Crime novelist P.D. James dies at 94


P.D. James, the British crime novelist behind works like Innocent Blood, The Children of Men, and Death Comes to Pemberly, has died of undisclosed causes. She was 94.
James leaves behind a legacy of 19 novels and several works of non-fiction. Fourteen of her novels centered on Scotland Yard commander Adam Dalgliesh, her most enduring protagonist, who was introduced in 1962's Cover Her Face and last appeared in 2008's The Private Patient.
In a recent interview with The Paris Review, James explained why she spent her career writing crime novels. "A detective story is very easy to write badly but difficult to write well," she said. "There is so much you have to fit into eighty or ninety-thousand words — not just creating a puzzle, but an atmosphere, a setting, characters... Then when the first one worked, I continued, and I came to believe that it is perfectly possible to remain within the constraints and conventions of the genre and be a serious writer, saying something true about men and women and their relationships and the society in which they live."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Scott Meslow is the entertainment editor for TheWeek.com. He has written about film and television at publications including The Atlantic, POLITICO Magazine, and Vulture.
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in Gaza
Speed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
Sydney Sweeney's 'great jeans': why American Eagle ad is so controversial
Talking Point Series of adverts featuring American actress Sydney Sweeney cause storm around race and eugenics
-
'This is a humanitarian, developmental and moral emergency'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Australian woman found guilty of mushroom murders
speed read Erin Patterson murdered three of her ex-husband's relatives by serving them toxic death cap mushrooms
-
Combs convicted on 2 of 5 charges, denied bail
Speed Read Sean 'Diddy' Combs was acquitted of the more serious charges of racketeering and sex trafficking
-
Sniper kills 2 Idaho firefighters in ambush
Speed Read A man started a wildfire, then fired a rifle at first responders when they arrived
-
Weinstein convicted of sex crime in retrial
Speed Read The New York jury delivered a mixed and partial verdict at the disgraced Hollywood producer's retrial
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside home
speed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
DOJ, Boulder police outline attacker's confession
speed read Mohamed Sabry Soliman planned the attack for a year and 'wanted them all to die'
-
Assailant burns Jewish pedestrians in Boulder
speed read Eight people from the Jewish group were hospitalized after a man threw Molotov cocktails in a 'targeted act of violence'
-
Driver rams van into crowd at Liverpool FC parade
speed read 27 people were hospitalized following the attack