Synopsis: A lonely young man sells his soul to the devil so that he will grow tall, but it’s his troubled sister who falls under the sway of the occult. Review: The Killing Doll is an odd little book, with more horror elements than can usually be found in a Ruth Rendell crime novel. I’m [...]

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Synopsis: Convinced her sister murdered their stepfather, a young woman unravels when her relationship ends while her sister’s flourishes, and she wonders whether she should finally tell. Review: The Water’s Lovely is one of Ruth Rendell’s quieter books, with a fineness to it despite the emotional (and sometimes physical) violence that lurks in most of [...]

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Synopsis: A bereft woman’s mother’s desperate act triggers a violent spiral affecting a whole community. Review: The Tree of Hands was lesser Ruth Rendell. It dates back to 1986 and she’s really grown as a writer since then. It definitely has her trademark nuanced characterizations but the story wasn’t as gripping as later works like [...]

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Heather at Errant Dreams came up with a wonderful meme–enjoy & consider yourself tagged! * Answer the questions as you see fit. Although they’re all phrased to ask about a singular author, feel free to respond with multiples, or even a list. * Where possible & convenient (you don’t have to go as crazy as [...]

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Picked this meme up from Melanie, in honor of two YA books I read for work this weekend. The goal of this is to list favourite authors according to last name (with a representative fave book as well). Atwood, Margaret — Cat’s Eye Bronte, Charlotte — Jane Eyre Card, Orson Scott — Ender’s Game Dragonwagon, [...]

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From Booking Through Thursday: It’s an old question, but a good one . . . What were your favorite books this year? List as many as you like … fiction, non-fiction, mystery, romance, science-fiction, business, travel, cookbooks … whatever the category. But, really, we’re all dying to know. What books were the highlight of your [...]

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I mentioned that I had to go on maternity leave for my reading jobs, so my On Reading posts will no longer mean that I read a book for work. I could be a stickler for consistency and just stop doing them, but they’re just too much fun–especially when I catch the fever for a [...]

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Synopsis: After his release from prison, a troubled man befriends the man he crippled, and awakens his demons with tragic result. Review: Though strong in characterization (as always), Live Flesh doesn’t hold up as one of Ruth Rendell’s strongest. On its publication in 1986, I’m sure it made much more of an impact, but in [...]

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Synopsis: Hired to be an au pair to a schizophrenic man, a Swedish girl watches as interfamilial tensions come to a boiling point, with deadly results. Review: Barbara Vine (the alter ego of best-selling crime novelist Ruth Rendell) has carved out a niche as deft portrayer of tightly interwoven groups of people who are all [...]

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In the comments thread for Will the Series be Unbroken, Brad & Imani‘s insights made me realize that I was thinking of series in a very limited way. I was only considering a series as having the following criteria: Set in the same world Recurring characters A forward-moving story that aims for cohesiveness across multiple [...]

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