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Inspector Wexford #20
End in Tears
The award-winning author of Babes in the Woods and The Rottweiler brings us another gripping Inspector Wexford novel.
A lump of concrete dropped deliberately from a little stone bridge over a relatively unfrequented road kills the wrong person. The driver behind is spared. But only for a while...
One particular member of the local press is gunning for the Chief Inspector, distinctly unimpressed with what he regards as old-fashioned police methods. But Wexford, with his old friend and partner, Mike Burden, along with two new recruits to the Kingsmarkham team, pursue their inquiries with a diligence and humanity that make Ruth Rendell’s detective stories enthralling, exciting and very touching.
From the Hardcover edition.
A lump of concrete dropped deliberately from a little stone bridge over a relatively unfrequented road kills the wrong person. The driver behind is spared. But only for a while...
One particular member of the local press is gunning for the Chief Inspector, distinctly unimpressed with what he regards as old-fashioned police methods. But Wexford, with his old friend and partner, Mike Burden, along with two new recruits to the Kingsmarkham team, pursue their inquiries with a diligence and humanity that make Ruth Rendell’s detective stories enthralling, exciting and very touching.
From the Hardcover edition.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2005
About the author
Ruth Rendell
476 books1,573 followersA.K.A. Barbara Vine
Ruth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, CBE, who also wrote under the pseudonym Barbara Vine, was an acclaimed English crime writer, known for her many psychological thrillers and murder mysteries and above all for Inspector Wexford.
Ruth Barbara Rendell, Baroness Rendell of Babergh, CBE, who also wrote under the pseudonym Barbara Vine, was an acclaimed English crime writer, known for her many psychological thrillers and murder mysteries and above all for Inspector Wexford.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 342 reviews
May 7, 2017
Sexist crap. Racist crap. Stereotypical clichés crap. A whole bunch of plot holes. Useless family background stories to bolster up the sexist agenda. There really are not a lot of good things I could say about this book.
A girl is killed and Inspector Wexford takes over the case. He and his team investigate the death of Amber and then another girl is killed as well. There is a connection between the two so the investigation proceeds gradually to an unbelievable and unrealistic end.
I found this book extremely misogynist, not just that the characters are misogynist but the author herself is horrible and slut shaming at every opportunity possible. The author makes fun of Hannah who is politically correct and prefers to gain knowledge of people before assuming traditional roles for them. Somehow, insisting that women be addressed as ‘Ms.’ or as ‘women’ instead of ‘girl’ is oh, so horrible and PC! Let’s just send them to make sandwiches in the kitchen, shall we? Why, Ms. Rendell, oops, sorry Mrs. Rendell, have you a profession instead of cooking for your husband?
“Apart from her name and her lack of a thyroid cartilage, he had said to Wexford, she might as well be a man, and perhaps she once had been. You never knew these days. She had no breasts, no hips, her hair was crew cut and no scrap of make-up had ever settled on her virgin face.” – this about a competent police post mortem specialist.
And apparently, black policemen are also very nostalgic of times when they get screamed racist shit by neighbours. Now, of course, it would get them in court. “What a funny world we live in.” Trust me, Rendell, that’s NOT what black people are thinking. They are thinking, thank god someone changed the law and horrible racist old women can’t get away with it any longer. You need to do some serious fucking off, Ruth Rendell!
One might be able to overlook the above – not me, but someone else, perhaps – but there is also a major plot hole. A plot hole so yawning that unless you believe that women have water in the brain and no knowledge of reproduction, it simply does not work. Apparently, according to the author, some women are SO dumb that they would believe that they can give birth to babies without actually getting pregnant. And because they give birth in Africa, the babies will be black! It is apparently explained by women wanting babbbeeesss! No dear author, men don’t have sex and self preservation as main instincts while women’s instinct is all about BABEEEESS! What complete clichéd crap!
On another note, I would also like to know how and why Wexford decides who the culprit is. He just picks a name randomly and pursues him doggedly. It’s very lazy writing. I also don’t see how the entire background story about Wexford’s daughter helps the main story in any way, unless the author really wants to push her ‘traditional family = best family’ agenda in her readers’ faces.
I just hated this book!
A girl is killed and Inspector Wexford takes over the case. He and his team investigate the death of Amber and then another girl is killed as well. There is a connection between the two so the investigation proceeds gradually to an unbelievable and unrealistic end.
