Status
Available
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
New York : Scribner, c1982.
Description
Combining the classic ingredients of a murder mystery with elements of horror, apparitions and hairbreadth episodes, "The Skull Beneath The Skin" creates a dark and claustrophobic atmosphere in a masterpiece of crime fiction. When leading actress Clarissa Lisle receives threats to her life the young detective, Cordelia Gray, is hired to accompany her to a private island where she is going to star in "The Duchess Of Malfi." In this gripping dramatization, the sharp-witted slueth, played by Greta Scaachi, finds herself in the enclosed setting of a chilling country house on an island with a blood-stained history.
User reviews
LibraryThing member mrtall
Perhaps the most mannered of all of P D James's novels, The Skull Beneath the Skin is a classic English murder mystery. A party of fascinating characters has traveled to Courcy Island, the private domain of an eccentric crime writer and Victoriana buff, for an amateur theatrical performance. But
The Skull Beneath the Skin is the second, and unfortunately final, Cordelia Gray novel. She's a pert and intelligent sleuth; highly attractive to both the book's other characters, and to us readers. It's a pity James abandoned her as a protagonist after just the two books.
All of James's other strengths are in full flower here: deep characterizations and motivations, elegant descriptions of setting, and the uncanny ability to make a reader take seriously a work in a genre that's been plundered by lesser writers for so many decades.
Highly recommended.
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the star of the show's no amateur; Clarissa Lisle is a fading but still talented and sexy professional actress who's trying to revive her flagging career. Here's a hint: it doesn't go well.The Skull Beneath the Skin is the second, and unfortunately final, Cordelia Gray novel. She's a pert and intelligent sleuth; highly attractive to both the book's other characters, and to us readers. It's a pity James abandoned her as a protagonist after just the two books.
All of James's other strengths are in full flower here: deep characterizations and motivations, elegant descriptions of setting, and the uncanny ability to make a reader take seriously a work in a genre that's been plundered by lesser writers for so many decades.
Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member AdonisGuilfoyle
Swift-paced and gripping, as detective novels should be, this mystery is part Agatha Christie's Poirot and part modern crime novel in spirit and approach. An actress is murdered in a Victorian castle on a private island, before a comeback performance of 'The Duchess of Malfi', and amateur private
The murder is sufficiently brutal (although I was surprised that a reference wasn't made to the play, given that quotations abound and the victim is found with her eyes covered), the clues tempting, and motives abound - yet the solution is rather disappointing. Perhaps the grubby explanation could never match up to the gothic setting and the creative evidence (quotations about death from plays by Shakespeare), but the ending felt pared down - the supporting cast leave the stage one by one, narrowing down the suspects, and after chasing the most tantalising clue from pillar to post, Cordelia is met with a clinical confession from the murderer. The clues point in the right direction, but the culprit is almost unworthy of the attention. And one small point - wouldn't it have been easy enough to get a reprint of the damning newspaper article from the British Library?
Cordelia, despite her amateur status, is classically educated and almost arrogantly middle class, reminding me of Inspector Morse (whom I didn't like in book form, either). She, and the other guests at the castle, all recognise obscure quotes and can dredge up translations of Latin from schooldays - informative for the reader, particularly with regard to extending vocabulary ('preprandial' and 'rebarbative' are two of my favourites), but didn't endear me to the colourful but unreal characters. Everybody's reaction to finding the battered corpse of the actress is very stiff and repressed, until Cordelia analyses herself into a fit of silent tears. Being told how intelligent and talented a detective Cordelia is by the 'real' police didn't boost her charm, either.
James' writing is skilfull and almost lyrical in places, but this Cordelia Gray mystery was a hit and miss experience for me. A thoughtful, very atmospheric tale with a weak ending.
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detective Cordelia Gray must identify which of her fellow guests is the killer. The murder is sufficiently brutal (although I was surprised that a reference wasn't made to the play, given that quotations abound and the victim is found with her eyes covered), the clues tempting, and motives abound - yet the solution is rather disappointing. Perhaps the grubby explanation could never match up to the gothic setting and the creative evidence (quotations about death from plays by Shakespeare), but the ending felt pared down - the supporting cast leave the stage one by one, narrowing down the suspects, and after chasing the most tantalising clue from pillar to post, Cordelia is met with a clinical confession from the murderer. The clues point in the right direction, but the culprit is almost unworthy of the attention. And one small point - wouldn't it have been easy enough to get a reprint of the damning newspaper article from the British Library?
