Ruth_Rendell_1672119c.jpg

Features

Writing Life: Ruth Rendell

ruth-rendell-dark-corners-extract-788×306.jpg

Editor Selina Walker on Ruth Rendell’s Dark Corners

Dark Corners

A brilliantly dark and sinister novel of psychological suspense by Ruth Rendell, ‘unequivocally the most brilliant crime-writer of our time’ (Patricia Cornwell).

Her absence is keenly felt. But we do have this mesmeric book . . . It’s a felicitous last hurrah for Rendell

It enjoyably and honourably concludes Rendell's six decades of exploring the death force that, as her last book demonstrates, may be triggered in unexpected people and places. - Mark Lawson

Dark Corners is written in a deceptively simple manner, and at times it reads like a twisted fairytale. It leaves an uneasiness behind like a dark stain on the consciousness . . . The violence of Dark Corners is the violence that stems from the mundane and the ordinary, and it is all the more frightening because of that.

Everything that makes Rendell's work so memorable - gothic but believable people and plots, simple yet vivid prose, peerlessly rendered settings, and fear and despair as the twin ‘parents’ of violence - is in evidence here.

Another of Rendell’s penetrating studies of ordinary people trapped in extraordinary circumstances . . . her countless admirers will seize on it with delight.

Cunningly wrought . . . a triumph . . . the ending is perfect – a fitting full stop at the end of a great career.

From the impressive variety of tones and styles to which she had access as a writer, Rendell chose for Dark Corners black comedy that echoes Muriel Spark . . . [Dark Corners] enjoyably and honourably concludes Rendell's six decades of exploring the death force that, as her last book demonstrates, may be triggered in unexpected people and places.

The late Ruth Rendell put a permanent stamp on crime fiction with 65 novels of screw-twisting suspense, written under both her own name and the pseudonym Barbara Vine. The posthumously published DARK CORNERS is a worthy final entry in her body of work

It’s a Rendell ‘stand-alone’ – a pitch-black thriller.

A gripping story . . . You will feel the authentic Rendell prickle of fear as you realise how easily a mis-step could plunge you into a situation like [the protagonist’s].

Dark Corners is compulsively readable and involving . . . [Rendell] had a superb gift for understanding and unsettling her legion of fans with her spare, elegant prose.

Not once does Rendell let up on the tension. This, her last book, is a triumph

As hard-edged as ever. A brooding, claustrophobic mystery

This is the innocent-seeming start of a journey into the very darkest recesses of the human mind; for such a nice woman, Rendell had an amazing empathy with psychotic killers. Dark Corners is Rendell at her incomparable best; talk about going out in style!

Rendell was a prolific and hugely popular writer of intricately plotted mystery novels that combined psychological insight, social conscience and, not infrequently, teeth-chattering terror.

Rendell was unequivocally the most brilliant mystery writer of our time.

When many of the literary novelists of our time are forgotten, Ruth Rendell’s books will remain, and future generations will see that not only did she keep her readers on tenterhooks with every book, she also wrote stories which held up a mirror to her times.

Rendell’s work, mapping the manic and malevolent extremes of human behaviour, was distinguished by terse yet elegant prose and sharp psychological insights.

Rendell’s novels have been a major force in lifting crime writing out of genre fiction and into both cutting-edge and mainstream literature.

Ruth Rendell: one of the all-time greats.

Every aspect of Ruth Rendell’s dark art is splendidly showcased in Dark Corners. One can’t say she saved the best for last, because a great many books by Ms Rendell and her alter ego Barbara Vine are so splendid, but it’s among the best. You won’t put it down. I loved it.

Rendell set an extraordinarily high benchmark in crime fiction that continued throughout her long career. She is revered by all who came after her.

Rendell transformed what had become a staid and formulaic genre into a different kind of crime novel. She turned it into a prism for examining the world around her with a critical eye.

Ruth Rendell was an exceptional crime writer, and will be remembered as a legend in her own lifetime. Her groundbreaking debut novel, From Doon With Death, was first published in 1964 and introduced the reader to her enduring and popular detective, Inspector Reginald Wexford, who went on to feature in twenty-four of her subsequent novels. 
 
