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A Certain Justice

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available
Venetia Aldridge QC is a distinguished criminal lawyer. When she secures the acquittal of a young man, Garry Ashe, from the charge of murdering his aunt, a series of bizarre events is set in train, starting with her own murder. Adam Dalgliesh, the poet and Scotland Yard commander, takes charge of the case. As he investigates, he finds that she had many enemies in both her professional and private life. Her married lover wanted to leave her, her daughter hated her and her fellow barristers were determined that she should not be the next Head of Chambers. Even the office cleaner had a grudge against her. But step by step, the suspects are narrowed down, and the cunning plot that lies behind Venetia's death is brought to light. This release includes a 30-minute 'Front Row Special' interview with P.D. James, who talks to Mark Lawson about her writing career and the inspiration for her work.
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    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from November 3, 1997
      Crafting a classic locked-room mystery in her latest Adam Dalgliesh novel, James leads readers on a page-turning journey behind the scenes of the English legal system and along the darker, twisted byways of human intentions. Although neither Dalgliesh, Commander at New Scotland Yard, nor Detective Inspector Kate Miskin provides the most powerful presence here, readers won't mind: victims and suspects comprise an indelible cast. Introduced first is ambitious criminal lawyer Venetia Aldridge as she successfully defends a chillingly unfeeling young man named Ashe against charges that he murdered his slatternly aunt, with whom he lived after stints in a series of foster homes and institutions. Venetia is found dead in her locked office, wearing a blood-soaked barrister's wig, shortly after her 18-year-old daughter, Octavia, announced that she was in love with Ashe and planned to marry him. While questioning the lawyers and staff who shared the victim's chambers at Pawlet Court, Dalgliesh, Kate and her new partner, Piers Tarrant, probe the dead woman's past and personal history. James (Original Sin, 1995) briskly introduces a varied array of suspects and motives, drawing the reader deeper into their lives and gradually revealing a network of intersections. Another murder precedes the disappearance of Octavia and Ashe, which leads to a riveting, credible resolution. Themes of obsession, neglect, revenge and ambition fuel this emotionally powerful puzzler, which may remind readers of the author's stand-alone novel Innocent Blood (1980) and is immensely satisfying in both its intricate plot and complexity of characters. 250,000 first printing; BOMC selection; author tour; simultaneous Random House audio and large print edition.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      P. D. James constructs an intricate mystery wound about the labyrinthine politics of the English law office of Middle Temple Chambers. Commander Adam Dalgleish uses his finely tuned instincts to sort out the suspects in the baffling murder of the ambitious, uncompromising barrister, Venetia Aldridge. Narrator Michael Jayston's brilliant narration is a mastery of understatement finely tuned to the nuances and shadings of James's characters. Listeners are never aware of a "narrator," yet he unfolds the story deliberately with each twist and turn carefully laid out. Jayston subtly distinguishes the clerks, police officers and lawyers, making the author's careful scrutiny of the characters keenly felt. Jayston rivets listeners' attention from the opening passages. This unabridged recording, available simultaneously with the hardcover print edition, is a sign of the maturing audiobook market. R.F.W. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine
    • AudioFile Magazine
      Simon Prebble does all he can with this tedious police procedural, in which Inspector Adam Dalgliesh and associates deal with the murder of a barrister in the heart of the British legal system. A secondary plot about a different murderer altogether complicates the scene, as do many possible perpetrators. Simon Prebble brings his remarkable smoothness and skill in the appropriate upper- and lower-class British accents to a wide group of characters. He reads thoughtfully in a low, cultured voice that exudes Dalgliesh's flatness in particular. D.W. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine

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