From Doon with Death: The First Inspector Wexford Novel (Mortalis.) | Ruth Rendell

From Doon with Death: The First Inspector Wexford Novel (Mortalis.) | Ruth Rendell | Enter Inspector Wexford

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From Doon with Dea...

	From Doon with Death: The First Inspector Wexford Novel (Mortalis.) Ruth Rendell Ballantine Books, 2007 - 240 pages average customer review:based on 14 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Dazzling psychological suspense. Razor-sharp dialogue. Plots that catch and hold like a noose. These are the hallmarks of crime legend Ruth Rendell, ?the best mystery writer in the English-speaking world? (Time magazine). From Doon with Death, now in a striking new paperback edition, is her classic debut novel -- and the book that introduced one of the most popular sleuths of the twentieth century.

There is nothing extraordinary about Margaret Parsons, a timid housewife in the quiet town of Kingsmarkham, a woman devoted to her garden, her kitchen, her husband. Except that Margaret Parsons is dead, brutally strangled, her body abandoned in the nearby woods.

Who would kill someone with nothing to hide? Inspector Wexford, the formidable chief of police, feels baffled -- until he discovers Margaret's dark secret: a trove of rare books, each volume breathlessly inscribed by a passionate lover identified only as Doon. As Wexford delves deeper into both Mrs. Parsons? past and the wary community circling round her memory like wolves, the case builds with relentless momentum to a surprise finale as clever as it is blindsiding.

In From Doon with Death, Ruth Rendell instantly mastered the form that would become synonymous with her name. Chilling, richly characterized, and ingeniously constructed, this is psychological suspense at its very finest.

?One of the most remarkable novelists of her generation.? ?People

?She has transcended her genre by her remarkable imaginative power to explore and illuminate the dark corners of the human psyche.? ?P.D. James

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For Starters ...

Starters is the British term for appetizers. And, as the first in the Inspector Wexford series, Rendell does, indeed, present a fine appetizer. FROM DOON WITH DEATH was published in 1964.

I got a list of the titles and publication dates of the Wexford books and am hoping to read/reread them in order. I've read a couple published in the 1980's and can see a gorwth/progression with the characters. Reading through the whole series should be fun.

Rendell is a masterful mystery writer who does extraordinary things with rather ordinary characters -all in the great Brittish tradition ... and FROM DOON WITH DEATH gets things off to a great start(er)!

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Enter Inspector Wexford

"From Doon with Death" is Ruth Rendell's introduction of Inspector Reg Wexford, sidekick Sgt. Burden and the town of Kingsmarkam. All in all, it's a very good detective story with indications of the darker directions that Rendell would take the Wexford series and other books in subsequent years. For Rendell fans, there's a terrific essay on all of her work--almost to date--by critic Daniel Mallory that is almost worth the price of the book by itself.

Kept me guessing from first page to the last

This is the first in the Wexford series and, I understand, Rendell's first novel. From the first page, the reader is dying to know who Doon and Minna are and how they relate to the murder of a reportedly plain and uninteresting woman. It wasn't until I neared the end that I was able to guess at any part of the solution. The tension and pace of this novel is just right -- amazing, especially for a first novel. One of the things I like best is that it hasn't been padded with the filler to which most writers resort in order to produce a 300-page book. In this shorter novel, every word counts and is worth reading. Now how often can you say that?

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Enough to draw me into the series

It has probably been over a decade since I read a mystery novel. The main fact that drew me to this title was that Douglas Adams, my favorite author, listed Ruth Rendell as one of his favorite authors. The general consensus seems to be that this is not one of Rendell's finer works (the biographical section at the end of my edition states as much), but that, being her debut in the series, this fact can be forgiven. Nonetheless, I admired this story. It served its purpose as a mystery, shifting my suspicions of guilt from one character to the next and forcing me to read slowly so as not to overlook a single detail.

What caught my attention more, though, was Rendell's writing style: her careful choice of words that was intelligent without seeming pompous, her attention to detail as she made this world appeal to--or offend, as the case may be--every sense, and the depth and perceptiveness she injected into her characters in realms ranging from love to literature to fashion. Inspector Wexford, himself, seems much more human, down-to-earth, and fallible than the stereotypical sleuth, and from what I've read about the series, Rendell was barely scratching the surface of his character at this point as she didn't yet clearly envision turning this into a series.

I just finished this book today and already decided to purchase the first four through Amazon, not just based on my enjoyment of this book (I really liked it but wasn't blown away), but because it sounds like there's a great leap in quality by book two, Wolf to the Slaughter. I'm giving my current copy away for someone else to read.

I rated this book as it compares with my exposure to literature in general, not, obviously, as it compares with other Rendell novels. Recommended.

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Introduction to Rendell and Wexford

From Doon with Death: The First Inspector Wexford Novel, by Ruth Rendell is a pretty decent murder mystery. I have had Ms. Rendell on my "to read" list for a long while. I finally read the book after having read numerous professional reviews of the author being one of the best in the genre. I must say that the book itself was rather average. However, as a fan of British mystery series, I know that it takes several novels for a character to grow and develop. I will certainly read on and try to enjoy the other Wexford novels. As to the story itself, there is an interesting mystery with some memorable characters. I was able to figure out the "who" in the "who done it" a little early than usual.

This is a three star book that seemingly only beckons at the greatness that purportedly follows.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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