Ruth Rendell is so ubiquitously associated with the crime novel in the UK that it’s easy to write her off as just another best selling author and forget what an excellent writer she is. Though the ending of this book was a little tangled up and the solutions to the minor mysteries got a little lost in the unveiling of the major mystery it didn’t really detract from an excellent plot. There were a lot of characters to keep straight and if I’d read it at a slower pace I might have got irritated and forgetful. On the whole avery enjoyable read.