Customer Reviews
Not for the impatient or the restless - By: Sissel M. Østdahl, 13 Aug 2008 
P.D. James does not write for the impatient or the restless. Her extraordinary knowledge of & advanced use of the English language, are for the reader who enjoys to dwell on intricate & almost philosophical descriptions, not only geographically & materialistically, but of the human mindin all its variety of moods.
"Devices & Desires" is a typical example of Ms James' writing. Slowly & meticulously the reader is drawn into the story. The introduction of the many participants, the questions as to their partin - or rather importance to - the mystery at hand, invites curiosity as well as confusion as loose threads keep popping up & no significant pattern has as yet emerged.
Commander Adam Dalgliesh remains for a long time a bystander on holiday at his late aunt's cottage, while the local police are handling the case of "the Whistler", a mass murderer of young womenin the community of Larksoken on the cost of Norfolk.
The first hundred pages of the book comes through as a sort of introduction, painstakingly introducing the surroundings & participantsin the drama. However, after the Whistler strikes again & claims his fifth victim, Commander Dalgliesh is eventually drawn into the investigation & the pace of the story is slowly accellerating & the stage finally set.
At this point, the patient reader is most certainly hooked & ready to enjoy yet another murder investigation superbly crafted by a master story teller.
It is a dark story. Images & threads are drawn back to horrendeous events of the past, & as the story unfolds, it appears that the Whistler is not the only murderer at loose. The remote headland scenery on the Norfolk coastin the shadow of a nuclear power station, with only a few old cottages scattered around, hardly seems the most inviting habitat where to settle, & creates a becoming atmosphere for the evil at work.
When the mystery is finally solved, the pieces of the puzzle fall surprisingly easily together. Yet, as the case is closed, the true facts are never revealed & the official explanation is convenient & acceptable both to the public & all parties involved.
This is not my favourite P.D. James book. There is too much human suffering & distressin people's blind groping for happinessin the most unlikely places,in addition to the dark effect surrounding it all. Also, Adam Dalgliesh's somewhat pheriperal role does somewhat diminish my pleasurein the book. Hence the four stars.
Still, one is drawn to follow each step until all is told & the last chapter closed. P.D.James is undoubtedly the Queen of the mystery genre.
Excellent whodunnit, excellent novel - By: Toby Smith, 13 Feb 2006 This is the second PD James I have read & quite different from the superb Innocent Blood. This is basically a whodunnit but what is really excellent is that the format & assumptions change as the story moves on. With the rather sinister backdrop of a power station,the tale involves a serial killer but doesn't stop there. The strong characters & relationships make this more than a run-of-the-mill crime thriller, from the businesslike control of Alex Mair to the rather feckless Neil Pacoe. The last whodunnit-type story I read was by Peter Robinson and, although reasonable, that really throws PD James's genius into bold relief:in Devices & Desires, violence is horrifying yet never voreuristic, the police talk like rounded characters not TV cut-outs & the people act with quirky humanity not dull cliches. Rickards is great as the rather downtrodden detective & Dalgliesh brilliantly understated as his rival, each struggling to get on with the other. To say more would probably give too much away but I highly recommend this.
A Brilliant Read - By: , 12 Feb 2006 
I REALLY enjoyed this book! Although I am fairly new to P.D James, "Devices & Desires" is my favourite one so far (I have also read "Original Sin", "Shroud for a Nightingale" & "Murder Room") The author's descriptions of the Norfolk landscape are so atmospheric & they set the tone for this dark novel. I thought the first murder was writtenin brilliant, chilling detail,in fact the description of the "Whistler" was scary, frankly!
I liked the way the novel progressed at an organic rate & it flowed well. I also liked James' exploration of nuclear power & the effect of Larksoken as an accepted part of the landscape, albeit grudgingly by some.
It was also refreshing to have Dalgliesh isolated from his London home & placedin a much less familiar territory. I was quite pleased there were no referencesin this book to his love life, asin "Muder Room"- which I felt detracted from the story & was of little interest.
I would highly recommend this book!
