback in a used book store because the title kept popping up in lists of "bests" for this genre - most recently in an essay by Anna Quindlan. I haven't read a mystery in years but found myself really enjoying this one - for the story, the lovable Cordelia, and for the craftsmanship of the author. Recommended.

A Certain Justice (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)

Average customer rating:

"You can't help people that are born evil."
An Author Who Respects Her Readers
Fun Summer Reading for Mystery Lovers
Standard fare
Excellently written... other than the end

A Certain Justice (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)
P.D. James
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0345430573
Release Date: 1998-10-31

Amazon.com

Although A Certain Justice begins with news of a murder, the victim isn't set to die for another four weeks. Publicly respected but privately loathed, Venetia Aldridge has far more enemies than a brilliant London criminal lawyer should--and at least one of them is determined to do her in. Venetia plies her superior trade in courts that harbor "the illusion that the passions of men were susceptible to order and control," but her past and private life are exceedingly unruly. Her married lover is intent on giving her up; her daughter loathes her; her fellow barristers are determined that she not become the next head of chambers. Even the cleaning women seems to have something on her.

The outline alone of this complex novel would take pages (as would the eclectic inventory of players), but P. D. James makes us admire far more than her brilliantly developed plot. James in fact creates a crowded gallery of surprisingly decent suspects, along with one suitably vile creature--who happens to be Aldridge's last client.

A superior murder mystery, A Certain Justice is also a gripping anatomy of wild justice. James's characters can be overcome by hate, but she is equally concerned with love's manifestations--human, divine, destructive, and healing.

Book Description

In a masterful new Adam Dalgliesh mystery, P.D. James enters the labyrinthine world of the law, forging a deeply compelling human drama from the complex passions that lie behind both murder and justice.

Customer Reviews:

"You can't help people that are born evil.".......2007-01-03

P.D. James is an amazing author. I really enjoyed A Certain Justice. The book was lengthy, yet very readable. The cast of characters and their dirty little secrets are brought to life in evocative fashion. James clearly has an immense understanding of the criminal justice system, which certainly was gained from her time as a magistrate and while working for the British Civil Service.

I notice that several reviews speak of a "weak" ending. I disagree. The ending is not only plausible, but possible.

It is always a treat, when reading one of Ms. James's novels, waiting for the first appearance of Adam Dalgliesh. Amazingly, the story proceeds and is very intriguing before he and his murder team generally enter the fray. Yet, one he arrives, the book then becomes very difficult to put down.

It should be noted that Ms. James introduces us to one of her most indsidious and evil characters to date.

A strong 5 star read.

An Author Who Respects Her Readers.......2006-11-28

Why is it rare these days to encounter a mystery that hasn't been obviously dumbed down for a general readership? Perhaps the British market is more demanding and, yes, I obviously need to read more of Ms. James--yet I can't help but be impressed by an author that has command of her subject sufficient to write a conclusion that is all too familiar to anyone who has practiced law. To say more risks a spoiler warning but suffice it to say that the law does not have as good a track record as that of most literary detectives.

The exposition of the life of a barrister was particularly interesting to me--an attorney toiling away in the overworked American interpretation of a dispute-resolution method over a thousand years old. Frankly, I wonder how many of my colleagues could reasonably discuss Magna Carta (but I'll bet that they can discuss OJ) One need not worry about the specific terms of art--an English Type-A personality is very similar to the American Type-A personality so far as obsessive focus on professional requirements is concerned.

Not only are the characters fully and expertly developed, not only does the author have much to say about the spirit and purpose of the criminal defense, there is an intricate story of revenge that says much about the meaning of justice. What is more just? Self-help? Letting the system have its way?

The ending of this book, apparently unsatisfactory to many, is in reality a great achievement--it is the perfect resolution. No spoilers here, the title says it all. Here's the highest recommendation I can give, I have ordered the first Adam Dalgliesh mystery--Cover Her Face--and look forward to some excellent reading as I work through each and every one of these mysteries.

Fun Summer Reading for Mystery Lovers.......2006-08-03

Especially if you're looking for the fun escapism of an old fashioned murder mystery, P.D. James' "A Certain Justice" fills the bill perfectly. The structure is more complex than your average whodunnit (due primarily to the large number of characters), it includes the fine deductive powers of Inspector Dalgliesh, and a lawyer that most people in the story don't like is killed. So how bad can it be?

