Devices and Desires: P. D. James ****

By Brian Clegg

This has to be one of the most unusual of P. D. James’s classic Dalgleish mysteries, and not only because Dalgleish isn’t the central character, but a kind of ghost at the feast. He is visiting his late aunt’s Norfolk coast windmill which he has recently inherited. Tasked with checking that the local serial killer is not the same as a London murderer (they aren’t), he is peripherally involved as an apparent final killing proves to be something more complex – but he isn’t the investigating detective at any time.

As always with James, we get lots of background on many of the characters, with point of view flitting around between them, rather than staying with one or two individuals. The book also emphasises how much James was part of the Anglican tradition of mystery writers (along with, for example, the more modern examples of Richard Coles and James Runcie). It may not be as explicitly church-linked as Death in Holy Orders, but the title of the book taken from the Book of Common Prayer, sin is discussed at some length and events at the old vicarage play a part.

The book dates from 1989, and, as is often the case with James, we get a mix of an older tradition and the incursion of a more modern society. Some of the descriptions now feel somewhat dated (I’m not sure my adult daughters would have a clue what ‘fawn slacks’ were, for example), and there is a prickly old-middle-class attitude to being questioned which feels like it belongs in a different era, when the police knew they place and posh people assumed they could never be suspected.

The other oddity here is a twist part way through that feels distinctly out of character, where motives which are usually very commonplace in James’ books suddenly became something extremely unusual, and two potential suspects have a sudden and abrupt transformation. It feels like a spy thriller writer has suddenly taken over for a few chapters, and I’m not sure that it works.

Not my favourite of her books – but still worth reading.

You can buy Devices and Desires from Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com and Bookshop.org

Review by Brian Clegg - See all Brian's online articles or subscribe to a weekly email free here

Now Appearing is the blog of science writer Brian Clegg (www.brianclegg.net), author of Inflight Science, Before the Big Bang and The God Effect.