The Keys to the Street

Discovering Ruth Rendell late must be like discovering Mozart late: any regrets for time wasted are overwhelmed by the pleasure of having so many treats to choose from. She writes mysteries about Inspector Wexford and suspense thrillers about what happens when people's lives accidently collide. This new book falls into the thriller category: in the first few pages we meet a large group of people living in and around London's Regents Park. There are the homeless, whose hardships are added to when a murderer begins to decimate their ranks; a barely-restrained lunatic who works as a dog-walker; a drug dealer and his violent helper; and Rendell's central character, Mary Jago, a gentle young woman whose courageous charity brings her lots of trouble. The best recent Wexford mystery is Simisola; other recommended Rendells include: From Doon With Death, The Tree of Hands, An Unkindness of Ravens and The Brimstone Wedding (written under her Barbara Vine alter ego).

London's wealthiest, poorest, kindest, and most vicious citizens all cross paths in Regents Park. Quiet, pretty Mary Jago could never have suspected that a series of unspeakable murders in the park contained threads that tangled around her simple, ordinary life.