Dark Corners

"Dark Corners is written in a deceptively simple manner, and at times it reads like a twisted fairytale.It leaves an uneasiness behind like a dark stain on the consciousness ...The violence of Dark Corners is the violence that stems from the mundane and the ordinary, and it is all the more frightening because of that" (The Independent)

"[A] mesmeric book. Carl Martin's ill-considered actions lead to a friend's death, blackmail and, ultimately, murder. It's a felicitous last hurrah for Rendell" (The Independent)

"Everything that makes Rendell's work so memorable―gothic but believable people and plots, simple yet vivid prose, peerlessly rendered settings, and fear and despair as the twin ‘parents’ of violence―is in evidence here." (Publishers Weekly)

"Another of Rendell’s penetrating studies of ordinary people trapped in extraordinary circumstances...her countless admirers will seize on it with delight" (Literary Review)

"Cunningly wrought...a triumph... the ending is perfect – a fitting full stop at the end of a great career" (Mail on Sunday)

When Carl sells a box of slimming pills to his close friend Stacey, inadvertently causing her death, he sets in train a sequence of catastrophic events which begin with subterfuge, extend to lies, and culminate in murder. In Rendell's dark and atmospheric tale of psychological suspense, we encounter mistaken identity, kidnap, blackmail, and a cast of characters who are so real that we come to know them better than we know ourselves. Infused with her distinctive blend of wry humour, acute observation and deep humanity, this is Rendell at her most memorable and best.