Not in the Flesh: A Wexford Novel (Chief Inspector Wexford Mysteries)
by Ruth Rendell
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ruth RendellEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-06-10
ISBN: 0307406814
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Crown
Book Reviews of Not in the Flesh: A Wexford Novel (Chief Inspector Wexford Mysteries)
Book Review: Back in the company of Inspector Wexford
Summary: 5 Stars
I've been pretty hard on Ruth Rendell lately. I miss the startling acid observations in her earlier psychological thrillers and their wicked plot twists. I miss her writing as Barbara Vine, under which she produces her best work. After spending several decades in her company, I think I've gotten greedy and for that I'm sorry.
The worst Ruth Rendell is better than the best of many of her contemporaries (P.D. James excepted) and this above-average Wexford mystery is a very nicely done book. It has a Christie-ish feel to it and that's not a bad thing. In fact, English country murders are a wonderful tradition and I'm glad to see this one come along. It starts and ends with a truffle-sniffing dog, which is an education unto itself, and progresses along a path that takes us into the company and homes of some of the best and worst people you can expect in an English country village. Two bodies, two murders, possibly related but possibly years apart are at the heart of the book and there is an especially tough subplot where Wexford becomes acquainted with female genital mutilation as a cultural practice carried over by African immigrants.
Rendell has done her homework here and does not flinch as she takes on this most difficult of subjects. This isn't a wonderful Rendell but it is a very good read and a genuine education in the process. Sometimes that is plenty enough. And oh, by the way, I just found out that a Barbara Vine book entitled The Birthday Present is due out later this year. Can't wait!
Summary of Not in the Flesh: A Wexford Novel (Chief Inspector Wexford Mysteries)
A new Chief Inspector Wexford mystery from the author who Time magazine has called ?the best mystery writer in the English-speaking world.?When the truffle-hunting dog starts to dig furiously, his master?s first reaction is delight at the size of the clump the dog has unearthed: at the going rate, this one truffle might be worth several hundred pounds. Then the dirt falls away to reveal not a precious mushroom but the bones and tendons of what is clearly a human hand.
In Not in the Flesh, Chief Inspector Wexford tries to piece together events that took place eleven years earlier, a time when someone was secretly interred in a secluded patch of English countryside. Now Wexford and his team will need to interrogate everyone who lives nearby to see if they can turn up a match for the dead man among the eighty-five people in this part of England who have disappeared over the past decade. Then, when a second body is discovered nearby, Wexford experiences a feeling that?s become a rarity for the veteran policeman: surprise.
As Wexford painstakingly moves to resolve these multiple mysteries, long-buried secrets are brought to daylight, and Ruth Rendell once again proves why she has been hailed as our greatest living mystery writer.
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