Ruth Rendell, The Veiled One

Susan A. Rowland

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Gina Lyle (University of Glasgow), Graham MacPhee (University of Manchester), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1988

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Crime and Detective
Novel

Resources

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Chief Inspector Wexford is a good policeman. This means that he is highly educated, creative, and sensitive to social change. Detective Inspector Burden, his deputy, is also a good policeman. This means he is principled, unimaginative and resistant to social change. They make a good team. When, in

The Veiled One

(1988), they quarrel over the probable guilt of murder suspect, Clifford Sanders, Wexford reflects that it is for the very first time.

The murder of Gwen Robson places both Wexford and Burden under intolerable pressures. Garrotted in a multi-storey car park, home-help Gwen, whose husband needs a hip operation, appears an unlikely target for such ferocity. Wexford, out shopping for his wife's birthday present, misses the body. It is only the first of a series of “missed

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1083 words

Citation: Rowland, Susan A.. "The Veiled One". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 17 October 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=21173, accessed 20 April 2024.]

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