A Taste for Death is a 1986 crime novel by the British writer P. D. James, the seventh in the popular Commander Adam Dalgliesh series. The novel won the Silver Dagger in 1986, losing out on the Gold to Ruth Rendell's Live Flesh. It was nominated for a Booker Prize in 1987.[1] The book has been adapted for television and radio.
 First edition | |
| Author | P. D. James |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | Adam Dalgliesh #7 |
| Genre | Crime, mystery |
| Publisher | Faber and Faber |
Publication date | 1986 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | Print (Hardback, Paperback) |
| Pages | 454 (hardback first edition) |
| ISBN | 0-571-13799-7 |
| OCLC | 15018788 |
| 823/.914 19 | |
| LC Class | PR6060.A467 T3 1986b |
| Preceded by | Death of an Expert Witness |
| Followed by | Devices and Desires |
Plot summary
editIn the dingy vestry of St. Matthew's Church, Paddington, two bodies have been found with their throats slashed. One is an alcoholic vagrant, whereas the other is Sir Paul Berowne, a baronet and recently resigned government minister. Poet and detective Adam Dalgliesh investigates one of the most convoluted cases of his career.[2]
Title
editThe title is drawn from a short poem by A. E. Housman, which is printed at the start of the novel.
Reception
editIn a 1986 book review for The New York Times, Robert B. Parker wrote the book is "graced by one of the most felicitous prose styles I know. Ms. James is simply a wonderful writer."[2] The Sunday Times called it "A cunningly compulsive work... heart-pounding suspense". In a 1986 piece on James by Julian Symons, he notes A Taste for Death "is the longest, most ambitious and the best of Phyllis James's 10 novels."[3]
Adaptations
editA television version of the novel was produced for Britain's ITV network in 1988. It starred Roy Marsden as Adam Dalgliesh and Wendy Hiller as Lady Ursula Berowne.
Another version with Bertie Carvel as Dalgleish was made as part of the 2021 Channel 5 miniseries Dalgleish, in a much shorter adaptation.
References
edit- ^ Leader, Zachary (2003). On Modern British Fiction. Oxford University Press. p. 235. ISBN 978-0-199-24933-6.
- ^ a b Parker, Robert B. (2 November 1986). "Adam Dalgliesh Sees Everything". The New York Times. New York. Retrieved 7 April 2017.
- ^ Symons, Julian (5 October 1986). "The Queen of Crime: P. D. James". The New York Times. New York. Retrieved 7 April 2017.