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Content snapshot
Flag an inaccuracy →What's in this book, at a glance — five things readers want to know before they start.
Violence
Some
Murder by strangulation; moderate crime scene detail
Language
Barely any
Mild language
Sexual Content
Barely any
Adultery as plot element; no explicit content
Substance Use
Barely any
Minimal substance use
Emotional Intensity
Some
Moderate psychological intensity; Wexford's private obsession versus professional constraints; the cost of certainty
What this book is about
When Robert Hathall's wife is found strangled, the official verdict seems clear: a transient killer. But Inspector Wexford becomes privately obsessed with Hathall as the prime suspect, even as the evidence refuses to cooperate. One of Rendell's most compelling examinations of a detective's instinct against institutional process — and the moral cost of an obsession.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Murder by strangulation
Wexford's obsession
Reader Verification
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