The Crocodile Bird

When I read the back cover of the book, it really did not seem that interesting to me. I started reading the book because I had heard good things about Ruth Rendell, and wanted to "check out" the author. I was very pleasantly surprised. First of all, Ruth Rendell is an excellent writer. I have read so many books that are really so-so when it comes to the author's ability to construct complex and descriptive prose. This is not one of them. There is amazing character development, and although the book tells the story of a very unusual life, I felt the author was able to tell the story in such a way as to make the reader understand the lifestyle. Secondly, this book is a departure from so many tales that are really interchangable. The story was unique, and interesting. I could summarize the book, but doing so would not do justice to the storyline. A summary simply cannot encapsulate the story. The story is in the telling, not the tale. Lastly, I could not anticipate with certainty how the book would end. More than once I thought to myself, "Ok, I can see where this is going. . .," and I was wrong. It is refreshing to truly wonder HOW the events will unfold, instead of wondering WHEN the events will unfold. I look forward to reading another Ruth Rendell book.

This is another taut, well-written psychological thriller by the queen of this genre. The author weaves a compelling tapestry of events and characters, and, as the story unfolds, the reader is held in its thrall. Fans of the author will find this spellbinding tale riveting. Eve and Liza, mother and daughter, live in isolation in a remote location in the English countryside, where Eve acts as caretaker for Shrove House, a large estate, to which she has an extreme attachment. Liza has lived her entire life on the estate, removed from the outside world with little or no contact with other people. She was also home schooled by her mother. Consequently, Liza, removed from all normal congress with other people, has never known what it is to have a playmate nor was she aware of the existence of television or radio. The only people with whom she has ever come into contact, other than the occasional delivery person or estate worker, were the men, friends of Eve, who arrived at their home only to disappear later under mysterious circumstances. The Shrove House estate is owned by Jonathan Tobias, a childhood friend of Eve's, and when he suddenly dies, the police question Eve concerning his death, as she is a suspect. Liza, now sixteen, begins to see her world crumble around her. Eve, fearing the worst, concocts a plan for Liza to leave home and go to stay with a friend of hers. Liza, however, who has, unbeknownst to Eve, formed an attachment to Sean, the new young groundskeeper for the estate, has her own plans. Thus, the story begins to unfold. Unburdening herself to Sean and revealing her strange upbringing and the odd goings on in her mother's household, Liza proves herself to be a modern day Scheherazade. Holding the reader captive with the story of her life, which is set against the backdrop of her mother's obsession with Shrove House and the murders that take place there whenever anyone threatens to upset her mother's apple cart, Liza's story is, indeed, a beguiling one. While telling her tale, Liza finds herself discovering a world that she never knew existed. Liza eventually finds herself at a crossroad, and the path she takes will define the rest of her life.

Ruth Rendell is one the living stars of modern British detective fiction. But she is also, in other books, the direct continuator of Dickens with a social and highly psychological inspiration.In this book, the main heroin is completely trapped by life. At first by her mother. Then by the mansion her mother is in love with. Then by her first love-at-first-sight boyfriend.The book is the full story of this imprisonment and how she will manage to get free. The ending is absolutely unpredictable and it comes after the heroin has cajoled and caressed all other possible exits, either partial, total or just thE continuation of her mother's life and obsession.What is best in this book is the way the story is told. We are constantly shifting from the time when the story is told, to the past and even the distant past. The tortuous line enables us to enjoy every single chapter as a whole and then the book as an absolutely clever construction that does not reveal us the end before the last three pages.A must also for those who are interested in the psychology of women in our age of their liberation. It is very well done and very finely analyzed.Dr Jacques COULARDEAU

Along with Tree of Hands, this is my favorite work by Ruth Rendell. She is such a gifted novelist and talented writer. The first time through this book, I was totally captivated by the artistry of her presentation and the intriguing-ness of the plot. I can't believe that one professional reviewer found it slow. I was totally gripped as the story progeressed and completely unsure about what would happen. I feared the worst and thought the whole thing had been set up brilliantly. Everything about this was great in my opinion: the mystery, the characterizations, the captivating setting. I've reread it just to see the artistry. There's much here of the passion of physical love and how parents can hurt their children and the resilience of a gifted human spirit. The characterizations are real and not contrived. This is so much better than just about any other mystery writer, it's in a class of it's own. Fine and moving literature.

i will never understand why rendell doesn't have a bigger following in this country. her characters are so much better drawn than anything found in a john grisham novel, and she's no slouch with a plot, either. in this book, she creates one of the most compelling mother/daughter relationships i've ever read, and the character of liza has stayed with me since i first read the book in 1994. everyone out there reading grisham, turow and cornwell, please, please read one rendell book.....you won't believe the difference!'