I've read that some of James' more constant readers don't care for the ending, but I did. After all, if everything always worked out as "expected," life (and certainly these mystery books) wouldn't be nearly as interesting.

One note if you've never read P.D. James before: I find her fun to read because she's great with language and serious about wanting you to "know" each character well. Thus, while it IS fun reading, it's not always exactly "light" reading, in that interuptions to the flow of her descriptions can make her books tough to drop at a moment's notice and pick up easily later. She's always well worth the effort, though.

Standard fare.......2006-01-09

Let's see, the writing is slow and tedious, there is very little suspense, the "main character" is not even introduced until the book is almost half over. The revelations are interesting but do not really titillate the imagination, and parts are rather predictable. In the end, everything is wrapped up a bit too tightly and easily. One comes from this book with a sense of hollowness.

Excellently written... other than the end.......2005-12-09

No reason for me to duplicate what other reviews have adequately described.
The book is well written, engaging, and filled with interesting characters.
But the ending is no better than the work of an amateur.

I disagree with other reviewers on a couple items. A few reviewers say
that the writing is excessively descriptive. Several reviewers say that
she dwells too long with character descriptions which are irrelevant to
the plot. WRT the character descriptions, I entirely disagree. If any
character were described less, these same reviewers would be complaining
that the characters are stereotypes or shallow. These characters are
described as succinctly as possible if they are to be interesting and
believable. Most contemporary writers use the same number of pages to
describe uninteresting and unbelievable characters. The only other
descriptions which I think anybody could complain about would be her
descriptions of "rooms" (furniture, etc.). If you count up the pages, I
don't think they would add up to much. I treat these descriptions just
like observing a room in real life. I'm a typical man who doesn't pay
much attention to "interior decoration"-- so I read through these
paragraphs quickly and don't pay them much attention. I respect why
James writes the paragraphs though. Many readers are very interested in
interior decoration, and James herself obviously is. I wouldn't want a
book to be dummied down on my account. If you don't think getting
involved in interesting characters is a pleasurable experience in itself,
then James is not the writer for you-- television is probably much more
suitable to your tastes.

A couple writers wrote about the hurdle of learning intricacies of
the British legal system. I can agree with this only if the audience
is middle school level or below. I knew nothing about British law
before reading this book. An ounce of common sense, and looking up
about five words in a hand dictionary was all it took to completely
grasp everything alluded to. Once again, if you want entirely
mindless diversion, then James is not for you. If you are like me,
you will enjoy the freshness of experiencing things in an environment
which is new to you.

Some reviewers complained about the (moral) unattractiveness of
the principal characters. I stand with the great majority of readers
who agree that most of the characters are unattractive, but they are
also realistic and (most importantly) engaging. Some naive reviewers
criticize aspects of characters, for example, picking apart Miskin's
indignation. I have news for you... that is how real human beings
are. James is not trying to describe role models, but realistic
people. If you prefer your characters black-and-white, there are
plenty of other authors who can serve that up for you.

I did not like the denouement. Yes, it "made sense", but, as
capably noted by somebody else, it was not "solvable" by causal
reasoning. Trying not to give anything away here... What
disappointed me more than "who did it", was the unoriginal and
unrealistic way that everything was spelled out in the end.
I've seen very similar scenes in more than one Columbo ending. It
is really stupid to think that intelligent criminals would take the
trouble to disassociate themselves from their crime until a certain
date X, then all of a sudden they give every detail to the police
because they are certain they will never be convicted. Ridiculous.
Even if anybody could somehow know that no piece of evidence will
be found in the future, the police have ways to trouble people other
than getting one convicted... in this instance, it would take very
little trouble for the high ranking detective to turn the
murderers's associates against him (by just repeating what the
murderer himself has said). And to think that a lawyer would not
give any mind to these concerns... idiotic.

Average customer rating:

The Butler Didn't Do It
Tension at Table
Mystery for the Drawing Room
Uncover this book!
Where It All Began

Cover Her Face
P.D. James
Manufacturer: Touchstone
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0743219570
Release Date: 2001-05-01

Book Description

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.