I found this book extremely misogynist, not just that the characters are misogynist but the author herself is horrible and slut shaming at every opportunity possible. The author makes fun of Hannah who is politically correct and prefers to gain knowledge of people before assuming traditional roles for them. Somehow, insisting that women be addressed as ‘Ms.’ or as ‘women’ instead of ‘girl’ is oh, so horrible and PC! Let’s just send them to make sandwiches in the kitchen, shall we? Why, Ms. Rendell, oops, sorry Mrs. Rendell, have you a profession instead of cooking for your husband?
“Apart from her name and her lack of a thyroid cartilage, he had said to Wexford, she might as well be a man, and perhaps she once had been. You never knew these days. She had no breasts, no hips, her hair was crew cut and no scrap of make-up had ever settled on her virgin face.” – this about a competent police post mortem specialist.
And apparently, black policemen are also very nostalgic of times when they get screamed racist shit by neighbours. Now, of course, it would get them in court. “What a funny world we live in.” Trust me, Rendell, that’s NOT what black people are thinking. They are thinking, thank god someone changed the law and horrible racist old women can’t get away with it any longer. You need to do some serious fucking off, Ruth Rendell!
One might be able to overlook the above – not me, but someone else, perhaps – but there is also a major plot hole. A plot hole so yawning that unless you believe that women have water in the brain and no knowledge of reproduction, it simply does not work. Apparently, according to the author, some women are SO dumb that they would believe that they can give birth to babies without actually getting pregnant. And because they give birth in Africa, the babies will be black! It is apparently explained by women wanting babbbeeesss! No dear author, men don’t have sex and self preservation as main instincts while women’s instinct is all about BABEEEESS! What complete clichéd crap!
On another note, I would also like to know how and why Wexford decides who the culprit is. He just picks a name randomly and pursues him doggedly. It’s very lazy writing. I also don’t see how the entire background story about Wexford’s daughter helps the main story in any way, unless the author really wants to push her ‘traditional family = best family’ agenda in her readers’ faces.
I just hated this book!
May 6, 2023
Bungled Murder
Review of the Seal Kindle eBook edition (2010) of the original Hutchinson (UK) hardcover (October 20, 2005).
A 4 star rating is on a relative scale, after my being somewhat disappointed with The Babes in the Wood (2002), the previous book in the Wexford series. This one had an intriguing case and combined it with various social issues such as surrogacy. It also made for a return to favourite Wexford quotes and banter. There are some cringey bits and a rather unbelievable scam which is uncovered towards the end (see the 1-star review linked below about that, but note that review is a spoiler as well).
The story opens with a botched murder attempt that occurred through an induced traffic accident where the intended victim survives but another driver is killed by mistake. Afterwards the intended victim is murdered after all and it takes a while before the two seemingly unrelated events are tied together. Then yet another murder occurs. It takes a considerably amount of time for the investigators to realize that the issue of surrogacy is somehow tied into the killings. Meanwhile, on the Wexford home front, his eldest daughter Sylvia is apparently willing to be a surrogate for her ex-husband and his new wife.
I did note that the cast list on the police side is expanding considerably over the earlier books in the series. Detective Sergeant Hannah Goldsmith and Detective Constable Baljinder 'Bal' Bhattacharya play prominent roles in the investigation and have their own romantic subplot.
End in Tears continues my 2023 binge read / re-read of Ruth Rendell and this is the 20th of the Inspector Wexford series. The Kirkus Review linked below says that it is her 64th book overall. I have had to skip over Wexford #15 to #18 as I haven’t been able to source them yet.
Cover image for the original Hutchinson (UK) hardcover edition from 2005. Image sourced from Goodreads..
Wexford's Laws
Wexford’s Laws do not appear in this book. Wexford’s Law No. 6 appeared in The Babes in the Wood (2002 - Wexford #19) and Wexford’s Law No. 7 will appear in Not in the Flesh (2007 - Wexford #21). Wexford’s Laws are occasional thoughts about quirky observations made by the Chief Inspector for which he assigns a number.
Favourite Quotes
Other Reviews
Review at Just a Whisker Below State of the Art by Kirkus Reviews, July 25, 2006.
And for contrast, here is a very opposing 1 ⭐ star review (with a Spoiler) on Goodreads by Kavita at Sexist crap. Racist crap. Stereotypical clichés crap..
