The Private Patient (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)
by P.D. James
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Book Summary Information
Author: P.D. JamesEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Format: Deckle Edge
Published: 2008-11-18
ISBN: 0307270777
Number of pages: 352
Publisher: Knopf
Book Reviews of The Private Patient (Adam Dalgliesh Mysteries)
Book Review: "Whoever killed her, I doubt whether she'll be much missed."
Summary: 4 Stars
In P. D. James's "The Private Patient," forty-seven year old Rhoda Gradwyn decides to have plastic surgery to remove a disfiguring scar that has marred her face for thirty-four years. Rhoda is a successful investigative journalist who can afford a top physician, George Chandler-Powell. He will perform the operation at the impressive Cheverell Manor in Dorset, where he has a private and very expensive clinic. Rhoda's close friend, Robin Boynton, is a handsome and unfocused dilettante, who is always trying to extract money from her to finance one of his "first-rate investments." He will be staying in a nearby cottage while Rhoda is at the Manor. When Rhoda is murdered, Commander Adam Dalgleish and his Special Investigation Squad are summoned to look into the crime.
There is no shortage of suspects, including Sister Flavia Holland, the head nurse, Helena Cressett, the general administrator, Lettie Frensham, her deputy who is in charge of the office, Sharon Bateman, a young woman who performs odd jobs, and Robin's cousins, Marcus and Candace Westhall. Marcus is a surgical assistant and Candace is a former university teacher who helps out in the office. Also in residence are Dean Bostock and his wife Kimberley, both chefs. Unless an outsider committed the murder, which is unlikely, one of these people took advantage of Rhoda's helplessness to end her life.
The novel begins in a leisurely manner, with James delineating the personality and history of each character and depicting the setting where the main action is to take place. James is at her best in her analysis of dysfunctional families, romantic entanglements, greed, and emotional insecurity, any of which can drive a person to act self-destructively. James gives special attention to Adam Dalgleish, who is eagerly looking forward to his marriage, and to Detective Inspector Kate Miskin who has secretly admired Adam for years but knows that he cannot reciprocate her feelings. With the help of the local police and Detective Sergeant Francis Benton-Smith, Dalgleish and Miskin attempt to untangle a web of deceit that will lead to the identity of the perpetrator.
Although for much of the book James keeps the reader hooked and eager to learn the culprit's identity, the conclusion is disappointingly flat. The detectives' skill hardly comes into play. Although they follow up leads and conduct a host of interviews, Dalgleish and his team turn out to be spectators more than actors in the drama that plays itself out somewhat melodramatically. In addition, there are several subplots that distract from the main story without adding anything valuable.
James touches on the grand themes that have always interested her: Why do people often behave so irrationally? Is there an unshakeable moral code that applies in all circumstances? Are we ever justified in taking the law into our own hands? Unfortunately, the author fails to integrate these threads into a coherent whole and the narrative fizzles out at the end. Sadly, the illustrious career of a great detective may end with a whimper rather than with the grand finale that he so richly deserves.
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