With worldwide sales of approximately 20 million copies, Rendell was a regular Sunday Times bestseller. Her sixty bestselling novels include police procedurals, some of which have been successfully adapted for TV, stand-alone psychological mysteries, and a third strand of crime novels under the pseudonym Barbara Vine. Very much abreast of her times, the Wexford books in particular often engaged with social or political issues close to her heart. 
 
Rendell won numerous awards, including the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger for 1976’s best crime novel with A Demon in My View, a Gold Dagger award for Live Flesh in 1986, and the Sunday Times Literary Award in 1990. In 2013 she was awarded the Crime Writers’ Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for sustained excellence in crime writing. In 1996 she was awarded the CBE and in 1997 became a Life Peer. 
 
Ruth Rendell died in May 2015. Her final novel, Dark Corners, was published in October 2015.

A tragic accident. A blackmail plot. A house of cards. 
And murder. 
 
In his late father's house, Carl finds a hoard of pills, 'wonder drugs' and herbal remedies. He sells a box of slimming pills to his close friend Stacey. 
 
She dies. 
 
And Carl's new tenant is now scheming to blackmail him, imposing more and more demands on an increasingly unstable Carl, pushing him to the point of no return... 
_________________________ 
 
Ruth Rendell's final novel is a dark and atmospheric tale of psychological suspense, full of mistaken identity, kidnap, blackmail, and a cast of normal people driven to do abnormal things. Infused with her distinctive blend of wry humour, acute observation and deep humanity, this is Rendell at her most memorable and best.

The Keys To The Street

The 20th anniversary edition of one of Ruth Rendell's best loved crime novels.

London's wealthiest, poorest, kindest and most dangerous citizens all cross paths in Regent's Park. All it takes to bring them together is a series of brutally gruesome murders... 
 
Mary Jago has donated her bone marrow to save the life of a complete stranger; a generous act of kindness that culminates in a horrible break-up with her abusive boyfriend. 
 
Moving to the affluent edge of London's famous Regent's Park, Mary believes she has finally escaped the threat of violence. She never thought that one simple act of kindness could put her own life in mortal danger…

a mesmerising mystery of murder and memory from the award-winning queen of crime, Ruth Rendell

The Girl Next Door

The dazzling new novel from Ruth Rendell. When the bones of two severed hands are discovered in a box, an investigation into a long buried crime of passion begins. And a group of friends, who played together as children, begin to question their past.

In all her novels, multi-million copy and SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author Ruth Rendell digs deep beneath the surface to investigate the secrets of the human psyche and The Girl Next Door is no exception. This compelling and captivating mystery, with its taut plotting and spine-tingling twists and turns is perfect for fans of PD James, Ann Cleeves and Donna Leon. 
 
'This novel reminded me of the singularity of Ruth Rendell's talent, her effortless mastery of language and her uncanny genius for mapping a criminal mind.' -- The Times 
'Rendell is as masterful as ever; her writing tense, brittle, and brilliant.' -- Sunday 
Mirror 
'Couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
'Fantastic book' -- ***** Reader review 
'Fabulous read' -- ***** Reader review 
'Love the way Ruth Rendell weaves the plot - she never disappoints me' -- ***** Reader review 
'Brilliant storyline, couldn't put it down' -- ***** Reader review 
 
************************************************************************************ 
Beneath the green meadows of Loughton, Essex, a dark network of tunnels has been dug. A group of children discover them. They play there. It becomes their place. 
 
Seventy years on, the world has changed. Developers have altered the rural landscape. Friends from a half-remembered world have married, died, grown sick, moved - or disappeared. 
 
Work on a new house called Warlock uncovers a long buried grisly secret: the bones of two severed hands are discovered in a box, and an investigation into a long-buried crime of passion begins. 
 
The friends, who played together as children, begin to question their past. And a weary detective, more concerned with current crimes, must investigate a case of murder.