Trivia and no Link
End in Tears was not adapted for television as part of the Ruth Rendell / Inspector Wexford Mysteries TV series (1987-2000) as the novel was published after the series had ended.
Review of the Seal Kindle eBook edition (2010) of the original Hutchinson (UK) hardcover (October 20, 2005).
'On the face of it, he seems a respectable sort of bloke …'
‘But yet,’ said Wexford, quoting from his favourite play. “I do not like 'but yet'.” What’s wrong with him, Mike?’ - Wexford's favourite play is apparently Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra (2002) as he quotes from Act 2 Scene 5.
A 4 star rating is on a relative scale, after my being somewhat disappointed with The Babes in the Wood (2002), the previous book in the Wexford series. This one had an intriguing case and combined it with various social issues such as surrogacy. It also made for a return to favourite Wexford quotes and banter. There are some cringey bits and a rather unbelievable scam which is uncovered towards the end (see the 1-star review linked below about that, but note that review is a spoiler as well).
The story opens with a botched murder attempt that occurred through an induced traffic accident where the intended victim survives but another driver is killed by mistake. Afterwards the intended victim is murdered after all and it takes a while before the two seemingly unrelated events are tied together. Then yet another murder occurs. It takes a considerably amount of time for the investigators to realize that the issue of surrogacy is somehow tied into the killings. Meanwhile, on the Wexford home front, his eldest daughter Sylvia is apparently willing to be a surrogate for her ex-husband and his new wife.
I did note that the cast list on the police side is expanding considerably over the earlier books in the series. Detective Sergeant Hannah Goldsmith and Detective Constable Baljinder 'Bal' Bhattacharya play prominent roles in the investigation and have their own romantic subplot.
End in Tears continues my 2023 binge read / re-read of Ruth Rendell and this is the 20th of the Inspector Wexford series. The Kirkus Review linked below says that it is her 64th book overall. I have had to skip over Wexford #15 to #18 as I haven’t been able to source them yet.
Cover image for the original Hutchinson (UK) hardcover edition from 2005. Image sourced from Goodreads..
Wexford's Laws
Wexford’s Laws do not appear in this book. Wexford’s Law No. 6 appeared in The Babes in the Wood (2002 - Wexford #19) and Wexford’s Law No. 7 will appear in Not in the Flesh (2007 - Wexford #21). Wexford’s Laws are occasional thoughts about quirky observations made by the Chief Inspector for which he assigns a number.
Favourite Quotes
'I once learnt by heart something Bertrand Russell said. Let’s see if I can remember it. “The fact that an opinion has been widely held is no evidence whatever that it isn’t utterly absurd. Indeed, in view of the silliness of the majority of mankind, a widespread belief is more likely to be foolish than sensible.”'
‘It’s a funny thing’, said Wexford when they had sat down at a table in the window, ‘that everyone but the Danes call these things Danish pastries.’ ‘What do they call them, then?’ ‘Viennese bread.’
'He’s not your third murderer – sounds like something out of Macbeth, doesn’t it?' Their blank polite faces showed him that they had no idea whether it sounded like something out of Macbeth or not. It was no use lamenting the loss of poetry from the nation’s mindset. It was gone, never, he supposed, to return.
Other Reviews
Review at Just a Whisker Below State of the Art by Kirkus Reviews, July 25, 2006.
And for contrast, here is a very opposing 1 ⭐ star review (with a Spoiler) on Goodreads by Kavita at Sexist crap. Racist crap. Stereotypical clichés crap..
Trivia and no Link
End in Tears was not adapted for television as part of the Ruth Rendell / Inspector Wexford Mysteries TV series (1987-2000) as the novel was published after the series had ended.
December 14, 2015
Nigel Anthony 10 Hours 13 MinsDescription: At first there was no reason to link the killings. The first one, months earlier, seemed totally random: a lump of concrete pushed off an overpass onto a passing car. By contrast, the gruesome bludgeoning death of Amber Marshalson, returning home late from a night out clubbing with friends, was obviously calculated. The killer had been seen waiting for the girl in a nearby wood. But when Chief Inspector Wexford discovers that Amber had been the driver right behind the crushed car - and that she'd been driving a silver Honda, while the car in front of her was a gray Honda - he knows that someone wanted the teenager dead badly enough to kill twice to get the job done. And as it turns out, this murderer's plans are only just getting underway. Can Wexford unravel the complex knots that connect these murders in time to save future victims? Or is he, as he begins to fear, losing his touch and fast becoming a relic of another time?
