Wolf to the Slaughter (Book Review)

Ruth Rendell Wolf to the Slaughter (1967) A woman disappears, her gormless artist brother has no idea where she’s gone, and several odd events suggest murder. Burden and Wexford sort it out, of course. As usual with Rendell, the investigation stirs up trouble for the people involved. She has a sharp eye for vice and weakness; she notes how circumstance and character lead us all into more less devious and deviant paths. None of the characters evoke much sympathy. This is an early Wexford, Rendell is still discovering the character. There are no hints of most the backstory we know from the later books. The solution is a surprise, and the only unsatisfactory aspect of this novel. It fits the available evidence and facts, in that limited sense it’s plausible. It’s even inevitable, given the personality of the killer. But it somehow doesn’t ring true: the murderer seems to be invented to fit the crime. **½