a Rendell specialty: ironic downward trajectories and the banality of drab lives. as always, she resists easy condescension. fascinating and darkly-hued, but at times the bleakness becomes almost formulaic. the "protagonist" Stanley is an often mordantly amusing creation, by turns sympathetic and re...
Sometimes it's nice to go to something early by a writer to remind oneself that the two of you did get on and it is only in more recent times that there has been a need to part.The idea itself is nice: as Stanley descends into his breakdown, the only thing that keeps his tic at bay is crosswords. He...
Compared to other crime writers, this is a great book. Compared to other Ruth Rendell books it's good, but not great. She does such a wonderful job of creating an interesting story even when there's no mystery involved; we know who did what to whom from the outset.
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