The concrete block reminds me of Who Needs Information, which in turn was based on a tragic event in the 1984 coal strikes3* From Doon With Death (Inspector Wexford, #1)
3* A New Lease of Death (Inspector Wexford, #2)
3* Wolf to the Slaughter (Inspector Wexford, #3)
2* The Best Man to Die (Inspector Wexford, #4)
3* A Guilty Thing Suprised #5
3* No More Dying Then (Inspector Wexford, #6)
3* Murder Being Once Done (Inspector Wexford, #7)
3* Some Lie and Some Die (Inspector Wexford, #8)
3* Shake Hands Forever (Inspector Wexford, #9)
3* A Sleeping Life (Inspector Wexford, #10)
3* Put on by Cunning (Inspector Wexford #11)
1* Speaker of Mandarin (Inspector Wexford, #12)
3* An Unkindness of Ravens (Inspector Wexford, #13)
3* The Veiled One (Inspector Wexford, #14)
3* Kissing the Gunner's Daughter (Inspector Wexford, #15)
3* Road Rage (Inspector Wexford, #17)
3* Harm Done (Inspector Wexford, #18)
3* The Babes in the Wood (Inspector Wexford, #19)
3* End in Tears (Inspector Wexford, #20)
3* Not in the Flesh (Inspector Wexford, #21)
2* The Vault (Inspector Wexford, #23)
April 4, 2021
Ruth Rendell certainly was not at her best in End in Tears. Her writing in this installment reveals she was a huge step out of time with regard to feminism, sexism, racial equality, children out of wedlock, ... The constant thoughts about such things in people’s heads felt like a forced insert and completely missed the boat. It took away from the mystery which also wasn’t one of her best.
In my opinion this one was a swing and a miss.
In my opinion this one was a swing and a miss.
March 25, 2014
I really liked this book but found it a little confusing at times. There was a large number of characters. I sometimes had to go back and review who they were.
I liked the feeling I got for the small British towns and surrounding .woods. I thought her characterizations were excellent. I developed vivid images of the players in this drama.
I liked the feeling I got for the small British towns and surrounding .woods. I thought her characterizations were excellent. I developed vivid images of the players in this drama.
September 11, 2017
Well, it doesn’t, in fact, “end in tears,” but quite jollily for those we come to care about. Which is to say, the secondary characters, the ones investigating rather than committing crimes. There’s an unusually large dollop of romance this time, between a rather severely PC and judgmental police sergeant and an apparently dishy and charming fellow officer of Indian origins. The schizoidal English weather, ranging from the hottest day on record to a blizzard in November, also plays a major role. Then there’s Wexford’s highly opinionated if endearing wife (think Mrs Maguire, the vicar’s housekeeper on “Grantchester”) and his interesting daughter (the boring one is off in Bora Bora [sic!]). Sylvia seems once again to be engaged in activities that lead others into crime. In Harm Done she was assisting at a shelter for victims of spousal abuse (which proved deadly for others) and here she’s serving as surrogate for her ex-husband’s infertile wife-to-be. (How’s that for an amicable divorce?) Surrogacy and babies, both wanted and unwanted, loom large in this round of criminal pursuits, which are rather eclipsed by the less murderous, more tangential sub-plots. (I had trouble keeping the illegal acts and actors straight, in fact.) Things do get tense on the criminal, romantic, and familial sides toward the end, before Wexford steps in in the last few pages to explain to the reader and to his colleagues who had been doing what wrong to whom. More appealing, perhaps, to Wexford fans than to those literarily bent on crime alone.
March 24, 2024
I’m a big fan of Ruth Rendell and her literary alter ego Barbara Vine – between ‘them’ they penned some of the best suspense novels this side of the pond. Her detective mysteries, however, have more often left me wondering why she strayed from her forte. Perhaps Inspector Wexford became a TV hit, and that begat this interminable series.
End in Tears features the separate murders of two young women, between whom various connections are drawn. They were loosely acquainted, endured teenage pregnancies, and shared an interest in commercial surrogacy.
Motive, however, remains at best opaque.
There ensues a pedestrian round of door-knocking. Characters whom I suspect to be superfluous emerge. Peculiar back stories unfold. Wexford’s own daughter is involved in surrogacy. Two of the detectives begin an improbable and unsatisfactory affair. There is a good peppering of moral and political polemic.
