The fiction of Ruth Rendell

Aside from Ruth Rendell's brilliance as a fiction writer, and her appeal to mystery lovers, her books portray a compelling, universal experience that her readers can immediately relate to, the intra-familial stresses generated by the nuclear family. Even those who experience the joys of family life will find in Rendell the conflicts that arise among members of the closest families. Barbara Fass Leavy analyzes the multilevel treatment of these themes in Rendell's works.