“Death in Holy Orders,” by P.D. James. Knopf. 2001. 415 pp. $25.

The pounding sea is like an insistent visitor knocking at the door, as is death, in P.D. James excellent new book, “Death in Holy Orders.”

Her wonderful storytelling brings the sometimes harsh English coastline into your environs. You will hear the sea as it throbs incessantly, turning up the gray shingle of the beach. Hear the wind howling around the towers of the odd Victorian mansion that houses an even stranger collection of people.

Like a classic Agatha Christie cozy, this book takes place almost entirely at St. Anselm’s, an isolated theological college, with just a glimpse of London to establish the presence of the Metropolitan Police and the introspective Adam Dalgliesh.

It’s a wonderful way to be immersed in the scene, knowing only a limited number of people could be guilty. James duly checks each suspect out, parading them in for suspicion, scattering the red herrings (a particularly good idiom in this case) and discarding them for lack of the one vital puzzle piece.

In this case, Dalgliesh is drawn to a scene of some happy childhood memories for some time off, but agrees to look into the recent death of one of St. Anselm’s ordinands, Ronald Treeves.

Treeves was suffocated under a ton of loose sand from the nearby cliffs. His wealthy and influential father doesn’t believe the verdict of accidental death, but he couldn’t make it to the inquest.

Dalgliesh looks forward to his time at St. Anselm’s, quiet time.

Of course, that is not to be.

But a strange combination of visitors has taken up residence at the college: a local police detective seeking respite from his demons; one of his demons in the flesh, Archdeacon Crampton; a larcenous scholar; a scheming young woman.

Crampton proves to be a demon to many people at St. Anselm’s — and one of them decides the deacon must die.

It becomes a frighteningly appropriate action and reaction. Crampton, after all, had come to see that St. Anselm’s would die — and soon.

James takes on questions about the Church of England in “Death in Holy Orders,” questions that are not disrespectful or critical, but issues that are at the forefront of the church. Is the old order still viable, or must religion change to meet the needs of today’s people? It’s an argument that pervades not just British society, but St. Anselm’s fictional world, as well.

Certain officers of the church, including the murder victim, see St. Anselm’s as a dinosaur, ready to be pushed into extinction. They even consider the small school elitist and slightly dangerous for its adherence to almost Catholic traditions.

And its collection of priests and ordinands draws larger questions.

The rigid, almost self-righteous warden, Father Sebastian Morrell is adamant that St. Anselm’s keep its treasures in the college, including an imposing altar piece painting called “Doom” and some very valuable silver.

His aging predecessor, and Dalgliesh’s boyhood counselor, Father Martin, also conceals a papyrus whose authenticity could call into question the very foundations of Christianity.

Poor Father John Betterton has spent time in prison for child molestation, thanks to the efforts of the Archdeacon.

Raphael Arbuthnot, the illegitimate grandson of St. Anselm’s benefactor lurks, beautiful, but disturbing, in the only home he’s ever known.

James, recognized as a mystery writer who is a thumping good novelist, still has sharp skills and writes beautifully to create a deep, satisfying book.

First, there’s lots of Adam Dalgliesh, who is, after all, her biggest draw. He’s seen in an introspective mood. And for the first time in a long while, he has happy memories. One can picture him smiling as he thinks of the past.

James suggests her solitary detective might again try romance.

Emma Lavenham, poetry lecturer at Cambridge, is sequestered at St. Anselm’s during the murder investigation and provides just the barest hint of romantic entanglement. She’s an introspective, hard-working young academic, fascinated by the young religious and the church, curious about the well-known police officer.

James does not dwell on the murder scene as she often does, describing in detached terms the horror of the death.

The Archdeacon’s head is bashed in with a brass candlestick, but other victims die much more quietly. Here, the forensics take a back seat to the motives, the secrets and the personalities.

And “Death in Holy Orders” is filled with shocking secrets and endlessly complex personalities.

It is James at her detailed, thoughtful, thorough best.

Contact Deirdre Parker Smith at 704-797-4252 or dp1@salisburypost.com .