I have noticed that Ruth Rendell was never the most diligent of researchers. I suspect she was able to dash off slick and skeletal tales of suspense, and rather resented the groundwork that is the foundation of a credible mystery. Here, the characters and societal themes are superficial and unconvincing, as if lifted from casual TV watching.
Moreover, suspense runs along a core linear thread; mystery requires an unfaltering attention to weaving. Here, the central plot proves not to be the plot! (Belated spoiler alert, but at least you have no idea what is coming.)
In mitigation, End in Tears was published in 2005 when the author was aged 75, some 41 years after the first Inspector Wexford novel. That is From Doon with Death (1964) – a book I have read and forgotten – but which I shall revisit to understand just why it caught on.
End in Tears features the separate murders of two young women, between whom various connections are drawn. They were loosely acquainted, endured teenage pregnancies, and shared an interest in commercial surrogacy.
Motive, however, remains at best opaque.
There ensues a pedestrian round of door-knocking. Characters whom I suspect to be superfluous emerge. Peculiar back stories unfold. Wexford’s own daughter is involved in surrogacy. Two of the detectives begin an improbable and unsatisfactory affair. There is a good peppering of moral and political polemic.
I have noticed that Ruth Rendell was never the most diligent of researchers. I suspect she was able to dash off slick and skeletal tales of suspense, and rather resented the groundwork that is the foundation of a credible mystery. Here, the characters and societal themes are superficial and unconvincing, as if lifted from casual TV watching.
Moreover, suspense runs along a core linear thread; mystery requires an unfaltering attention to weaving. Here, the central plot proves not to be the plot! (Belated spoiler alert, but at least you have no idea what is coming.)
In mitigation, End in Tears was published in 2005 when the author was aged 75, some 41 years after the first Inspector Wexford novel. That is From Doon with Death (1964) – a book I have read and forgotten – but which I shall revisit to understand just why it caught on.
June 25, 2021
I think this is the second book of hers I have read. This one was a little harder for me to interpret. I think it had more British expressions than most and so I had a problem following it. Something like shorthand. Nothing seemed fully explained and so it felt incomplete, even when it was done and all the pieces were in place. I had trouble feeling the emotions of the characters. Going to try a different one and see if it is better. She has won so many awards and prizes.
August 17, 2016
4* Going Wrong
4* The Keys to the Street
3* The Fever Tree and Other Stories
4* A Judgement in Stone
3* Fall of the Coin
4* People Don't Do Such Things
3* The Girl Next Door
2* To Fear a Painted Devil
3* Dark Corners
3* Live Flesh
Inspector Wexford series:
3* Some Lie and Some Die (Inspector Wexford, #8)
3* Shake Hands Forever (Inspector Wexford, #9)
3* A Sleeping Life (Inspector Wexford, #10)
3* The Veiled One (Inspector Wexford, #14)
4* Kissing the Gunner's Daughter (Inspector Wexford, #15)
3* Harm Done (Inspector Wexford, #18)
3* The Babes in the Wood (Inspector Wexford, #19)
3* End in Tears (Inspector Wexford, #20)
TR From Doon With Death (Inspector Wexford, #1)
TR A New Lease of Death (Inspector Wexford, #2)
TR Wolf to the Slaughter (Inspector Wexford, #3)
TR The Best Man to Die (Inspector Wexford, #4)
TR A Guilty Thing Surprised (Inspector Wexford, #5)
TR No More Dying Then (Inspector Wexford, #6)
TR Murder Being Once Done (Inspector Wexford, #7)
TR Death Notes (Inspector Wexford, #11)
TR Speaker of Mandarin (Inspector Wexford, #12)
TR An Unkindness of Ravens (Inspector Wexford, #13)
TR Simisola (Inspector Wexford, #16)
TR Road Rage (Inspector Wexford, #17)
TR Not in the Flesh (Inspector Wexford, #21)
TR The Monster in the Box (Inspector Wexford, #22)
TR The Vault (Inspector Wexford, #23)
TR No Man's Nightingale (Inspector Wexford #24)
4* The Keys to the Street
3* The Fever Tree and Other Stories
4* A Judgement in Stone
3* Fall of the Coin
4* People Don't Do Such Things
3* The Girl Next Door
2* To Fear a Painted Devil
3* Dark Corners
3* Live Flesh
Inspector Wexford series:
