Scan barcode
ldv's review against another edition
2.0
This one is strange. I'm not sure if I read it previously, but while I could not predict what was going to happen, as it did, (especially near the end) I was not surprised...almost deja vu, but not fully.
Very peculiar relationships between parents and children, murder and revenge. Peculiar indeed.
Update: I have read it before...in fact, I own a paperback copy. Joke's on me.
Very peculiar relationships between parents and children, murder and revenge. Peculiar indeed.
Update: I have read it before...in fact, I own a paperback copy. Joke's on me.
jeanm333's review against another edition
5.0
Extraordinary book. It's why I wish everyone wouldn't give every book they read 5 stars, because then there's no room for the truly excellent 5-star books. I found this book in a little Free Library, which adds to the fun of finding it.
P.D. James writes mysteries with a wonderful detective called Adam Dalgleish. But Innocent Blood isn't a typical mystery; it's more of a suspense thriller and a psychological study of several people whose lives intersect in Philippa Palfrey.
Philippa has been adopted by Maurice and Hilda Palfrey, but she wants to find out who her real parents are, so she applies to find out after her 18th birthday. Turns out her parents aren't at all who she imagined them to be. And neither are her adoptive parents.
James writes with understated prose, leaking out the secrets one at a time over the course of the book, until the climax. The denouement, when it came, was a shocker, but like in all great novels, it was perfectly in keeping with what is known of the characters.
James also does a wonderful job of describing places, especially London. I felt as if I were back in the late 1970s with Philippa as she wandered around the city. The sights, sounds, smells of a great city are part of the charm of this novel.
I have read all of P.D.James, so I must have read Innocent Blood at one time, but I'm glad I was able to read it again. I would encourage you to read P.D. James, particularly Children of Men, another non-mystery but another 5 star book.
P.D. James writes mysteries with a wonderful detective called Adam Dalgleish. But Innocent Blood isn't a typical mystery; it's more of a suspense thriller and a psychological study of several people whose lives intersect in Philippa Palfrey.
Philippa has been adopted by Maurice and Hilda Palfrey, but she wants to find out who her real parents are, so she applies to find out after her 18th birthday. Turns out her parents aren't at all who she imagined them to be. And neither are her adoptive parents.
James writes with understated prose, leaking out the secrets one at a time over the course of the book, until the climax. The denouement, when it came, was a shocker, but like in all great novels, it was perfectly in keeping with what is known of the characters.
James also does a wonderful job of describing places, especially London. I felt as if I were back in the late 1970s with Philippa as she wandered around the city. The sights, sounds, smells of a great city are part of the charm of this novel.
I have read all of P.D.James, so I must have read Innocent Blood at one time, but I'm glad I was able to read it again. I would encourage you to read P.D. James, particularly Children of Men, another non-mystery but another 5 star book.
sarah42783's review against another edition
3.0
I've always been a huge P.D. James fan but I have to say I didn't really enjoy reading this book. What bothered me most is that I found all the characters thoroughly unlikeable, which made it very hard to enjoy the read. Philippa is especially bad: selfish, ungrateful, heartless, cruel... A lovely young lady indeed!
raehink's review against another edition
2.0
A young woman finds out that she is adopted and her birth mother is in prison for the murder of a little girl...that her birth father raped before the murder. She contacts her mother and lives with her when she is paroled. She has a strong desire to know "who she really is." In the meantime, the father of the raped and murdered girl is stalking the woman who killed her. He will settle for nothing less than her death as revenge.
This is a typical P.D. James mystery with psychological dialogue and insights into human behavior as well as strong characterization. But...it's not her best.
This is a typical P.D. James mystery with psychological dialogue and insights into human behavior as well as strong characterization. But...it's not her best.
rickaevans's review against another edition
4.0
Despite having read quite a few of Ruth Rendell’s novels, and having a particular fondness for the Barbara Vine works, this is the first time I’ve read her friend and fellow Baroness, P.D. James. Rather than get hooked into yet another detective series, I decided to start with the standalone, INNOCENT BLOOD.
This book was definitely in a similar vein to the Vine novels with its focus on buried secrets and the effects of the past on the present. Indeed, I was not surprised to read it was Rendell’s favourite of her friend’s works. Suffice it to say, any preconceptions I had of James as a cosy writer were well and truly dispelled by this novel.
The story hinges around the Children Act of 1975. A genuine act of parliament that allowed British adoptees to receive details of their biological parentage. It’s a tale of obsession, misconception and revenge, populated by characters as ghastly as they are erudite. Indeed, James’s style is rather florid at times in a way that is not so typical in a genre that often favours sparse description and dialogue. That said, the quality of the writing and the observation lifts the work above its often ugly subject matter.
I don’t want to give away details of the plot, but I was gripped throughout. James was midway through her career when she wrote this and you can feel that you are in the hands of a controlled talent. The only thing missing for me was a sense of humour. I like my gritty with a dash of gallows humour, and the seriousness of the book coupled with its unlovable characters made it feel rather clinical at times.
This was a great introduction to James, even if it’s not a classic whodunnit in the style for which she is renowned. I’ll definitely be reading more.
3.5*
This book was definitely in a similar vein to the Vine novels with its focus on buried secrets and the effects of the past on the present. Indeed, I was not surprised to read it was Rendell’s favourite of her friend’s works. Suffice it to say, any preconceptions I had of James as a cosy writer were well and truly dispelled by this novel.
The story hinges around the Children Act of 1975. A genuine act of parliament that allowed British adoptees to receive details of their biological parentage. It’s a tale of obsession, misconception and revenge, populated by characters as ghastly as they are erudite. Indeed, James’s style is rather florid at times in a way that is not so typical in a genre that often favours sparse description and dialogue. That said, the quality of the writing and the observation lifts the work above its often ugly subject matter.
I don’t want to give away details of the plot, but I was gripped throughout. James was midway through her career when she wrote this and you can feel that you are in the hands of a controlled talent. The only thing missing for me was a sense of humour. I like my gritty with a dash of gallows humour, and the seriousness of the book coupled with its unlovable characters made it feel rather clinical at times.
This was a great introduction to James, even if it’s not a classic whodunnit in the style for which she is renowned. I’ll definitely be reading more.
3.5*
More...