The Girl Next Door is vintage Rendell and a perfect celebration of her half-century. She’s so effortlessly prolific that it’s easy to take her for granted; we assume that if we miss one of her books, there’ll be another one along in a minute. This novel, however, reminded me of the singularity of Ruth Rendell’s talent, her effortless mastery of language and her uncanny genius for mapping a criminal mind.

Rendell is as masterful as ever; her writing tense, brittle, and brilliant.

She is the peer of Kingsley Amis and Muriel Spark. The Girl Next Door is as great a novel as Stanley and the Women or Memento Mori . . . a joy to read. Rendell's novels establish a sense of order that is deeply satisfying.

Fifty years on, the girl from Essex has become the unchallenged crime queen of suburbia. Her powers of observation are as acute as ever, and she writes about old age with as much gusto as any of the subjects she has tackled in her long career.

This book is extraordinarily courageous, a demonstration that fiction can take us where reportage dares not go.

Rendell gives an acutely observed portrayal of old age through her characters’ regrets, losses and bewilderment . . . Difficult themes such as death, usually dressed up in mystery in a crime novel are, thanks to these elderly protagonists, real, hard-hitting and constant.

That The Girl Next Door works as a standalone novel is partly attributable to Rendell’s deftness in parrying comparisons with her best-known creation. It also unravels a satisfying mystery, stretching tentacles into the past.

An excellent analysis of re-found youth, this novel shows how people can surprise themselves even in their winter years.

In this engaging novel, the portraits of elderly people living today and their preoccupations are presented with almost sociological precision, and scattered throughout are acute observations about changing language and manners.

Nobody does the suburbs like Ruth Rendell: in her expert hands they exert a morbid fascination. Behind the immaculate exteriors lurks a world of unhappiness and deceit – and at times murder. An excellent read.

(A Wexford Case)

No Man's Nightingale

No Man's Nightingale: the eagerly anticipated twenty-fourth title in Ruth Rendell's bestselling Detective Chief Inspector Wexford series.

With every page, Rendell reminds us why she is the doyenne of murder mystery and still absolutely at the top of her game.

[A] wry and twisty mystery — a joy to read.

No Man's Nightingale: the eagerly anticipated twenty-fourth title in Ruth Rendell's bestselling Detective Chief Inspector Wexford series. 
 
The woman vicar of St Peter's Church may not be popular among the community of Kingsmarkham. But it still comes as a profound shock when she is found strangled in her vicarage. 
 
Inspector Wexford is retired, but he retains a relish for solving mysteries especially when they are as close to home as this one is. 
 
So when he's asked whether he will assist on the case, he readily agrees. 
 
But why did the vicar die? And is anyone else in Kingsmarkham in danger? 
 
What Wexford doesn't know is that the killer is far closer than he, or anyone else, thinks.

(A Wexford Case) The brilliantly chilling and captivating first Inspector Wexford novel from the award-winning Queen of Crime

From Doon With Death

A Wexford Case - 50th Anniversary Edition

A 50th anniversary edition of the first Inspector Wexford novel, with an introduction by Ian Rankin and a new afterword by Ruth Rendell.

Readers of PD James, Ann Cleeves and Donna Leon will love this gripping crime thriller full of twists and turns from multi-million copy and SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author Ruth Rendell. This edition has an introduction from Ian Rankin and an afterword by the author. 
 
'If crime fiction is currently in rude good health, its practitioners striving to better the craft and keep it fresh, vibrant and relevant, this is in no small part thanks to Ruth Rendell.' -- IAN RANKIN 
'A classic mystery, as true to life now as it was half a century ago' - MAIL ONLINE 
'Ruth Rendell's mesmerising capacity to shock, chill and disturb is unmatched' - THE TIMES 
'This is not just a crime novel, it is a wonderfully written novel with crime in it.' -- ***** Reader review 
'A real page turner.' -- ***** Reader review 
 
************************************************************ 
AN ORDINARY LIFE. AN EXTRAORDINARY DEATH. 
 
 The trampled grass led to the body of Margaret Parsons. 
 
