All is revealed outside Ipswich on an island of reeds. Dalgliesh then confronts the barrister who murdered Venetia in revenge for the death of his brother by her father and her bullying of his son. However, he does this by a hypothetical hypothesis and as there is no evidence so he gets away with murder. In a 1997 book review for The New York Times, Ben Mcintyre called the book "vintage James" and summarized it as "a book in which revenge is not quite sated and deserts are not always just. That may not be the most satisfying conclusion, but it contains a certain truth." [1] Adaptations [ edit ]

Spring, Mike (2014-03-11). "What's new & noteworthy on DVD & Blu-ray – March 11, 2014". Times Union. Albany, NY . Retrieved 2014-06-09. Like most British mysteries, the situation is so claustrophobic (is that because everyone is conscious of England being an island?) that you wonder why more of the ants in this particular literary bottle (in this case, a group of lawyers) aren't killing one another. Desmond is played by Michael Maloney, a 65-year-old English actor known for his stage and screen roles.A thoroughly delightful James, one of her best. And when I say delightful, it means I have already forgotten about the middle-aged, droopy-breasted slut-prostitute aunt who insists that her live-in nephew not only photograph all her encounters with the mens, but make love to her himself. Hey: it happens. In the world of female British crime writers, it happens a lot. But like I said, I've already forgotten this tidbit. Hubert is played by Michael Culkin, an Irish actor best known as Judge Buller in the BBC's Garrow's Law. David Bamber (Flesh and Blood) as Edgar Froggart - a teacher who knew Venetia's father and has followed her career

The first part of ‘A Certain Justice’ premiered at 9pm on Thursday 4th May 2023 on Channel 5 in the UK and is streaming on Acorn TV in the US.The conclusion of the book did flirt with an Unsatisfactory Ending Alert™, but I honestly can't used that tag for P.D. James as the novel was completely satisfactory otherwise. In the end, A Certain Justice is still achieved. It is ironic that Aldridge does not see the parallel between her own defiance of tradition and Octavia’s refusal to fulfill her mother’s rather conventional ambitions for her daughter, ambitions which, if misguided, do, nevertheless, prove that Aldridge does love Octavia. It is significant that the only twinges of guilt Aldridge ever feels about anyone or anything are aroused by Octavia’s accusations of neglect. It is also ironic that it is this sense of guilt, combined with her real concern for Octavia, that takes Aldridge to Chambers that fatal night and makes her murder possible.

Vintage James. . . . Around her central drama, James creates these smaller worlds with forensic precision.” — The New York Times Book Review Miskin recovers the missing paperknife. Dalgliesh questions Carpenter, Caldwell, Langton and Drysdale. Drysdale reveals that Venetia begged him to speak to Octavia, desperate to prevent her engagement to a highly unsuitable suitor. However, you also have James' impeccable writing, unexpected depths of some characters, several extremely well drawn episode characters (especially the victim), and some excellent set-pieces (the opening court scene being a true highlight).

Richard Harrington (Hinterland) as Dr David Rollinson - a forensic biologist who worked on dozens of cases with Lorrimer As always I enjoyed Adam Dalgliesh's intelligence, composure, tact, and subtle authority. I've liked him from the beginning despite his reticence, but he certainly has grown on me over the series. He has proven time and again that he is capable of human feelings, and that the constant intercourse with the criminal world has not hardened him. He is one of the reasons that I continued with the series even when some of the books sorely disappointed me. Brilliant criminal lawyer Venetia Aldridge secures the acquittal of a young man from the charge of murdering his aunt.

Drysdale is played by Silas Carson, known for playing Jedi Master Ki-Adi-Mundi and Viceroy Nute Gunray in the Star Wars prequels. Alongside his TV work, he has starred at the National Theatre and in the West End alongside Maggie Smith in The Lady in the Van.Richard Goulding (The Windsors) as Lord Martlesham - he's interviewed by Dalgliesh after his name crops up Commander Adam Dalgliesh, called in to investigate, finds motives for murder among the clients Venetia has defended, her professional colleagues, her family – even her lover. As Dalgliesh narrows the field of suspects, a second brutal murder draws them into greater complexities of intrigue and evil. Thematically, too, James combines the traditional and the contemporary. Through her alter ego Dalgliesh, she makes it obvious that she sees a clear distinction between good and evil, and her own life story offers proof of her belief in duty and in the power of love. However, she is only too aware that, even for a believer, life is filled with mystery. This is nowhere more evident than at the end of the novel, when, though a couple of killers are dead, Dalgliesh accepts the fact that one murderer cannot be touched by the law. Perhaps he has already been punished enough. In any case, both James and Dalgliesh must accept the fact that, in this world, there is no “certain” justice but merely the imperfect attempts of imperfect human beings to arrive at a certain degree of right. As always, James proves to be a masterful storyteller . . . she remains as intrigued by the mysteries of the human condition as she is by the intricacies of detection.” — The Seattle Post-Intelligencer