description Death of an Expert Witness Overview
Death of an Expert Witness is a 1977 detective novel by P. D. James featuring Commander Adam Dalgliesh. The investigation is centered on a forensic science laboratory in the English Fens, where a senior scientist is found murdered in a setting designed to analyze evidence from other crimes.
Dalgliesh must examine both technical evidence and the rivalries, secrets, and personal tensions within the laboratory's insular professional community.
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Where is Death of an Expert Witness set?
The novel is centered on Hoggatt's forensic science laboratory in rural East Anglia. P.D. James uses its sealed workspaces, scientific routines, and staff rivalries to create an unusually technical murder setting.
Who is the expert witness murdered in the novel?
The central victim is Dr. Edwin Lorrimer, a senior forensic biologist whose difficult personality has created enemies inside the laboratory. Adam Dalgliesh investigates both his professional conflicts and private relationships.
Where does Death of an Expert Witness fall in the Dalgliesh series?
Published in 1977, it is the sixth Adam Dalgliesh novel. It follows The Black Tower and precedes A Taste for Death.
Does Death of an Expert Witness focus on real forensic methods?
The mystery makes laboratory procedure, evidence handling, and forensic biology central to the plot. It is still a character-driven P.D. James novel, so the scientists' motives matter as much as the technical evidence.
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