Book #17: The Private Patient

Title: The Private Patient
Author: PD James

The most interesting thing about PD James's new mystery, The Private Patient, is the uncertain way in which it ends. Baroness James was born in 1920, so she'll be 89 years old this year, but she's been turning out books at the rate of one every two or three years since her first novel was published in 1962, and she hasn't showed signs of stopping, until now. If you really hate spoilers, don't read on, even though nothing I'll say here gives anything away about the mystery of the story, but James seems to imply at the end of the novel, when Detective Adam Dalgliesh marries Emma, that he may soon hand in his badge. Dalgliesh has been James's principal detective since 1962, and although he has miraculously aged very little over the last 47 years, he may be contemplating retirement.

And I'm sad. P.D. James was the first myster writer whose work I ever really loved. When I was in college, I designed a senior seminar for myself to take advantage of being in London on Study Abroad, and a large part of the reason why I chose British Mystery novels for my subject was PD James's work. The world may change, the stock markets may fall, but I loved the predictibility that every two or three years, I could count on a new story by PD James. And The Private Patient is a great mystery with excellent characterization. Baroness James is just as sharp at 88 as she was at 48, and if it's her last novel, I'm glad she's going out strong, but I'll miss her.

Here's an interesting interview with a UK newspaper: http://www.sundayherald.co.uk/arts/arts/display.var.2446079.0.0.php