Cordelia, despite her amateur status, is classically educated and almost arrogantly middle class, reminding me of Inspector Morse (whom I didn't like in book form, either). She, and the other guests at the castle, all recognise obscure quotes and can dredge up translations of Latin from schooldays - informative for the reader, particularly with regard to extending vocabulary ('preprandial' and 'rebarbative' are two of my favourites), but didn't endear me to the colourful but unreal characters. Everybody's reaction to finding the battered corpse of the actress is very stiff and repressed, until Cordelia analyses herself into a fit of silent tears. Being told how intelligent and talented a detective Cordelia is by the 'real' police didn't boost her charm, either.
James' writing is skilfull and almost lyrical in places, but this Cordelia Gray mystery was a hit and miss experience for me. A thoughtful, very atmospheric tale with a weak ending.
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LibraryThing member WinterFox
I read the first of the Cordelia Gray books last year, and I really liked it, partly because of the mystery and partly because of the nice feminist story that comes along the end of it. I found the lead character very compelling, and I liked the style and the feel of the writing, so I went out and
This one, alas, lacks much of the feminist charm side of it that was in the first one. It's still pretty good, though, with the hallmarks of the British mystery: island, remote from the mainland, lots of people with possible motives, no one else possible, and the clues are there to get it if you want to; I guessed who did it, but I didn't get the whole thing, so it worked pretty well.
I wanted a mystery, and I certainly got it, with a very nice writing style and well thought out plot. James is definitely accomplished, and I did enjoy it; the characters are vivid, the descriptions clear and bold, the dialogue believable. I'm not quite ready to move to her main series, but I'm a bit sad that there aren't more of this one.
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got the next (and last) book of the series.This one, alas, lacks much of the feminist charm side of it that was in the first one. It's still pretty good, though, with the hallmarks of the British mystery: island, remote from the mainland, lots of people with possible motives, no one else possible, and the clues are there to get it if you want to; I guessed who did it, but I didn't get the whole thing, so it worked pretty well.
I wanted a mystery, and I certainly got it, with a very nice writing style and well thought out plot. James is definitely accomplished, and I did enjoy it; the characters are vivid, the descriptions clear and bold, the dialogue believable. I'm not quite ready to move to her main series, but I'm a bit sad that there aren't more of this one.
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LibraryThing member ffortsa
This is the second Cordelia Gray mystery after 'An Unsuitable Job for a Woman', by the author of the more extensive Adam Dalgliesh series.
LibraryThing member smik
An intriguing assignment, Cordelia Gray thought, and not a particularly arduous one. The poison pen messages to Clarissa Lyle were to be stopped, or at least deflected, until after the performance of The Duchess of Malfi at Ambrose Gorringe's private theatre on Courcy Island. It soon becomes
The thing that struck me as I listened to THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN was the intricate detail both in the description of the characters and the setting, that creates vivid mind pictures.
The setting of a murder mystery that takes place on an island, with a very limited cast of characters, is one that has fascinated most of our great crime fiction authors. It is a setting that P.D. James will return to again in a more recent novel, THE LIGHTHOUSE.
Cordelia Gray is an interesting detective, who doesn't really seem very well equipped, rather inexperienced, to protect Clarissa Lyle. Cordelia's main experience to date has been with domestic issues like lost cats, and that is how Clarissa comes to know of her. Neither Clarissa or her husband Sir George seem to believe there is any real threat to Clarissa's life. Cordelia is to go to Courcy Island for the weekend as a companion/secretary to Clarissa.
There's plenty of mystery in this novel. Many people have reason to hate Clarissa Lyle: from her dresser who has been with her all of her life; the owner of island Ambrose Gorringe over whom Clarissa seems to have some hold; her cousin Roma who is desperate for financial help; Ivo, a mortally sick journalist who was once a lover; and her foster son Simon who is desperate to go on to university. In the long run it will come down to Cordelia's word against another's.
Another aspect of THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN that fascinated me was the clever move of the narrative from one point of view to another. Most of the story comes from Cordelia's point of view but on occasion we move into another character's mind. It is very cleverly done.
The two Cordelia Gray novels are sandwiched among the Adam Dalgliesh series (1962-2008). Dalgliesh does not appear in THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN, although Cordelia refers to him a couple of times, once by name and once as "the Commander". Unknown to her, Dalgliesh vouches for Cordelia to the detectives investigating the case.
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apparent, however, that Clarissa Lyle's enemy is on the island with her, and Cordelia finds herself trapped in an atmosphere of fear and violence, a violence that is to culminate in brutal murder.The thing that struck me as I listened to THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN was the intricate detail both in the description of the characters and the setting, that creates vivid mind pictures.
The setting of a murder mystery that takes place on an island, with a very limited cast of characters, is one that has fascinated most of our great crime fiction authors. It is a setting that P.D. James will return to again in a more recent novel, THE LIGHTHOUSE.
