The Rottweiler

by Ruth Rendell

ONE LINE SUMMARY: The people who pass through an antiques shop have close ties to a serial killer in London, nicknamed The Rottweiler.

On page 2 of this 339 page book, I made my first and only guess as to who the killer was. (It was the sentence, “Carefully, he replaced his cup and saucer on the tray.” Somehow the word “carefully” made me suspicious.)

On page 104, Rendell tells us who the killer is. I was right. I was also so surprised to be told about the killer that I continued reading the rest of the book only because I was wondering whether she was going to do something else surprising. She didn’t.

I didn’t really enjoy this. I didn’t see the point of being told who the killer was, and his figuring out why he killed was uninteresting. Nothing really happens, even with the inclusion of a chapter at the end quickly summarizing what happens with all the characters. Ho-hum.

Posted by: ssjane | May 26, 2005 | 1:05 pm
Posted in: Books | Mystery/Thriller