From AudioFile
Inez Ferry owns an antique shop in Paddington and rents flats to an assortment of working-class characters, each with something to hide. A serial murderer is loose in London, and the police suspect the killer is living in Inez's house. After mystery master Ruth Rendell reveals the murderer, however, the plot loses much of its dramatic tension. Nigel Anthony's performance reflects his understanding of human frailty and diversity. He is completely credible as the plodding cops, the murderer who wallows in introspection, the shop assistant who is deceiving several suitors, the childlike man with Fragile X syndrome, and the spinster who seeks solace in the bottle. Each individual's story is etched with inimitable finesse. While this is not her best, even middling Rendell will ensnare first-time listeners and fans alike. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Review
“Ruth Rendell has written some of the best novels of the twentieth century.” —Frances Fyfield

“Rendell’s clear, shapely prose casts the mesmerizing spell of the confessional.” —The New Yorker

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"The first young woman murdered had a bite mark on her neck, prompting the media to dub her killer "The Rottweiler." As the number of killings grows to two, three, and beyond, that nickname sticks, even though it has become clear that the original bite was incidental. The Rottweiler is a serial garroter, distinguished by his habit of taking a small trinket from each victim as a macabre souvenir." The strangled young women all lived in the same ethnically diverse London neighborhood near Lisson Grove, so it is here that the police focus their investigation. Soon their suspicions lead them to an antiques shop, where items taken from the victims start turning up amid the clutter. As we get acquainted with the odd assortment of characters who work in and pass through the shop, we sense that one of them will be the Rottweiler's next victim... unless the meticulous killer makes an uncharacteristic mistake.

FROM THE CRITICS

Janet Maslin - The New York Times

The Rottweiler is an especially sure-handed mystery novel from Ruth Rendell, arriving 40 years after the publication of her first one. Though it has the infelicitous name of a dog, this book is more of a cat-and-mouse affair. Ms. Rendell does an especially neat job of toying with the reader.

Library Journal

A killer called the Rottweiller (you get the picture) steals trinkets from his victims that start turning up in a little London antiques shop. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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