The Girl Next Door (Rendell novel) explained

Author:Ruth Rendell
Isbn:978-1-4767-8432-8
Pub Date:4 November 2014
Publisher:Scribner

The Girl Next Door is a 2014 novel by British crime author Ruth Rendell.[1] [2] [3] It was the last of her novels published in her lifetime.[4]

Plot

During World War II, a group of children in Loughton, Essex, United Kingdom, which is where Rendell herself grew up, play in tunnels (in reality, the foundations of an uncompleted house) they discovered under a hill. In the present day they are reunited after the discovery of two hands in a tin box when the tunnels are dug up for construction work.[5] The novel deals frankly with changes and interrelationships of the characters and social changes generally, over seven decades.

Critical reception

In a review in The Observer, it was noted that instead of focusing on the crime, the novel dealt with the lives of the now elderly people in the present.[6]

In Marilyn Stasio's review for The New York Times, the novel's effective use of a split time frame was noted.[7]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 17 September 2014 . The Girl Next Door . 20 August 2024 . . 3 May 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230503074933/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ruth-rendell/girl-next-door-rendell/ . live .
  2. Web site: 2014-08-18 . The Girl Next Door by Ruth Rendell . 2024-08-21 . . 1 March 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240301144528/https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781476784328 . live .
  3. Web site: Zvirin . Stephanie . 2014-09-01 . The Girl Next Door . 2024-08-20 . . 25 March 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170325064323/https://www.booklistonline.com/The-Girl-Next-Door-Ruth-Rendell/pid=6963524 . live .
  4. News: The best of Ruth Rendell: 10 to read, watch and listen to. Jake Kerridge. 2 May 2015. The Daily Telegraph. 9 July 2015. 5 July 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220705171804/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/11579278/The-best-of-Ruth-Rendell-10-to-read-watch-and-listen-to.html. live.
  5. News: The Girl Next Door by Ruth Rendell, book review: Author's latest mystery doesn't shy away from uncomfortable subject matter. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/the-girl-next-door-by-ruth-rendell-book-review-authors-latest-mystery-doesnt-shy-away-from-uncomfortable-subject-matter-9654385.html . 18 June 2022 . subscription . live. Jane Jakeman. 7 August 2014. The Independent. 9 July 2015.
  6. News: The Girl Next Door review – Ruth Rendell's acute investigation of old age. Hazelton. Claire. 14 September 2014. The Observer. Guardian Media Group. 26 September 2015. 30 September 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210930162548/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/14/girl-next-door-ruth-rendell-review-death-from-a-different-angle. live.
  7. News: Michael Connelly's 'Burning Room,' and More. The New York Times. 31 October 2014. Stasio. Marilyn.

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