I've read enough Austen fanfic (good and bad, published and unpublished) that I'm no longer frightened by the idea of another. My new philosophy is that if another author can "ruin" Austen, I was never that big of a fan to begin with.That said, P.D. James's book is barely fanfic. Darcy and Lizzie figure in the plotline but do not have much effect on it. Their definitive character traits appear sparingly, if at all. The prose has all the pomp of Austen's era, but misses the sparkle of her wry and witty voice.What does make the book interesting, however, is that is forms a kind of treatise on the state of the British justice system in 1803. We watched the accused Wickham as he is shunted through the jails and courts, even as he decries his innocence. In this, the book kept my interest, but I would have been just as interested in a well-written essay on the topic. (Of course, I can't speak for other readers.)Death Comes to Pemberley is an interesting read, but if you need your Austen fix, I would recommend looking elsewhere.This review also appears at Boxes of Paper.
