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The Game

This six-part espionage miniseries began on Wednesday on BBC America. It's a moody, stylish production set in 1972 England, then in the midst of a lengthy miners' strike that caused power outages even at MI-5 headquarters. A KGB officer named Arkady Malinov gets himself arrested for public drunkenness and assault on a police officer so he can tell MI-5 that he wants to defect and act as a double agent. Malinov claims he wants to act as a double agent so he can reveal to the British what he learns about the Soviet-planned Operation Glass.

What's Operation Glass? Well, Malinov doesn't really know, but he knows it's huge and will change forever the status of the Cold War. It involves agents the USSR has in the UK, and Malinov says he'll let MI-5 know who they are whenever he finds out. Although they feel sure Malinov isn't telling all he knows, MI-5's counterespionage team, which calls itself the Fray, gets to work.

The team is headed by the MI-5 chief, code-named Daddy, and played by that craggy-faced lion, Brian Cox. Daddy's second is Bobby Waterhouse, a snakelike conniver who lives with his mother, a woman who could give Angela Lansbury's character in The Manchurian Candidate a run for her money. Waterhouse's deputy is Sarah Montag, a sharp and ambitious analyst. Her husband, Alan, is socially awkward, but a whiz at the electronic eavesdropping side of the business. Secretary Wendy Straw is a young thing who doesn't have much to say so far. Seconded to the team from Special Branch is Detective Constable Jim Fenchurch, who thinks these MI-5 guys are much too full of themselves.

Our protagonist is the seventh member of the Fray, the young and beautiful Joe Lambe. You might remember him from PBS shows like the Silk miniseries and the recent remake of The Lady Vanishes. Joe is tormented by a failed mission in Poland, one that only Daddy knows the facts about. One of the things that Daddy knows is that a Soviet agent involved in that mission is in the UK, he's part of Operation Glass, and Joe's personal desire to kill this agent will be both a spur and a hazard.

From what I've read, it appears that each week of the series will focus on a new target revealed to the Fray by Malinov, whom the team will then try to use to find out more about Operation Glass. After just one episode, it's hard to tell how this series will shape up, but I'll definitely keep watching. It's got that moody look and music appropriate to Cold War espionage drama, and the actors are fun to watch. (Though I do wish they'd enunciate! It's a sad state of affairs when even British-trained actors mumble so much these days.) Each member of the Fray has his or her own secrets, there are tensions and conflicts between them, and their office-politics intrigues may turn out to be as much a focus of the series as Operation Glass.

The Game is on BBC America on Wednesday nights at 10:00pm Eastern time.

Death Comes to Pemberley

Did you watch the two-part Death Comes to Pemberley on Masterpiece Mystery? I did, and even though it doesn't seem quite right to say this about a Jane Austen-ish adaptation, I thought it was a hoot.

Of course, this is based on P. D. James's novel of the same name. James imagined Fitzwilliam Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet six years after their marriage at the end of Pride and Prejudice. They are now living happily at Pemberley with their young son, and busily planning their annual dinner and dance for hundreds.

The festivities have to be cancelled when Lydia, Elizabeth's flibbertigibbet of a younger sister comes careening up the drive in a coach and then bursts out of its door, screaming that her husband, the ne'er-do-well Wickham, has been killed. Well, more's the pity, it quickly turns out that it's Captain Denny who's been killed. But Wickham is arrested for the crime, and that's even better than his being the murder victim if you're a Wickham hater––as all right-thinking people are, of course.

James's book was controversial. The most ardent fans of Jane Austen and P. D. James seemed to dislike it. A lot of Austen devotées dislike the whole genre of novels featuring later or re-imagined lives of Austen characters, and they disliked this book on principle; some especially because it was a crime novel. Many P. D. James fans thought the plot wasn't up to James's usual standards. But I liked the book. It wasn't a case of Mr. Darcy suddenly becoming a detective. Instead, there is a judicial investigation, and Darcy is stuck with having to try to clear a man he heartily detests, since having his brother-in-law hanged as a murderer will be a stain on the Darcy name. Meanwhile, Elizabeth learns a few things here and there that seem to provide some clues as to what really happened to Captain Denny.

