PD James writing is so taut, so precise, and suits perfectly these clever, intricate mysteries. Dalgliesh is a wonderful mix of grizzled old policeman and whimsical poet, and this story seems him convalescing at the home of a recently deceased friend. Lots of deaths and mystery, and a very satisfying conclusion.

In questa indagine, Adam trascorre un periodo di convalescenza a casa di un vecchio amico suo e di suo padre, purtroppo morto prima del suo arrivo. L'istinto dell'ispettore si risveglia, anche a causa di altre strane morti..
Non uno dei migliori di P.D.James: l'ho trovato un po' prolisso.

On with my reread of PD James’ Adam Dalgliesh series. This is the first book that really starts to resemble her more modern day writing and also starts to showcase her own writing style. Before, we have followed an Agatha Christie type format and this was good, but not great.
This novel gives us far more background and characterisation of Adam Dalgliesh and is bound up in his past. This, as always, is a great way of giving us a more detailed and rounded character, without just saying it.
Commander Dalgleish is visiting the home of an old friend whilst he is convalescing, instantly he is thrown into intrigue, much of which is hard to solve. Not so hard that I lost interest, but just challenging enough to want me to continue to journey. Dalgliesh is cleverly shown to be on less than top form, as you would expect from someone so recently very ill. He is also having an identity crisis. Does he wish to continue as a Police Officer or not? This all complicates his thought processes and we are with him on the ride.
All motives for crime fall into just a few categories. So what is the motive here? Are we dealing with love, greed or hate? It is not easy to work out, but I urge you to give it a try.
PD James is really coming into her own with this novel and I am really inspired to move on with my year long reread of this series.

So-o-o-o many characters. James is the mistress of character. Sadly, I can't keep track. Every character has a story, every story has secrets, and somebody died accidentally, or did they? Dalgliesh is trying to convalesce by visiting an old acquaintance, only to find him dead among a remote, seaside home for adults suffering degenerative diseases.
I felt, as I have felt with previous James mysteries, that it took too long for the reader to glimpse a main plot behind all the petty rivalries, secrets, resentments, and schemes. On the other hand, one can immerse oneself in the nasty, troubled, greedy, cruel, supercilious and desperate characters; I did many times.
The end, when it comes, is brilliant, tying all the loose ends together, explaining the murders as well as a number of curious side plots. No wonder this book won a silver dagger. One of the most satisfying solutions to a mystery I have read.

James can write a well-constructed mystery but comparisons to Sayers (as found on the cover of my edition) are ludicrous, mostly because her writing lacks any of the humor and even levity that makes Sayers so endearing. Depressed, allegedly “poetic” Dalgliesh is a far cry from shell-shocked but determinedly, delightfully witty Peter Wimsey. I find James’s books pretentious and sometimes sloggingly depressing—but, again, she writes a good mystery, which is hard enough to find that I put up with the rest of it.

This has been my least favourite of all the Dalgliesh novels. I still enjoyed it but nothing like Unnatural Causes or Shroud for A Nightingale.

I think what is so disconcerting in this book is how off kilter Dalgliesh is. I missed my favourite bloodhound and his urgency for the truth.

I am hoping that will be back in the next one.

La historia de misterio comienza bien, tiene 250 páginas de relleno y termina en las últimas 5.
Lo peor que le puede pasar a un libro es que te aburra. Pero si encima el libro es de misterio e intriga, esto es aún peor. No me metí en ningún momento en la historia y sólo deseaba llegar al final por aquello de saber quién era el asesino. Más por una curiosidad intrinseca cuando se inicia un libro de este tipo que por el interés en si del mismo. Creo que tengo "alma de policia" como dicen en algún pasaje.

No ha caído ante mis ojos ningún otro libro de esta autora. Como me gusta el género, le daré alguna oportunidad más con la presunción de que este sea su peor libro del detective Adam Dalgliesh

This one is more an atmospheric murder mystery with an aura of angst, sorrow, regrets (mostly coming from Adam Dalgliesh's) and the malicious intents and actions coming from the tennants of the home. Dalgliesh's brush with death is like a grey cloud over the whole novel. Not a bad mystery but a melancolic and sorrowful one.

The who with the what now? Now I know that P.D. James' character Adam Dalgliesh is known for suddenly having an ah-ha moment that brings all of the clues together and solves the crime. Ordinarily, I'm fine with that. But in this book, there are so many characters, so many crimes that Adam isn't even working on solving (he is visiting an old friend who lives in the compound of a convalescent home) and yet, at the end, he totally pulls the solution out of thin air! Worst denouement ever!

I liked this one with the exception of a couple of problems. They'll seem major but since I tend to like characterization more than plot, for me they weren't. The first is how did Dagliesh come to his conclusion (and how did the murderer for that matter know he had?)? Did I miss something? The second is the long-winded confession that seems to happen a lot in these books.

Have to remember this was written in the mid 1970s hence its decidedly 'dated' feel. The narrator's attitudes are a touch snobby, homophobic and racist - though the actual style is fluent and engaging. What was most disappointing was the ending - the patients (or their wheelchairs to be more precies) are unwittingly acting as heroin mules. Eh?! Where did that come from??? While the revelation of the culprit in the final denoument wasn't surprising (he was always a bit shifty) the whole of the closing scence lacked credibility and actually relied on various 'deux et machina' devices. Dalgleish was, to me at least, a thinly drawn character - why do so many people rave about him?? The narrator also doesn't seem to approve of women who wear make up and dye their hair ... whoops that's me out then!

I wondered listening to this whether James’ portrayal of the home for disabled young adults was partly inspired by L’Arche, on my mind due to Jean Vanier’s recent death. The portrayal of patients was probably progressive for the time this was written, although some of the language/attitudes to disability seem problematic today.

I haven’t read James for a long time and am struck by the fact that all three Dalgliesh books I’ve recently listened to—random choices based on what was in at the library—feature institutions, two residential. (Maybe this has to do with her work for the NHS—healthcare institutions were familiar to her). She’s good on the claustrophobia, lack of privacy, tensions between colleagues and residents, etc. But three close together was too many, and I started to feel these are quite over-written, though Penelope Dellaporta’s emotive reading style may have something to do with that. Time for a break!