 With no useful clues and a victim known only for her mundane life, Chief Inspector Wexford is baffled until he discovers Margaret's dark secret - a collection of rare books, each inscribed from a secret lover and signed only as 'Doon'. 
 
 Who is Doon? And could the answer hold the key to Wexford solving his first case?

As Wexford’s investigation gathers pace, we experience the conflicts and contradictions of the Sixties when the social fabric was turned inside-out . . . a classic mystery, as true to life now as it was half a century ago.

Readers of PD James, Ann Cleeves and Donna Leon will love this gripping crime thriller full of twists and turns from multi-million copy and SUNDAY TIMES bestselling author Ruth Rendell. This edition has an introduction from Ian Rankin and an afterword by the author. 
 
'If crime fiction is currently in rude good health, its practitioners striving to better the craft and keep it fresh, vibrant and relevant, this is in no small part thanks to Ruth Rendell.' -- IAN RANKIN 
'A classic mystery, as true to life now as it was half a century ago' - MAIL ONLINE 
'Ruth Rendell's mesmerising capacity to shock, chill and disturb is unmatched' - THE TIMES 
'This is not just a crime novel, it is a wonderfully written novel with crime in it.' -- ***** Reader review 
'A real page turner.' -- ***** Reader review 
 
************************************************************ 
AN ORDINARY LIFE. AN EXTRAORDINARY DEATH. 
 
 The trampled grass led to the body of Margaret Parsons. 
 
 With no useful clues and a victim known only for her mundane life, Chief Inspector Wexford is baffled until he discovers Margaret's dark secret - a collection of rare books, each inscribed from a secret lover and signed only as 'Doon'. 
 
 Who is Doon? And could the answer hold the key to Wexford solving his first case?

Archie and Archie

A charming story of a cat and a dog who live on the same street, for younger readers, from bestselling author Ruth Rendell.

Archie the cat and Archie the dog live next door to each other. Read about their adventures - including Archie the cat spending a terrifying night trapped in a neighbour's attic - in this completely charming book for younger readers.

A charming story of a cat and a dog who live on the same street for younger readers, from bestselling author Ruth Rendell. 
 
Archie the cat and Archie the dog live next door to each other on a street full of feline friends and foes. Read about their adventures - including Archie the cat spending a scary night trapped in a neighbour's attic - in this gentle, lyrical, completely charming book for younger readers. Perfect for all animal lovers.

Ruth Rendell

Jamie Glover

Rachel Lewis

Peter Wingfield

Oona Beeson

Reece Shearsmith

Paul Rhys

Full Cast

Laura Pyper

Michael Maloney

Seven full-cast dramatisations

Full-cast dramatisations of seven of Ruth Rendell's tense psychological thrillers. 
 
This collection includes: 
 
Tracks 1-2 - The Bridesmaid: A beautiful stone statue and her living double lead Philip into a nightmare of obsession and murder. 
 
Tracks 3-4 - Going Wrong: Besotted with his childhood sweetheart, Leonora, psychopathic Guy Curran will do anything to make her his. 
 
Tracks 5 - 8 King Solomon’s Carpet: London’s Underground links a group of misfit housemates and is the catalyst for a devastating crime in this compelling tale, written under the pseudonym Barbara Vine. 
 
Track 9 - People Don’t Do Such Things: A suburban couple befriend a charismatic novelist, but their relationship soon slips into sinister territory. 
 
Track 10 - The Fever Tree: On safari in South Africa, Ford and Tricia find the tensions in their marriage exacerbated by the unforgiving wilderness. 
 
Track 11 - The Dreadful Day of Judgment: Clearing up an abandoned cemetery, John, Gilly and Marlon’s personal demons come to the fore. 
 
Track 12 - Thornapple: Poison enthusiast James becomes captivated by the ruthless Meribel on a visit to her wealthy aunt. 
 
Among the casts of these seven suspenseful adaptations are Jamie Glover, Mark Strong, Reece Shearsmith, Paul Rhys, Danny Sapani and Juliet Aubrey.

Ruth Rendell

The Ruth Rendell BBC Radio Drama Collection

Select a format:

Retailers:

Summary

More books from this author