Word: novelization
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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There certainly is no failure to entertain in A Certain Justice, her fourteenth novel. True, P.D. James rips off Agatha Christie to an appalling degree, but at least she does it well. The novel moves at a lightning pace, keeping the reader guessing with its red herrings and cleverly placed twists...
...same, well-oiled formula. First, there is a murder in an unusual setting, followed by categorization of the possible suspects, and detective Adam Dalgliesh's investigation into the mysterious affairs. A Certain Justice follows this recipe--but in this case, there are two murders that must be solved. The novel, strangely enough, begins with a trial--the strong, stubborn Venetia Aldridge is defending Garry Ashe on charges of brutally killing his aunt. Aldrige knows that Ashe is guilty, but she's learned over the years that winning is always the goal. There is no room in Aldrige's mind...
...Certain Justice is most enjoyable because of its deliciously subversive literary flair. James' prose is eloquent and yet strikingly lucid. The opening line of the novel, "Murders do not usually give their victims notice," is the perfect segway into a haunting exploration of Venetia Aldrige's character. The well-practiced virtuoso quality in A Certain Justice draws you into its foreboding atmosphere: "Has it ever occurred to you that a woman, when she is powerful, is more powerful than a man?" asks one of the suspects. The flowing prose often reaches its own stylistic climaxes, independent of plot events...
...ending finally awakes you from the trance of guilty pleasure. It is the one part of A Certain Justice that finally makes you realize that P.D. James is not a substitute for Agatha Christie. In the latter's novels, there was a seductive evil that leaped off the page and made each and every novel memorable. James, on the other hand, is more in the market for immediate gratification--she delivers, but there's no lasting impact...
Starship Troopers is in fact based on a pulp novel from the '50s just like those which the movie so savvily spoofs. The movie seems to critique belligerent nationalism and militarism from the inside out; and yet, the jazzy thrill of watching those bugs get picked off is great enough that the audience participates in that very same militarist spirit. Verhoeven torques our knee-jerk impressions of our own political sensibilities and forces us to resolve that conflict ourselves. All this from the man who made Showgirls...