A Certain Justice (Inspector Adam Dalgliesh Mystery)

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The conclusion of the book did flirt with an Unsatisfactory Ending Alert™, but I honestly can't used that tag for P.D. James as the novel was completely satisfactory otherwise. In the end, A Certain Justice is still achieved. Enter Commander Adam Dalgliesh--James' clone of Hercules Poirot--to save the day. We soon are introduced to the many suspects: the housekeepers in the law chambers, Ashe himself, Aldridge's daughter, lawyers in the office, Aldridge's lover, the judges of the court and of course the mysterious men from her past. There is, of course, absolutely no doubt that Dalgliesh will solve the mystery, save all those in distress and manage to be ridiculously heroic at all times. But we don't mind as long as the shameless thrills keep coming. Miskin and new recruit Tarrant impart the tragic news to Octavia, who gets defensive. The housekeeper confirms that both she and Garry were home all night. A Certain Justice is P.D. James at her strongest. In her first foray into the strange closed world of the Law Courts and the London legal community, she has created a fascinating tale of interwoven passion and terror. As each character leaps into unforgettable life, as each scene draws us forward into new complexities of plot, she proves yet again that no other writer can match her skill in combining the excitement of the classic detective story with the richness of a fine novel. In its subtle portrayal of morality and human behavior, A Certain Justice will stand alongside Devices and Desires and A Taste for Death as one of P.D. James's most important, accomplished and entertaining works.

As our novel opens, attractive, divorced, successful, hard-edged, unmaternal, unsympathetic barrister Venetia Aldridge is defending above nephew on the charge of murdering said aunt. She obtains an acquittal, and shortly thereafter finds that her 18-year old daughter has become engaged to the sociopathic young man. They've just met, and it hardly seems coincidental: someone is trying to piss Venetia Aldridge off. Quite a few people's lives would be made easier if Venetia were to pass from this earth, and we meet them, one by one. Soon Venetia meets her maker at the office, courtesy of a stiletto-sharp letter opener between the ribs. Enter the preternaturally lovely Commissioner Adam Dalgliesh - a man utterly at home in all situations - and his underling Kate Miskin, a woman continually pestered by her impoverished, urine-scented childhood - and we are off to the races. Once that scenario is established, however, PDJ seems to forget almost all the suspects and we barely see them again. Dalgleish and his team seem to have someone in mind based on alibis but they don't share their thoughts with us and I have no idea whether they had identified the right person or not. To be honest, the ending manages to be both overwrought and an anticlimax and I'd kind of lost interest by then. As was the case with the introduction of a Jewish detective in the last book, this time we open with Kate and new-boy Piers on a shooting range, so we know immediately how the book will end. Once again, it may be 1997, but in PDJ-land it's always the 1950s with women in offices using typewriters (a typewriter!) and word processors rather than computers - a later mention of Dalgleish actually using a mobile feels jarringly modern given the low-tech nature of the world - no internet here! The book also explores the psyche of a pathological criminal, the moral dilemmas of the defence lawyer and the repercussions of a successful defence of a murderer on those who are alive, including the victim's survivors and the defence lawyer herself. It is also a comment on the limitations of the criminal justice system.

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And yet, there's something even more fulfilling about reading a cheesy novel in the guise of literature. Sure, it may not be Doestoevsky, but it's an "intellectual activity" nonetheless (even if it's done on the beach while sipping iced tea). David Bamber (Flesh and Blood) as Edgar Froggart - a teacher who knew Venetia's father and has followed her career

There is something wonderfully satisfying about a guilty pleasure. Whether it be a sleazy novel, Ace of Base, the tabloids, St. Elmo's Fire, Melrose Place, a brainless action movie or Baywatch, it's mighty fun to gorge on trashy entertainment.Brilliant criminal lawyer Venetia Aldridge secures the acquittal of a young man from the charge of murdering his aunt. A television version of the novel was produced for Britain's ITV network in 1998. It starred Roy Marsden as Adam Dalgliesh. At various points we find PDJ repeating aspects from earlier books: wanting to make Venetia Aldridge suffer via Olivia is like the motive in Original Sin, and Ashe and his aunt are a re-run of Darren and his mother in A Taste for Death though pushed further: too many working-class women are whorish alcoholics in PDJ-world for my taste. However, you also have James' impeccable writing, unexpected depths of some characters, several extremely well drawn episode characters (especially the victim), and some excellent set-pieces (the opening court scene being a true highlight). A Certain Justice takes place in London, England. Commander Adam Dalgliesh, a high-ranking officer in the Metropolitan Police Service, works on the most sensitive cases. When he’s not resolving these unsolved cases, he writes poetry or spends time alone. It is a stressful job and he needs the time to unwind.