by Ruth Rendell
First published 2000
Chief Inspector Reg Wexford faces an unusual case when a trained raven becomes central to a murder investigation. The bird's ability to mimic human speech draws Wexford into a web of secrets surrounding a wealthy family and their estate. As he delves deeper, Wexford must untangle the relationships between the victim, the family members, and their unusual pet. The raven's mimicked words may hold the key to solving the crime, but Wexford struggles to separate meaningful clues from random sounds. The investigation forces him to confront questions about truth, memory, and the reliability of witnesses both human and animal. At its heart, the story explores how the past echoes into the present through unexpected voices.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigation, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Estate
Period: 20th-Century
272 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Arrow