Was able to finish this book but couldn't really care how it ended up - not one redeeming character and very little development of the Detective. I'm assuming this is because this is a series so why make me like the Detective and want me to read more about him and his cases. . .don't focus on him but rather the boring, selfish other 'suspects' and 'victim'. To be fair I should read at least one more in the series to see if it gets better (based on other reviews it sounds like it gets better). However, reading another in this series is far down on my list.

"Death Comes to Pemberley" so says P.D. James, but before risking any sensibilities, I thought it wise to dip a tentative toe into her first novel, in order to judge whether she may do Austin justice. Many will agree that "Pride&Prejudice" is such Perfection that I'm loathe to destroy it with inferior associations, which is why I have yet to embrace the blood-thirsty "Pride&Prejudice&Zombies" (despite my hearty appetite for the Walking Dead), and why it took me 7 years to watch the Knightley movie adaptation.

I wish I discovered P.D. James earlier. There was a time when I was Agatha Christie's biggest fan, devouring every one of her novels, and yes, even the Tommy&Tuppence ones, so now you understand. There was then the despondent period after, when I mourned her limited oeuvre of 66 murder mysteries. P.D. James may have plugged that listless hole then, for both Christie and James employ the same deliberate slow prose and aura of regal British upper-class assurance. "Cover Her Face" also marks the debut of detective Adam Dagliesh, the Poirot/Marple equivalent. He too waits till the final chapter to gather all involved (in the study, preferably with a log fire), dissect every clue, reveal a couple of scandals and denounce the guilty, always to gasps of disbelief.

Thus, you can understand my profound hurt and disappointment when I actually correctly guessed the murderer in this novel.

None of the characters are particularly compelling. I have a soft spot for red-heads (Anne Shirley, Nancy Drew, Pippi Longstocking, the Weasleys...) but the death of Sally Jupp ("...her flaming gold-red hair turned in a flash of sunlight") failed to incite any indignance whatsoever. Mrs Maxie was too remote in her grief to be personable, while Stephen skulked like an overgrown child. Deborah was quite the charmer, as was the dapper Felix, but unfortunately only in the most 2-dimensional way. Catherine would be a solid bore in real life, but really the only character fleshed out properly through her wistful, thwarted crush for Stephen.

So yes, I wish I discovered P.D. James earlier, but that golden time has passed. An unappreciative 2 stars, because "Cover Her Face" did save me from intractable boredom during a recent trans-Tasman flight.

PS: Pemberley, I am unlikely to come!

من خیل یدوست داشتم. فضای آگاتا کریستی گونه داشت. بدون خوشمزگی های خانم مارپل و پوآرو. اما خوب بود

Despite my 3 star rating, I enjoyed most of this story. It was typical "who done it" mystery in which a death occurs and the detective is asking questions to find the answer and catch the murderer. What I appreciated about this story though was the family drama that was going on before the death IN THEIR HOUSE which then escalated that drama. Written in the early 1950s, I thoroughly enjoyed the writing as well as the prose (similar to Agatha Christie yet elegant compared to how some stories are written today).

I liked that even though this was a detective-led mystery, he did not overshadow the story itself. He was there to question several of the family members and then some parts of the story were told by the family, servants, relatives. You don't get to see the detective pondering the situation as much as you do with Poirot which is why I think I prefer (so far) Adam Dalgliesh to Poirot. We do get to see some of Dalgliesh's thoughts as he is putting all the facts together at the end.

2.5 ⭐
Raczej nie zapadnie mi w pamięć.

I loved this book. The characters were all interesting although quite a few were unlikeable people. I found the storyline exquisite.

Extremely boring book. First time with the author and not sure I would give a second chance. Dull, plain and annoying.

This is a classic English mystery along the lines of an Agatha Christie story. There is the upper class family who lives in their family manor and is attended to by servants. One of these, Sally Jupp, was a meddlesome single mother and her death by strangulation is what brings Inspector Adam Dalgliesh into the the case. In typical fashion he interviews all the suspects, looks beyond the obvious solutions, and in a confrontation gets the killer to admit to the crime. Few other writers today capture the feeling of Christies mysteries, and P.D. James does a great job of that. But I found the pace slow as she spends a long time building up the backgroud before we get to the crime. The puzzle was also not as complex as Christie and it was easy to guess who the culprit was. Inspector Dalgliesh was an excellent sleuth, as the hints to his background were enought to be intriguing but not enough to answer all the readers questions. Which would make you want to read on through the rest of the series to find out more about him. On this narration, the reader did a good job, but not an excellent one.

Labs, klasisks un pietiekami asprātīgs angļu detektīvs.

When I started reading this I was at the garage getting my car serviced. With the television blaring the Olympics and small children complaining that they were bored it was hard to focus on the story. Thank goodness for the espresso machine in the foyer.

Aside from that expirence, later on I really got into the story. As I was reading it, the film was replaying in my head.

I enjoyed P. D. James's first outing with Dalgliesh and I am looking forward to the other books.

In this book his sidekick is Sergent Martin and Dalgleish is still at the level of DCI.

The twist at the end of this book is a real grabber.

A classic English country-side murder of a trouble-making maid in a big house who's inhabitants all become suspects. In terms of plot it was pretty good though nothing spectacular or too surprising. Reading it took a lot of concentration but it was a worth while read. I had expected something more from the book as the title called the Duchess of Malfi quote used in Sleeping Murder which made me think it would be more dramatic and interesting (in terms of plot and murder motives) I have to say in terms of classic English country-side murders I prefer Agatha Christie and Caroline Graham myself. I would read a P.D James again, just not in a hurry.

A decently-thrilling murder mystery that revolves around the murder of Sally Jupp, a young maid hired at the Maxie household. The work is in the golden-age style of detective fiction, complete with a neat round-up of suspects within the same mansion, confronted by a brilliant detective with a golden heart.
Though the first two chapters are quite slow and heavily descriptive, the work does pick up and becomes more interesting and more informative, with a fun twist in Chapter 8 (Sally already has a husband, despite seeming to accept Stephen's proposal? I clutched my pearls), and the resolution in the last chapter is....thought-provoking. It is understandable, and is one of the first assumptions made by the family (and the reader), before being brushed off for seeming too violent - Mrs. Eleanor Maxie is the eventual culprit, angered by her engagement to Stephen Maxie, as she saw the match as beneath her only son. Interesting because it seems like the most obvious answer, yet her demeanour and her attitude with the detectives made her seem removed from the situation, prompting the family to attribute her reaction to one of surprise and shock.

The novel was light, focused solely on the mystery, and was an easy read. I would rate it a 7/10, making it a fun, light-hearted read to take up some time during the quarantine.