Synopses & Reviews
From the 1997 winner of The Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Award -- the most prestigious Edgar of them all -- comes a new Chief Inspector Wexford mystery novel which pits Wexford against the environmental terrorists who kidnap his wife.
As "Road Rage" begins, Chief Inspector Wexford is walking through Framhurst Great Wood, just outside his beloved town of Kingsmarkham, for what he tells himself will be the last time. He can no longer bear to look at the natural beauty that will soon be despoiled by the construction of a new highway. Wexford rather despairs of the project; his more sanguine wife, Dora, is active on a committee to save the threatened land. Others are more desperate to achieve their end, and their means include the taking of hostages, including Dora, and the threat to begin murdering them.
How Wexford and his dedicated team of police officers race against time to learn the identity of the kidnappers and discover the whereabouts of the hostages will rivet readers who delight in following the intricate details of an Intensive police investigation. But, as in every Ruth Rendell novel, the mortal drama raises political and moral questions that are not resolved with the closing of the case, and that apply far beyond the limits of Kingsmarkham.
Synopsis
The woods outside of Kingsmarkham were lovely, dark, and deep. And they were about to vanish forever when the new highway cut through them. While Chief Inspector Wexford privately despaired about the loss of his hiking grounds, local residents and outsiders were organizing a massive protest. Some of them were desperate enough to kidnap five hostages and threaten to kill them. One hostage was Wexford's wife, Dora. Now, combining high technology with his extraordinary detecting skills, Wexford and his team race to find the kidnappers' whereabouts. Because someone has crossed from political belief to fanaticism, and as the first body is found, good intentions may become Wexford's personal path to hell.
About the Author
Ruth Rendell is the author of eighteen Chief Inspector Wexford mystery novels, eighteen nonseries mystery novels, and eight pseudonymous Barbara Vine novels. In addition to winning the Grand Master Award she has received numerous Edgar and Golden Dagger awards. In August 1997 she was named a life peer in the House of Lords.