Currently I am reading Death comes to Pemberley, by P.D. James. This is my first foray into the land of James' mysteries, and I have to say that although I was eagerly anticipating the content of this novel, I had low expectations about the quality of the writing. Having read Steig Larsson and Dan Brown, I assumed that mystery writers were all in the same class, yet I am pleasantly surprised - and consistently blown away - by the beauty of her sentences.
Here, then are a few of my favourites so far:
"They also accused [Elizabeth] of being sardonic, and although there was uncertainty about the meaning of the word, they knew that it was not a desirable quality in a woman, being one which gentlemen particularly disliked."
"An assembly ball was a penance to be endured only because it offered an opportunity for her to take centre stage at the piano forte and, by the judicious use of the sustaining pedal to stun the audience into submission."
"Mr Bennet was a quiet and reassuring presence in the house, rather like a benign, familiar ghost."
Lovely.
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