Cordelia Gray is an interesting detective, who doesn't really seem very well equipped, rather inexperienced, to protect Clarissa Lyle. Cordelia's main experience to date has been with domestic issues like lost cats, and that is how Clarissa comes to know of her. Neither Clarissa or her husband Sir George seem to believe there is any real threat to Clarissa's life. Cordelia is to go to Courcy Island for the weekend as a companion/secretary to Clarissa.
There's plenty of mystery in this novel. Many people have reason to hate Clarissa Lyle: from her dresser who has been with her all of her life; the owner of island Ambrose Gorringe over whom Clarissa seems to have some hold; her cousin Roma who is desperate for financial help; Ivo, a mortally sick journalist who was once a lover; and her foster son Simon who is desperate to go on to university. In the long run it will come down to Cordelia's word against another's.
Another aspect of THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN that fascinated me was the clever move of the narrative from one point of view to another. Most of the story comes from Cordelia's point of view but on occasion we move into another character's mind. It is very cleverly done.
The two Cordelia Gray novels are sandwiched among the Adam Dalgliesh series (1962-2008). Dalgliesh does not appear in THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN, although Cordelia refers to him a couple of times, once by name and once as "the Commander". Unknown to her, Dalgliesh vouches for Cordelia to the detectives investigating the case.
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LibraryThing member chicjohn
James never seems to put a foot wrong
LibraryThing member FiberBabble
I like PD James' work. This audio/play adaptation was entertaining. The characters were defined, it felt kinda like an Agatha Christie, but not as convoluted. No complaints!
LibraryThing member Jiraiya
These books that get 2 stars are beginning to have a particular feel to them. Professionally written but ultimately ill sustaining books that do enough but don't tell enough. I'm leaving the ultimate choice to fans who want to buy the second Cordelia Gray book. The first one was a real find. This
In the first book, the story was told from the young lady's eyes. Here, there's the laborious setting up of unlikely future suspects. They all seem sinister - yawn. However things picked up after the police came after the murder. Here was a perfect opportunity for Cordelia to pit her wits against the pugnacious and hostile police force. The Chief Inspector and his sergeant sidekick exit from the story abruptly, never given the chance to shine.
The fate of the murderer is quite disconcerting. The Gorringe fellow lustily tells of his exploits before a police officer stationed near, without fear. Didn't understand that part, and by that time I didn't care. A mystery book is as good as its murder. Cordelia is the youngest detective of this genre. The goodwill from that fact is exhausted here. Read the first book, An Unsuitable Job For a Woman.
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one is not.In the first book, the story was told from the young lady's eyes. Here, there's the laborious setting up of unlikely future suspects. They all seem sinister - yawn. However things picked up after the police came after the murder. Here was a perfect opportunity for Cordelia to pit her wits against the pugnacious and hostile police force. The Chief Inspector and his sergeant sidekick exit from the story abruptly, never given the chance to shine.
The fate of the murderer is quite disconcerting. The Gorringe fellow lustily tells of his exploits before a police officer stationed near, without fear. Didn't understand that part, and by that time I didn't care. A mystery book is as good as its murder. Cordelia is the youngest detective of this genre. The goodwill from that fact is exhausted here. Read the first book, An Unsuitable Job For a Woman.
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LibraryThing member alanna1122
Is there anything more enjoyable than a well written classic english mystery?
Even if you aren't wearing a warm robe and sipping hot tea in front of a cozy fire while you read this you will feel like you are. PD James is a wonderful writer who can set scenes and create characters like no other...
Even if you aren't wearing a warm robe and sipping hot tea in front of a cozy fire while you read this you will feel like you are. PD James is a wonderful writer who can set scenes and create characters like no other...
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utterly and completely enjoyable! Show Less
LibraryThing member thorold
P.D. James has probably added more to the British coastline over the course of her long career in crime than even the Environment Agency has been able to remove. In this early-1980s story, still firmly in the typewriter era, we gain an additional small island off the coast of Dorset. Complete with
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a castle full of choice Victoriana and a butler: what better setting could there be for a good old-fashioned English murder? And what's more, the investigation is in the hands of Cordelia Gray, so we don't have that tedious Mr Dalgliesh to depress us all. Cordelia can be a bit of a Harriet at times, but she's a lot livelier than the Commander, and unlike the real Harriet, she is actually allowed to solve the occasional crime without male assistance. Show Less
LibraryThing member Ameise1
This was a very pleasant listening because it wasn't a reading by one person, it was like a theatre with different actors. Secondly, the plot itself was very gripping and diverting there was no second of boredom. Thirdly, the whole story takes place on a small island and is therefore manageable.
