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Fans of Elizabeth George's Lynley/Havers mysteries can rest easy. If this first entry is any gauge, the BBC has done an excellent job.George's books are only part mystery. The backstory is the ongoing soap opera involving Tommy, Deborah, Simon and Helen. (And of course, there's the tension between Lynley and Havers -- but that is often integral to the mystery.) In this adaptation of "A Great Deliverance," the soap opera is held to a minimum. Yes Tommy and Simon both love Deborah. Simon marries her and Tommy stands as his best man -- and misery ensues. But the screen version handles this material leanly and efficiently (where George herself sometimes tends to wallow).Here the mystery is the main event, and the moody atmosphere of a Yorkshire village dominates. This was a two-part mini-series in the UK, but my local PBS station presented it as a feature. At nearly three hours, you might expect it to lag, but it doesn't. Suspense builds as suspects are considered and discarded.The relationship between Lynley and Havers is the key to the series. It's part class warfare and part sexual politics. He's the eighth earl of Asherton and she's a working class heroine, so there it is. Here it is played to perfection.I am anxiously anticipating new entries in "The Inspector Lynley Mysteries."
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