Customer Reviews

Murder Being Once Done

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

An interesting story, fun to read... This book is copyright 1972. I wish Amazon would tell you the year of a book's original publication in its data about a book. Sometimes you want to read a an author's work, or (especially) a series, in the order that the books appeared, and with re-issues, Amazon doesn't help you figure the order out... But I digress. Murder being once done: Reg Wexford is here, and he's great. It is hard to believe that this character has been around for so long. Dora is here, but plays a very minor role, and although the story says that they have been married for many years, there is no mention of their children... Anyway, this is a well-written police procedural mystery, interesting characters, lots of plot twists about babies, unwed mothers, and adoption, and an interesting side story about a cult. You can see a bit of 1972 in the story, but not much - it reads as if it were set in the present time. It is as good as any Inspector Wexford story, and I was delighted to find it - I keep thinking I have read them all. If you have read this far into this review, you must be a fan of Ruth Rendell's Inspector Wexford, and I assure you, you will like this book.

Ruth Rendell's "Murder Being Once Done," which was written in the seventies, is a flawed mystery with a few nice touches that redeem it slightly.

Inspector Wexford has not been feeling well, and he has been farmed out to his nephew's house to rest, eat right, and exercise. Wexford is supposed to avoid thinking about police work. However, there are two problems. One, Wexford is bored out of his mind. Two, his nephew is a police superintendent investigating a juicy murder. How can Wexford fail to get involved in the case?

The victim is a young woman who was found murdered in Kenbourne Vale Cemetery. Who is she and why was she killed? This woman, it turns out, was living quietly in poverty under a false name. No one knows where she came from. Wexford starts informally investigating on his own, interviewing anyone who may know something about the identity of the dead woman.

The investigation turns out to be a puzzle that challenges even Wexford's experienced and incisive mind, and he makes several wrong turns before reaching the correct conclusion. He experiences a period of self-doubt and shame when he realizes that his powers of detection may be waning somewhat. He even considers the possibility that it may be time to step aside and let the younger generation take over. Wexford is a wonderful character--intelligent, charming and compassionate. It is always a pleasure to be in his company.

Unfortunately, the mystery turns out to be less involving. While looking into the case, Wexford meets a variety of people, all of whom contribute to his understanding of what happened to the dead woman. Unfortunately, the characters are not fleshed out very well and the mystery itself turns out to be too convoluted and far-fetched to be completely satisfying. On the plus side, Rendell's description of settings is detailed and vivid and she beautifully captures Wexford's torment as he tries to deal with his mortality and his imperfections. "Murder Being Once Done" is not a great mystery, but it is a good study of a policeman who is desperately trying to prove that he still has what it takes to break a case.

As always, Reg Wexford, an older police Chief Inspector from rural England, will manage to take your breath away through his amazing ability to overcome weakness and always come out on top of the case at hand. Ruth Rendell is brilliant, introducing her readers to new characters while intertwining the old, steady ones. Inspector Wexford, one of Rendell's regulars, is visiting his nephew Howard, a Detective Superintendent in London, when a tragic murder case arises. While exploring the dark, dirty streets of London and avoiding the prestigious flower arrangements of his niece, Reg manages to overcome his illness. In the course of helping his nephew solve this murder mystery, Reg must contend with Howard's other inspectors and struggle to prove his knowledge and expertise in the field of character analysis. Filled with unwed mothers, poverty, and adoption, this novel is constantly twisting and turning through Reg's inner thoughts. Through all this, he is pulled between two opposing forces. His wife, Dora, pleads with him to rest, in accordance with the doctor's wishes. On the other hand is his burning desire to solve the young girl's murder. In the end, he manages to stay on top of the case but ignores his doctor's wishes for him to eat only bread and water. By the end of his stay in London, though, Reg is back to his beef. Once I picked this book up, I was unable to put it down. It is full of intriguing surprises and, mingled with the unpredictable new characters, comes the story of a cult with a long, uncertain past of family deceit and runaway brides. All in all, this book tickled me into giving it the rating of 4 out of 5 stars.

This is one of my favorite Inspector Wexford mysteries. For one, the officious and annoying Mike Burden isn't there, which is a relief. This novel offers a very humorous depiction of Wexford struggling to stay on his diet and off murder investigations. Of course, he can't help himself and go back to solving a murder mystery that practically falls into his lap. There are some hilarious exchanges between Wexford and his nephew who is also a police officer and whom Wexford suspects of being a snob for a while.

The mystery itself is very good. I didn't guess what was going on until the very end. The characters are quirky and fascinating. In short, this is Rendell at her best delivering one of the undisputed classics in the Inspector Wexford series.

There's no need for me to rehash the plot, as the other reviewers here have done a fine, descriptive job, and thank goodness, as Amazon's description is severely lacking in detail. I've read an extensive amount of Rendell's work, including the novels written under the guise of her nom de plume, Barbara Vine, and I can say with utmost sincerity that Murder Being Once Done is a muddled, confusing, mess of a mystery. There are too many characters presented and discarded in this short tome (it just hits the 200 page mark), along with an abundance of red herrings, and a rushed, abrupt, confused ending. The final twenty-five pages read as though Rendell was running out of time and ideas, so she just threw all of the character's names into a bowl, fished one out, and decided on the murderer by luck of the draw. It holds up as an engaging read for the most part, but the big reveal is disappointing and puts a damper on the rest of the book. Diehard fans will most likely enjoy aspects of the novel, but if you are new to her work, I highly suggest starting elsewhere. Where to start is a highly debatable subject. I strongly recommend A Judgement in Stone or A Fatal Inversion, or simply browsing her oeuvre in order to find a plot that sounds engaging to you. Happy reading!

I'm only half-way through and it is very captivating, Wexford is delicious as read by Robin Bailey. Ruth Rendell's writing makes me laugh with joy, when Wexford sees 'an alarming flower arrangement', what a wonderful adjective for a flower arrangement!