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Fourthly, even though I had the feeling who was the evil one it let me guess a very long time with all the turns and twists. Show Less
LibraryThing member reading_fox
Never really grabbed me, very slow and without the depth of character or detailed tension that Dalgliegsh manages. Starting a series in the 2nd book probably isn't ideal, but I really don't feel there was any stretch of Cordelia that came from missing details in the first.
She gets a real client
What little plot there is, (and lack of deduction by cordelia) is further diluted by long segments of general angst and moaning without any due cause. The final quarter is almost interesting as everything finally gets revealed but not worth the previous 300 pages to get there.
She gets a real client
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(possibly her first) and is called away from her London agency to a remote island on the south coast. Here she's supposed to be body-guarding a semi-famous actress who's playing the lead role in an almost am-dram performance. However she's been receiving death threats and so her husband is concerned these will effect her performance. None of it really makes any sense, none of the characters are in any way believable. The late 70s? setting doesn't help, as the lack of technology just seems faintly ridiculous.What little plot there is, (and lack of deduction by cordelia) is further diluted by long segments of general angst and moaning without any due cause. The final quarter is almost interesting as everything finally gets revealed but not worth the previous 300 pages to get there.
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LibraryThing member gypsysmom
This is another book I read years ago and I don't remember too much about it. But P.D. James is (was?) a master of the genre and it is bound to be good. The back cover says "Hired to watch over a death-threatened actress, the candid young private detective Cordelia Gray is caught up in an intricate
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play within a play, chilled and shadowed by the dead hand of the past. Each of the guests at the country-house party has a motive and a cue for murder -- and on of them will kill. Show Less
LibraryThing member charlie68
A good whodunit.
LibraryThing member MrsLee
Cordelia Gray is hired to accompany an actress who is receiving death threats to an island. The actress, Clarissa (confusing at first to have a Cordelia and Clarissa in every other paragraph), is hoping that her performance on the island will revitalize her fading career. Fading because the death
I liked Cordelia. Although she was given to flights of fancy, she still managed to see the main points in the case and do a commendable job. There were a couple of actions taken which I thought were stretching credibility too much. While this was a good mystery to read, I'm not quite sure the author played fair with the reader on the clues. Also, I was quite disappointed in the ending, but then I am one who likes my mysteries tidy and neatly finished with justice for all. I know that is not the modern thing.
All the same, I am sorry to learn that there is only one other Cordelia Gray novel. The characters in it are well drawn and have promise.
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threats are unnerving her. The threats are quotes from various plays she has appeared in. Cordelia is told that her job will mainly consist of preventing any more threats from reaching their target, but that it is not supposed there is any real danger to the actresses life. Clarissa is not an easy client, nor an attractive personality.I liked Cordelia. Although she was given to flights of fancy, she still managed to see the main points in the case and do a commendable job. There were a couple of actions taken which I thought were stretching credibility too much. While this was a good mystery to read, I'm not quite sure the author played fair with the reader on the clues. Also, I was quite disappointed in the ending, but then I am one who likes my mysteries tidy and neatly finished with justice for all. I know that is not the modern thing.
All the same, I am sorry to learn that there is only one other Cordelia Gray novel. The characters in it are well drawn and have promise.
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LibraryThing member rafram
The Skull beneath the Skin (Cordelia Gray Mystery Series #2) by P.D. James
is about eccentric actor Clarissa Lisle, Lady Ralston, who receives death threats and is scared for her life and PI Cordelia Grey who is hired by Clarissa’s husband to keep her out of danger. A murder occurs on private
I listened to an audio CD of The Skull beneath the Skin by P.D. James. This was my first encounter with her work, except for numerous TV adaptations I have watched over the years. The plot is set on small, privately owned Courcy Island. Actor Clarissa Lisle is invited there with a small group of acquaintances to star in a theater play, but is scared for her life because of all the death threats she has received ahead of performances. PI Cordelia Grey is hired to keep her safe while pretending to be her secretary.
Main character Cordelia Gray felt a bit like the mother hen who kept everything together when things got rough. I really liked her character and was impressed by her detective skills. She had analytical skills like Agatha Christie’s Poirot, but I felt she added a womanly touch when helping the police with their investigation.
Ambrose Gorringe is a longtime friend of the victim and the owner of Courcy Island. I felt he was a cynical and cold person and felt unsettled by his collection of gruesome items kept on the island. Entertainment for the guests included a scary sightseeing and telling of gruesome legends from the middle ages.