3* Some Lie and Some Die (Inspector Wexford, #8)
3* Shake Hands Forever (Inspector Wexford, #9)
3* A Sleeping Life (Inspector Wexford, #10)
3* The Veiled One (Inspector Wexford, #14)
4* Kissing the Gunner's Daughter (Inspector Wexford, #15)
3* Harm Done (Inspector Wexford, #18)
3* The Babes in the Wood (Inspector Wexford, #19)
3* End in Tears (Inspector Wexford, #20)
TR From Doon With Death (Inspector Wexford, #1)
TR A New Lease of Death (Inspector Wexford, #2)
TR Wolf to the Slaughter (Inspector Wexford, #3)
TR The Best Man to Die (Inspector Wexford, #4)
TR A Guilty Thing Surprised (Inspector Wexford, #5)
TR No More Dying Then (Inspector Wexford, #6)
TR Murder Being Once Done (Inspector Wexford, #7)
TR Death Notes (Inspector Wexford, #11)
TR Speaker of Mandarin (Inspector Wexford, #12)
TR An Unkindness of Ravens (Inspector Wexford, #13)
TR Simisola (Inspector Wexford, #16)
TR Road Rage (Inspector Wexford, #17)
TR Not in the Flesh (Inspector Wexford, #21)
TR The Monster in the Box (Inspector Wexford, #22)
TR The Vault (Inspector Wexford, #23)
TR No Man's Nightingale (Inspector Wexford #24)
November 19, 2023
Excellent plot. A wonderful red herring right from the beginning. Wexford is investigating the murder of two young women and a third woman mistakenly killed. What is the connection? Surrogacy, money or something else.
The victims are not likable. The suspects are eventually identified and in parallel Wexford’s daughter Sylvia is having a baby for her ex husband and new girlfriend. The two plots overlap with questions of a woman’s desire for a baby.
SPOILERS AHEAD
In the end there were two murderers. The twin brothers Rick and Ross. Rick the hapless who murders first the wrong person and is seen. Then he kills Amber but Megan who saw and linked Rick to the first murdered victim. She then tries to blackmail Ross who kills her. The twist is Diana the stepmother of Amber is having an affair with Ross who is persuaded by Diana to kill Amber. The motive so she can keep Brand, Amber’s child. A good twist.
The victims are not likable. The suspects are eventually identified and in parallel Wexford’s daughter Sylvia is having a baby for her ex husband and new girlfriend. The two plots overlap with questions of a woman’s desire for a baby.
SPOILERS AHEAD
In the end there were two murderers. The twin brothers Rick and Ross. Rick the hapless who murders first the wrong person and is seen. Then he kills Amber but Megan who saw and linked Rick to the first murdered victim. She then tries to blackmail Ross who kills her. The twist is Diana the stepmother of Amber is having an affair with Ross who is persuaded by Diana to kill Amber. The motive so she can keep Brand, Amber’s child. A good twist.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 4, 2017
I love Rendell's mysteries, and the Wexford series in particular. The best thing is that you do not need to read them in order, as there is very little backstory, and what there is she covers again for anyone unfamiliar. This story is about a young mother, still living in her dad's house, who is more interested in partying than in being a mom, finishing school, or getting a job. One morning she is found dead, successfully murdered after at least one failed attempt. Very engrossing mystery - Highly recommend any of the Wexford stories!
March 29, 2020
Inspector Wexford case 20: An average Wexford case - centred around crimes committed for and around children, covering surrogacy, teenage pregnancies, women who can't have kids and a few related murders! An OK read, nothing special. 4 out of 12.
December 6, 2021
It seems a bit odd to rate this lower than any instalment in the hilariously clunky “Railway Detective” series of whodunnits, given that Rendell is an astute observer and a very smooth writer… but this one had at its heart such a catalogue of implausibility that it was just too hard to swallow.
Some nicely drawn characters and intriguing early plot developments can’t make up for the silliness that is revealed. And I’m not the first person to be irritated by DS Hannah Goldsmith, who is just too much of a caricature of a PC PC.
Some nicely drawn characters and intriguing early plot developments can’t make up for the silliness that is revealed. And I’m not the first person to be irritated by DS Hannah Goldsmith, who is just too much of a caricature of a PC PC.
