P. D. James strikes again, with another crime novel which sucks all the fun and enjoyment out of the genre.Despite the fact that the book takes place over a matter of 2 or 3 days, the pace is cripplingly slow. Her characters have too many contradictions and they struggle make an impression on the reader's mind, leaving them dull and unsympathetic.The author leaves me with the impression that she does not actually like whodunnits and seems to have little interest in telling the reader who did.