The dramatization accentuates the soap-opera potential of the P. D. James plot. A love triangle involving Darcy's sister Georgiana is raised in importance, while the strain that this affair––and, of course, the murder––puts on Elizabeth and Darcy threatens their love. There are emotional scenes––well, as emotional as you can get in the Austen-esque environment. Elizabeth can't help but feel that Darcy is regretting his association with her family, especially since he goes into full Darcy remote mode as the pressure of events ratchets up.

Lydia stays at Pemberley during all this, and she's every bit as much of a drama queen as you'd anticipate. The Bennets come to stay as well, and Mrs. Bennet is just as you'd expect. It only takes a visit from Lady Catherine (played by Penelope Keith, who you'll remember from the Britcoms The Good Life a/k/a Good Neighbors, and To the Manor Born) to make the whole thing seem more like farce than a murder mystery. And I'm not complaining; as I said, I thought it was a hoot.

The acting is standard excellent British costume drama style. I do have a quibble, though. Anna Maxwell Martin plays Elizabeth and, while she's a wonderful actor and I loved her in The Bletchley Circle, she's not right for Elizabeth. Martin just isn't vibrant enough to play that character. She does it as well as she possibly could, but I was aware the whole time that she didn't fit the part. Matthew Rhys as Darcy is an excellent casting choice. I became familiar with him as Philip on FX network's Cold War espionage drama, The Americans, and he has more than enough handsome, brooding intensity for Mr. Darcy.

Stocking Snuffers

So Black Friday has come and gone and Cyber Monday is history. My major decisions about gift giving have been made for the most part. So now it is time to concentrate on the little things that make holidays so special. Maybe it's time to follow through on the resolutions for 2011 before another year is upon us. I have some small suggestions for you to either put on your wish list or to give to the needy members of the family. All of these things would fit in a Christmas stocking or a St. Nick's shoe on December 6.

Do you have a co-worker who is driving everyone in the office mad? Then I suggest this small poison-containing ring. Perfect for a little sleight-of-hand during coffee break and you will start a new year happier at work, and maybe even nab a promotion. Agatha Christie always called poison a woman's weapon, I don't know about that, but I will say that the poison rings available on Amazon seem to favor the feminine tastes.

Then there is that brat next door who keeps parking in your spot and leaving you to carry groceries an extra 20 feet. He is sort of a rat, isn't he? Just head straight to Amazon for a great selection. Two-day delivery. It would probably look nice sprinkled on some gingerbread. I could put this in my husband's stocking but he would just think we had a rodent problem and miss the point entirely.

Is there someone you know who has a boss who keeps harassing her? A small gift in a variety of colors might give her the hint about how to take care of her problem. After handling the situation she could leg it out of the crime scene wearing the weapon. Anthony Berkeley might be able to give you some hints if you read his The Silk Stocking Murders. In this story several young girls were killed by this gentle-looking weapon. Sherlock Holmes had a time with them in his story "The Case of the Silk Stockings." These days, although not worn as commonly, you will find them on Amazon.

Your friend doesn't want to be discovered doing the dirty deed? The old ice pick in the ear befuddles the police sometimes. There is even one with a cover so it won’t stick though the Christmas stocking and it will look like a pen in a pocket. This way, he won't have to use whatever is at hand––like the murderer in Black, White and Dead All Over. John Darnton's killer used a paper spike sitting on a newspaper editor's table. You can quietly order a number of the usual picks from Amazon––or maybe from a spearfisherman company.

On the other hand, here is something that is easily available, yet appears innocuous. It is the easy-to-carry, non-threatening USB cord. It is so much better than the old lamp cord, which comes attached to a lighting appliance. I have not read about a murder using this method of strangling, but I will admit to having been driven to murder when needing to use some USB cords for more banal purposes. But the Apple techies in Bangladesh are too far away to strangle.

If the problem is that your cousin doesn't really like blood on her hands and would prefer to be setting up an alibi elsewhere, she might find some uses for this little gem. Certainly Inspector Foyle and crew had a time with a murder by this method in the case of "The German Woman." The Foyle's War series is available on DVD. Please keep in mind that these wires leave marks wherever they rub, so this is another use for the silk stocking.

Have you been misjudged once too often and can't take it any more? Well, these handy little items come in a variety of shapes and sizes. You can pretend you are mashing potatoes. The most recent story I read involving death by blunt instrument involved a baseball bat. This gavel is much more symbolic and is much easier to conceal. Just use One-click ordering at Amazon.