Customer Reviews:

The Butler Didn't Do It.......2006-12-24

The supreme joy of reading is to discover a new author with the talent to not only to transport you to an undiscovered world but with the skill and imagination necessary to teach one new lessons about the real world and one's place in it. Having so discovered P.D. James' talent, I have commenced to read her work from start to finish.

Nothing betrays an author's intent and goals so much as the difference between the first novel and the latest novel. Some are trapped in themes and characters that never diverge from their initially successful iterations. Others reach a plateau; their masterpieces are regrettably followed by the mediocre results of the now-powerful author's ability to disregard the pleas of editors. Having recently read "A Certain Justice" I knew that I had to see where James began.

"Cover Her Face" is as British as anything I have read. A distrust of new ways, respect for tradition, a rewarding of virtues and punishment of vices. The mystery develops nicely with an immediate great house full of suspects. The characters are finely drawn, believable and the author has the confidence to leave the reader to follow the characters without providing every internal thought. To say more is to risk spoiling the mystery. Suffice it to say that this book lays a firm foundation for the good Inspector Dalgliesh and reaches a conclusion that as with all good mysteries does not betray itself untimely but which makes perfect sense in the end.

Tension at Table.......2006-02-10

The distinguished Adam Dalgliesh stories begin with Cover Her Face. Few will find this their favorite book in the series. I decided to read Cover Her Face again to provide perspective on P.D. James's latest, The Lighthouse. From that retrospective look, I came away even more impressed with The Lighthouse.

But I do recommend that you read Cover Her Face. Although it isn't going to be a favorite of yours, it will be good reading.

The book's main weakness is that the detailed development of the place and characters doesn't quite have rich enough material to work with.

The plot itself has some marvelous twists and turns that build around the character of a most unusual murder victim, Sally Jupp, a marginally acceptable servant in a wealthy home. The other interesting aspect of the story relates to several interesting variations on the locked room mystery subgenre.

In later stories in the series, Baroness James let her imagination run freer . . . with superb results.

Mystery for the Drawing Room.......2006-01-19

This was the first book I've read by P.D. James, and it reminded me of the great Agatha Christie mysteries I used to read melded with characters suited to Oscar Wilde or Noel Coward. She has a unique story telling technique that takes you into the hearts and minds of the suspects before revealing the killer in the final pages, but it's done with a razor sharp wit, and dry social commentary that had me laughing out loud at times.

Uncover this book!.......2005-05-02

This is P.D. James' first published book and our first introduction to Inspector Dalgleish. It is easy to see why this book was considered a bold entry into a tough field of really terrific British crime fiction. One of the hallmarks of the writing of P.D. James is her insistence on describing every scene in excruciating detail, but then again, those details enable her to build the story to a conclusion that surprises, but we should have seen all along. This is a fairly unusual story about the murder of an enigmatic housemaid and about the depths of people we assume we know ...and it plays out nicely. Although it was written in 1962, it has a definite timeless quality to it, like so many of the books by P.D. James and Ruth Rendell. For all of their detailed narrative, they never seem to mire you in a period of time unless it is intentional and noteworthy.

Where It All Began.......2004-12-24

There could be no better introduction to Adam Dalgliesh, P.D. James' enormously loved and admired detective. "Cover Her Face" is the novel that first introduced this hero to the literary world and showcases some of James' best handiwork at writing and creating mysteries. A quick and enticing read for any James' fan.

"Cover Her Face" begins in Jame's trademark style. The reader is introduced to a wide cast of characters, all with a motive (and perhaps a means) to commit the crime that will unfold shortly. In this case, it is the murder of Sally Jupp, a young unwed mother who stirs up the quiet and conservative Maxie household. When she is found murdered the morning after the annual church fete, Adam Dalgliesh of Scotland Yard is called in to investigate. He is certain that this was an inside job and that the murderer remains in the Maxie hosuehold.

James' allows the mystery to unfold slowly. Just as the reader met every character with a motive, the reader is in the same room with them as they testify to their innocence to Dalgliesh. Several characters even perform their own sleuthing, which causes the reader not to entirely know just how much of that information Dalgliesh himself as heard, or (as is more likely) if he knows more than what's been told to these amateur sleuths. "Cover Her Face" is a landmark and must-read work in the Dalgliesh series.

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