Roma Lyle, Clarissa's heir was my least favorite character of this story as she seemed an unsympathetic, greedy and rude person who disliked the victim. As she was in acute need for money to please her boyfriend, she seemed to be near the top of the suspects list.
The victim I felt was a well crafted character who was rich, controlling and disliked by many of the guests. I disliked her attitude intensely, but she certainly added drama to the plot. Most of the guest’s characters I found to be seriously superficial in an entertaining as well as shocking way. -One asking if the play would go on as planned after the murder had happened. They seemed well developed, like the author might have taken their traits from posh people in her real life.
My favorite part of the story was also the scariest, where guests were taken on a tour around solitary and scary Courcy Castle and told a horrifying legend of the island. I found it to be a perfect element in a Halloween read, and one of the parts I felt was particularly well written.
The plot and the writing I found reminded me somewhat of Agatha Christie. A group of people were gathered on a solitary place when a murder took place. Slightly more gory details were added in this story, like descriptions of how the dead body looked.
The Skull beneath the Skin (Cordelia Gray Mystery Series #2) by P.D. James
is a thrilling and entertaining story of PI Cordelia Gray solving a horrible murder in opulent English environment on a private solitary island. Fans of P.D. James will enjoy this and it is also recommended for readers of crime fiction. Similar books to explore might be one of Agatha Christie’s numerous works.
All opinions in this review are completely my own.
is about eccentric actor Clarissa Lisle, Lady Ralston, who receives death threats and is scared for her life and PI Cordelia Grey who is hired by Clarissa’s husband to keep her out of danger. A murder occurs on private
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Courcy Island and the small group of people present become suspects. I listened to an audio CD of The Skull beneath the Skin by P.D. James. This was my first encounter with her work, except for numerous TV adaptations I have watched over the years. The plot is set on small, privately owned Courcy Island. Actor Clarissa Lisle is invited there with a small group of acquaintances to star in a theater play, but is scared for her life because of all the death threats she has received ahead of performances. PI Cordelia Grey is hired to keep her safe while pretending to be her secretary.
Main character Cordelia Gray felt a bit like the mother hen who kept everything together when things got rough. I really liked her character and was impressed by her detective skills. She had analytical skills like Agatha Christie’s Poirot, but I felt she added a womanly touch when helping the police with their investigation.
Ambrose Gorringe is a longtime friend of the victim and the owner of Courcy Island. I felt he was a cynical and cold person and felt unsettled by his collection of gruesome items kept on the island. Entertainment for the guests included a scary sightseeing and telling of gruesome legends from the middle ages.
Roma Lyle, Clarissa's heir was my least favorite character of this story as she seemed an unsympathetic, greedy and rude person who disliked the victim. As she was in acute need for money to please her boyfriend, she seemed to be near the top of the suspects list.
The victim I felt was a well crafted character who was rich, controlling and disliked by many of the guests. I disliked her attitude intensely, but she certainly added drama to the plot. Most of the guest’s characters I found to be seriously superficial in an entertaining as well as shocking way. -One asking if the play would go on as planned after the murder had happened. They seemed well developed, like the author might have taken their traits from posh people in her real life.
My favorite part of the story was also the scariest, where guests were taken on a tour around solitary and scary Courcy Castle and told a horrifying legend of the island. I found it to be a perfect element in a Halloween read, and one of the parts I felt was particularly well written.
The plot and the writing I found reminded me somewhat of Agatha Christie. A group of people were gathered on a solitary place when a murder took place. Slightly more gory details were added in this story, like descriptions of how the dead body looked.
The Skull beneath the Skin (Cordelia Gray Mystery Series #2) by P.D. James
is a thrilling and entertaining story of PI Cordelia Gray solving a horrible murder in opulent English environment on a private solitary island. Fans of P.D. James will enjoy this and it is also recommended for readers of crime fiction. Similar books to explore might be one of Agatha Christie’s numerous works.
All opinions in this review are completely my own.
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LibraryThing member raizel
It takes until page 186 for the major crime to be committed; it's a long book. I did not guess who done what (of course), but I did guess that different people may have done different things . A terrible woman who has been getting death threats hires Cordelia Gray to protect her. The interesting
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mystery to me is why so many people are attracted to her and stay with her after she betrays them in so many ways. Show Less
LibraryThing member mbmackay
Much better than the previous 2 P. D. James books (Black Tower and Death of an Expert Witness). Structurally complex & satisfying, good character development, plot twists.
Read Samoa Dec 2003
Read Samoa Dec 2003
LibraryThing member lschiff
Very disappointing. An extremely pale copy of 10 little indians and not up to P.D. James' standards.
Awards
Crime Writers' Association Awards (Shortlist — 1982)