Cyanide Capsules

On the other hand, something much less messy and quite painless is the little old red capsule. I don't know how everyone in mysteries is so well acquainted with the smell of this poison. How many of you are familiar with the scent of bitter almonds? I can't even smell regular almonds unless they are the candy-coated kind. In Blotto, Twinks and the Ex-King's Daughter, Simon Brett opens the story with a nice case of the poisoning of a special agent of a king. And the smell, of course, gives away the modus operandi immediately: cyanide!

Is your uncle unconcerned about collateral damage? Well, Alfred Nobel may have had murder in mind as a side effect when he made these little sticks so handy. Stephanie Plum gets on a lot of people's nerves and Janet Evanovich writes that villains have used these handy small bombs to blow up plucky Stephanie's vehicles. I just wish these detonations would make her more decisive, especially about the men in her life. She could use a little brain rattling every now and then to get her out of her rut.

Those of you with green thumbs may not need this handy little how-to book, Handbook of Poisonous and Injurious Plants. Naturally, it is available on Amazon. Just use your pay phrase for easy shopping. Even though I took plenty of chemistry classes in my time, I would need help going from pod to poison. Sheila Pim does a wonderful job of educating us on the dangers in gardening and the knowledge one can acquire for nefarious purposes in her Irish series, which include Creeping Venom and Common or Garden Crime. Bartholomew Gill also uses a foxglove as the MO to make Peter McGarr cudgel his brains looking for a suspect who fits his frame in Death of an Irish Lover.

Foxglove

Hemlock

Socrates used the attractive hemlock plant to end his own life when under a sentence of death. The Hemlock Society, founded as a right-to-die organization that would help people take the final step, took its example from the old philosopher who was deeply into the study of ethics. It has morphed into another society called Compassion and Choices. But these days so far, one man's easy crossover is another man's murder. Those of you who have hemlocks in your backyard can easily make a treacherous tisane if you find it necessary. If you are not so blessed, Amazon has a Hemlock Tree Growing Kit. The rest just requires patience.

If being creative is not for you, there is always the old standby: the pistol. These special items would fit easily into any stocking. These days, guns are at the top of the list as a choice of a deadly weapon here in the U.S. But it is always less expected in England. Still, P. D. James in The Black Tower has the murderer use a pistol. But I must warn you, that with these weapons that would be easy to drop in a stocking, you won't ever be in a position to say, "Do you feel lucky today, punk? Well, do you?"

These pocket-sized weapons may seem to be more to admire than fire but here you must rely on location, location, location. Nonetheless, don't try to take them on an airplane or you will find yourself out-gunned.

The most up-close-and-personal method for murder is the knife. Since they are readily available in one's kitchen I might have to remind you that it is best to use a weapon that can't be traced back to you. Here again Amazon has quite a selection on sale.

There you have it. For most of your murderous shopping needs, Amazon is the place for one-step ordering. I did not overlook the once-ubiquitous letter opener used to great effect in so many murder mysteries. It too would fit the small-but-lethal criteria that makes for such a special touch for the holidays. I fear using the letter opener would date you because only a few of us still get mail in envelopes. So have fun filling those stockings.

Book Review of P. D. James's Death Comes to Pemberley

Death Comes to Pemberley by P. D. James

P. D. James

Jane Austen wrote only six novels; far too few for readers who love her work. An Austen story ends with a wedding (or two), and readers can't help but speculate about how the couples' married life might have played out. No surprise, then, that so many authors have written, and are still writing, sequels to and reworkings of Austen's novels. We even have "mash-ups" like Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. Now, famed mystery writer P. D. James has joined in with a sequel that is also a murder mystery.

Death Comes to Pemberley begins six years after the close of Pride and Prejudice. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet are happily married and living at Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's Derbyshire estate, with their two young sons and Mr. Darcy's sister, Georgiana. The new book begins with a short prologue reviewing the action of Pride and Prejudice and the six years before this novel's story begins. We then enter the great house at Pemberley on the night before the Darcys are to host their annual autumn ball. Elizabeth's sister, Jane, and Jane's husband, Charles Bingley, are already in residence, along with Darcy's cousin, Colonel Fitzwilliam. A new character, Mr. Alveston, is also a guest.

