AKICILJ, the mystery edition

[mrissa]

My library has eighty-four listings for Ruth Rendell books (and audio recordings). Even ruling out that there are some duplicated in different formats, that's a lot to choose from. What I've read so far: Means of Evil and Other Stories and Talking to Strange Men. I was particularly impressed with the latter. Any Rendell fans have particular opinions about where I should go next?

Comments

[papersky.livejournal.com]

If you like Talking to Strange Men, which is one of the best, you will probably also like Going Wrong, Live Flesh and The Tree of Hands. I tend to think of those ones as going together somehow.

Of other things not already mentioned, the Vine novel Grasshopper is particularly good, though not if reading about people urban climbing might upset your vertigo.

Essentially, Rendell started off writing reasonable mysteries, and I think from thinking a lot about why people would do these things, got really good at writing about people. Her early books are fine, but her later ones are a whole other thing.

The Wexford ones tend to be gentler and more ongoing. I like them too.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Thanks, that's very helpful.