May 19, 2017
Tedious, meandering, improbable plot. With a side helping of an obsessively politically correct straw woman for no reason. She learns her lesson by getting kidnapped and rescued and then we get about ten pages of Wexford explaining the plot, in multiple locations, with coffee breaks. He makes some deep point about the nature of true evil, but everyone is asleep at this point and the book is finally over.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 12, 2019
I hoped it would be good, was hoping to be into it to begin with but when it all unravelled I got bored. Characters were odd, stereotypical, strange views for no reason, odd fixations with sexist/racist stereotypes? Story wasn't the clever rabbit from hat thing i was keen for, it was more like present the hat, then take the audience to pets @ home, have them help u pick out a rabbit, lend u 20 quid for it cos ur wallets in the car, ask them to hold your wand whilst you shove it in the hat. Et Voila, magic etc.
Nah
Nah
November 6, 2008
END IN TEARS (Pol Proc-CI Wexford, England-Cont) – Okay
Rendell, Ruth - 21st in series
Crown Publishers, 2005, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780307339768
First sentence: When he lifted it off the seat the backpack felt heavier than when he had first put it into the car.
Chief Inspector Wexford and team are investigating the bludgeoning death of 17-year-old Amber Marshalson. The case takes on an extra dimension when they realize Amber was the actual intended victim when a piece of concrete had been dropped from an overpass onto the first two grey/silver Hondas a short time before. Who wants Amber dead so badly when they failed the first time, they tried again…and succeeded.
I found this a bit of a slow-go. I liked C.I. Wexford but really didn’t care much for any of the other characters, of which there were many with very little dimension. DS Hannah Goldsmith is interesting in her compulsive PC-ness, but annoying for the very same reason. Way too much time was spent on her relationship with another officer for the narrative result.
The story was over plotted; I identified the instigator of the deaths quite early. Most annoying to me was the number of women who became pregnant after one encounter. In my life, I’ve only known one person for whom that was true and certainly not several within a short period of time. It was much too contrived.
So much of the book was involved in dealing with the various relationships and following red herrings in the investigation, the ending, when it finally came, was very abrupt with only a modicum of suspense. I found it a very slow read; not bad enough to make me want to quit, but not good enough to race through the pages. The best I can say is, “I read it.”
Rendell, Ruth - 21st in series
Crown Publishers, 2005, US Hardcover – ISBN: 9780307339768
First sentence: When he lifted it off the seat the backpack felt heavier than when he had first put it into the car.
Chief Inspector Wexford and team are investigating the bludgeoning death of 17-year-old Amber Marshalson. The case takes on an extra dimension when they realize Amber was the actual intended victim when a piece of concrete had been dropped from an overpass onto the first two grey/silver Hondas a short time before. Who wants Amber dead so badly when they failed the first time, they tried again…and succeeded.
I found this a bit of a slow-go. I liked C.I. Wexford but really didn’t care much for any of the other characters, of which there were many with very little dimension. DS Hannah Goldsmith is interesting in her compulsive PC-ness, but annoying for the very same reason. Way too much time was spent on her relationship with another officer for the narrative result.
The story was over plotted; I identified the instigator of the deaths quite early. Most annoying to me was the number of women who became pregnant after one encounter. In my life, I’ve only known one person for whom that was true and certainly not several within a short period of time. It was much too contrived.
So much of the book was involved in dealing with the various relationships and following red herrings in the investigation, the ending, when it finally came, was very abrupt with only a modicum of suspense. I found it a very slow read; not bad enough to make me want to quit, but not good enough to race through the pages. The best I can say is, “I read it.”
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February 5, 2009Ruth Rendell's quality work is both a blessing and a curse. With over 20 Wexford novels__and an even greater number outside the series and under her pseudonym Barbara Vine__reviewers have had ample opportunity to relish her characterizations and get wise to her narrative proclivities. Here they identify a case of the strengths of Rendell's writing (characterization and the use of metaphor) playing second fiddle to the contrivances of a thriller. Plot twists abound for those into neck-snapping plots, but most critics agree that Rendell is at her best when she foregoes narrative theatrics and focuses on the metaphoric parallels between plot and theme. End in Tears is not bad, but isn't great either__and for a writer of Rendell's status, just good doesn't seem to be good enough.
This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine.