Carriage in the woods

The hosts and guests are ready to retire for the night when a carriage comes careening up the drive during a windstorm, the door bursts open and out hurtles Lydia, Jane and Elizabeth's drama queen of a younger sister, screaming like a banshee that her husband, Wickham, has been shot and killed in Pemberley's woodland. (When you heard there was a Pride and Prejudice sequel with a murder, didn't you just know that Lydia would take center stage in the hubbub?) Because a murder has taken place on Darcy's estate and affects his family–no matter how distant the Darcys have always tried to keep from Wickham and Lydia–Darcy is necessarily involved in the resolution of the case. And, of course, the personal connections make the case an emotional trial for Darcy, Elizabeth and their extended families.

Lady Catherine

Author James hasn't merely dressed up a mystery in Austen style. Her book is very much an exploration of Elizabeth and Darcy's characters, emotional lives and their marriage. James presents a nuanced portrait of the two that is different from the pert Elizabeth and imperious Darcy seen in the popular screen presentations. Elizabeth's new position as chatelaine of the vast estate of Pemberley and her duty to her husband, his family, and the estate have matured her and made her more conciliatory to troublesome characters, even the likes of Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Darcy is presented as a sometimes brooding and self-doubting man, but one who is determined to learn from his past errors and make a happy life for his family.

Jane Austen

Unlike many authors of Austen sequels, James hasn't populated her story with a horde of new characters. Of course, there are some new characters, but James shows, through the course of the book, that she is well-acquainted with Pride and Prejudice and the other Austen novels, and she skillfully works events and characters from those books into this one. The way she does this is true to the characters and even throws new light on their behavior and circumstances in Pride and Prejudice. She does this so well that from now on I will always think of some of the Pride and Prejudice characters as having the back story that James gives them.

James's writing style captures the cadences of Austen, and there are several passages that recall Austen's tart and ironic observations. Here is James's commentary on attendance at the local church the Sunday following the murder:

"It is generally accepted that divine service affords a legitimate opportunity for the congregation to assess not only the appearance, deportment, elegance and possible wealth of new arrivals to the parish, but also the demeanor of any of their neighbors known to be in an interesting situation, from pregnancy to bankruptcy. A brutal murder on one's own property . . . will inevitably produce a large congregation, including some well-known invalids whose prolonged indisposition had prohibited them from the rigors of church attendance for many years."

Caroline Bingley

And for those of you curious to hear about what Charles Bingley's ill-humored sister Caroline is up to:

"Miss Bingley was particularly anxious at this time not to leave the capital. Her pursuit of a widowed peer of great wealth was entering a most hopeful phase. Admittedly, without his peerage and his money he would have been regarded as the most boring man in London, but one cannot expect to be called 'your grace' without some inconvenience."

As a sequel to Pride and Prejudice, Death Comes to Pemberley is a satisfying effort. As a mystery, it is not conventional and probably not what most of us expected when we first heard about the book. Mr. Darcy doesn't suddenly turn detective; in fact, nobody does. But the way the story plays out is more true to the time and place, and to Austen's style, than it would have been if James had tried to bolt a detective story onto an Austen sequel. I should note, though, that this Austenworld authenticity and lack of a detective story may mean that the book disappoints some mystery readers, including some P. D. James fans.

Elizabeth and Darcy (1995 miniseries)

Elizabeth and Darcy (2005 film)

As a lover of Jane Austen, if not a complete Austen fanatic, I was happy to spend this time at Pemberley, revisiting the characters from Pride and Prejudice and seeing their later lives depicted in a way that is faithful to the depth and complexity that Austen gave them. I was disappointed that there wasn't more time spent with Darcy and Elizabeth, but that's more of a quibble than a serious criticism.

If you can't get enough of Jane Austen sequels, there is some intriguing news. The UK publishing house HarperCollins plans to pair up modern authors with each of Austen's six novels and commission the authors to adapt Austen's stories to a modern setting. The first pairing will be Joanna Trollope with Sense and Sensibility. But don't get too excited about the project. That first book isn't projected to be published until two years from now. In the meantime, you could do a lot worse than read Death Comes to Pemberley.

Note: A version of this review appears on the Amazon product page for the UK edition, under my Amazon screen name.