September 26, 2014
Για την Ρουθ Ρέντελ έχω ανάμεικτα συναισθήματα. Το πρώτο της βιβλίο που διάβασα η ''Τυφλή ετυμηγορία'' αν και έλεγαν ότι ήταν αστυνομικό - που δεν ήταν - παραμένει ένα από τα καλύτερα ψυχολογικά θρίλερ που έχω διαβάσει και το θυμάμαι με κάθε λεπτομέρεια αν και έχουν περάσει πια 17 χρόνια. ''Η κούκλα που σκοτώνει'' ήταν μια σκληρή απογοήτευση μια και είναι ένα από τα χειρότερα αστυνομικά που έχω διαβάσει. Αυτό που μου την έσπαγε πιο πολύ όμως ήταν που την συνέκριναν με την Άγκαθα Κρίστι. Έτσι πέρασαν χρόνια μέχρι να πιάσω δικό της βιβλίο και τελικά βρέθηκα μπροστα σε μια ευχάριστη έκπληξη. Το ''Πικρό τέλος'' είναιένα ευχάριστα κλασικό whodunit με σωστή δόση μυστηρίου, με πλοκή και χαρακτήρες άψογα δομημένους. Το σκορ λοιπόν είναι 2-1 για να δούμε το ''Πορτομπέλο'' θα καθορίσει το αποτέλεσμα.
September 12, 2012
I started this book on audio CD and finished by reading it. I'm not sure if the first half is much better than the last half or if it is just more a satisfying book when consumed by listening to John Lee voice the characters. Hearing the accents of various characters made them more enjoyable.
The mystery unfolds over several months which is a nice change of pace for the usual fiction where the mystery is solved in about 3 days.
A number of interlocking stories about changing moral standards and infertility were rather interesting at first but I found some of the characters so implausible that it was hard to remain engaged in the book.
The mystery unfolds over several months which is a nice change of pace for the usual fiction where the mystery is solved in about 3 days.
A number of interlocking stories about changing moral standards and infertility were rather interesting at first but I found some of the characters so implausible that it was hard to remain engaged in the book.
May 28, 2018
Fabulous. One of the best of the Wexford series. The murder mystery itself is great, and the side stories about Sylvia and about Bal and Hannah are also great.
This is my second time through this one (this time as an audiobook, last time as a paperback). It's dawned on me that the subplots about Sylvia are better than those about Sheila. I've been reading about this family for more than 20 years, and yet I learn new things about them with each re-read.
This is my second time through this one (this time as an audiobook, last time as a paperback). It's dawned on me that the subplots about Sylvia are better than those about Sheila. I've been reading about this family for more than 20 years, and yet I learn new things about them with each re-read.
August 27, 2010
Ruth Rendell at her worst is better than most. This was middling for Rendell, which is to say, not a bad book. I found the ultra PC detective sargeant a bit annoying, and I didn't care for the way the multiple storylines all climaxed together, but overall enjoyed it.
April 20, 2020
Average detective story with too many suspects and too much time spent on the developing relationship between two of the police officers.
July 12, 2018
This is atmospheric and well-written: Rendell uses her skill at evoking landscape and weather, and readers'/characters' long familiarity with Kingsmarkham and its changing social environment, to good effect. That said, I felt the denouement of the mystery itself to be less than fully satisfactory, especially given the skillful way in which it was built up and the players introduced. I would have liked more exploration of the savagely topical allusions to Ibsen and the Bible. And (as not infrequently in Rendell's novels, I find) I was left somewhat unsettled by her treatment of gender as biological and social phenomenon. I'm not entirely sure what she thinks about it, which feels strange when dealing with a writer who is so skilled at precise communication of ideas and impressions.
February 15, 2023
This one was a point in time where these matters must have been more favourably considered but it was quite racist and not particularly kind to women which made it a bit of a tough read. Definitely better options by this author to consider
December 25, 2018
The almost cliche explanation at the end is rather disappointing.
October 2, 2022
Good way to spend a long weekend but ending was a bit hastily wrapped up for my taste
July 26, 2023
A 17 year old girl is killed near her home on the way back from a night club with 1000 pounds in her pocket and a complex mystery emerges.
September 18, 2021
Niet haar gewone niveau. Het verhaal is verwarrend en er zitten nogal bruuske sprongen. Het hele boek is pok doordrenkt van afkeuring voor mensen uit de lagere klassen, losbandige meisjes, draagmoederschap en zo voort. Nogal storend.
October 28, 2020
I found this, my first Ruth Rendell hard to get my head round but I will try another.
August 22, 2022
A very good read, though at times it was hard to follow!
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