Tigerlilys Orchids

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His married lover forces him to Ruth Rendell novels are a study in human relationships, and this book is no exception. His married lover forces him to invite her, setting the stage for her husband to invade the apartment and harm Stuart, who is later found murdered in a nearby park. The mystery, of course, is who the murderer is. But it is almost superfluous since the interaction of the various characters is the prime focus of the novel: One woman who is determined to drink herself to death; three young girls, students of a sort, one of whom falls in love with Stuart, who in turn is obsessed with a beautiful young Asian in the house across the street after discarding his married lover; an elderly couple who once had a one-night stand in their youth and find each other again; the caretaker couple, the husband of which enjoys spying on young girls and watching pornography on his computer.

For a crime novel, the mystery is virtually irrelevant, but certainly the character studies are vital.

For that reason alone, the book is recommended. Jun 20, Doug Beatty rated it it was amazing. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one! I thought originally that it was following a formula that Ruth Rendell sometimes follows, with all the dysfunctional people trapped together in one setting. But then, the story grabbed me and did not let go. It is not a long novel, only pages, so it is easily readable in a short span of time.

It is the story of the residents of Lichfield house, all of them with various problems. Stuart Font is extremely good looking and extremely vain and is ha I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this one! Stuart Font is extremely good looking and extremely vain and is having an affair with a married woman. An older woman named Olwen lives alone in a flat and wants to drink herself to death.

Three college students live together, and a man named Duncan lives across the street, inventing lives for the people he watches outside the window. Of course, fate will intervene, as fate often does, and events will happen as these assorted characters bump headlong into each other. Rendell is good with character and adds enough back story to them that you are interested in what is happening.

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She also adds touches of mystery so that you are not quite sure as to what is going on and have to keep reading in order to find out. But she does reveal the answers eventually, so you are not left with a questioning feeling at the end of the book. I rather enjoyed Tigerlily's Orchids. I don't want to say too much, because it is definitely worth reading. Ruth Rendell is getting less dark and edgy - but no less good. This story follows the inhabitants of an apartment house in London. The "Tigerlily" of the title is one of the people who live across the street, and there's a surprise in their house.

I was actually disappointed that the surprise wasn't something worse. There's an oddly innocent couple of leftover hippies; three college girls who are fairly typical of girls that age hey, I was one once, I should know ; a good-looking guy with a big Ruth Rendell is getting less dark and edgy - but no less good. There's an oddly innocent couple of leftover hippies; three college girls who are fairly typical of girls that age hey, I was one once, I should know ; a good-looking guy with a big ego and a woman problem; and a man who may be dangerous.

There are a lot of similarities between this book and "Portobello" - most noticeably, the lessening of the dark edginess that used to be a given in Rendell's books. Like "Portobello", "Tigerlily's Orchids" follows several different quirky characters, makes you sympathize with all but the absolutely worst ones, and ties everything up in a neat solution at the end. Contrast this with "Lake of Darkness", where none of the characters are especially likeable, and the ending isn't happy for anyone. But Rendell is still good. So I'm still reading. Jul 27, Kasey Jueds rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: It's hard to find words for the absolute amazingness of Ruth Rendell, one of my all-time favorite authors.

I hope she lives forever, and continues to write books, so that I can continue to read them. Like so many of her other novels, Tigerlily's Orchids isn't a traditional murder mystery, though it does contain a murder, as well as several mysteries.

And like all of her books, this one is full of deeply believable, though not always likeable, characters, who are quirky, sometimes bizarrely so, b It's hard to find words for the absolute amazingness of Ruth Rendell, one of my all-time favorite authors. And like all of her books, this one is full of deeply believable, though not always likeable, characters, who are quirky, sometimes bizarrely so, but always human.

KIRKUS REVIEW

The setting--an outer London neighborhood--is just as real and palpable as the people, so that, reading the book, I found myself feeling completely inside the world Rendell creates, and not wanting to leave. I guess all wonderful books give you that "being in another world" feeling, but somehow Rendell's writing seems to do that very intensely for me: And, as usual, she manages to address huge themes--social class and race in particular--with wisdom, but with a light, totally entertaining touch.

Mar 06, Doreen added it. This is not a classic mystery; the first body appears in the second half of the book and there is no detective. This novel weaves together psychological portraits of several people, all neighbours in a London suburb: Relationships among these characters and events in the neighbourhood are observed from the points of view of various residents. A major theme is that people tend to make assumptions and form conclusions based on incomplete information.

People often feel they know others well when, in fact, they don't, and don't have a complete understanding of events around them. Readers of Ruth Rendell and Barbara Vine will enjoy this book. I enjoyed this, was delighted to pick it up at the airport on my way to a holiday with no internet access in a remote house in the Costa Brava hills.

With hours and hours of uninterrupted reading time, I ploughed through it. It wasn't however her best, not quite as atmospheric or with as dark characters as some of Ruth Rendell's other books, hence the three star rating. I found, for example, the Keys to the Street to have far more of a sense of place. Also, I guessed pretty early on what Tigerli I enjoyed this, was delighted to pick it up at the airport on my way to a holiday with no internet access in a remote house in the Costa Brava hills.

Also, I guessed pretty early on what Tigerlily's Orchids were and would have liked to have been kept in suspense a little longer. I suppose this book didn't have quite the build up I have come to love with Ruth Rendell or the extreme character sketches apart from one of the characters who has made a decision quite early on, to drink herself to death and was horribly drawn in the way that only Rendell knows how.

That said, a so-so book by Ruth Rendell is still a thousand times better than the best books of many other writers, so I would recommend it as a pretty darn good holiday read. Very enjoyable read; the perfect mixture of bitter and sweet by the master brewer Ruth Rendell. The text is laced with irony, one smirks and flinches simultaneously.

Ugh, and her brews are lethal. The plot moves swiftly between inhabitants of a small London apartment building and their neighbors. We observe these people as they experience themselves and each others, or imagine the others; love, desire, ignore, fear and hate each other All the while we might glimpse reflections o Very enjoyable read; the perfect mixture of bitter and sweet by the master brewer Ruth Rendell.

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All the while we might glimpse reflections of ourselves in the drinks, mirrors, windows Here's to Ruth Rendell! May 29, Louise rated it it was ok. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I remember when things used to happen in a Rendell book, quite near the beginning and you would be drawn in all the way through with plots and clues The saint zita society or similar???

Tigerlily’s Orchids by Ruth Rendell | His Futile Preoccupations

There was no shock as to who was killed,or why,or anyone else caught up in the mystery Not the Rendell I know,and not sure I like Sep 13, Meera rated it really liked it. I love Ruth Rendell and this is another of her psychological thrillers although a murder also occurs. I really didn't want it to end - I got totally wrapped up in the characters she describes, all of whom live in the same apartment block in a North London suburb. Her attention to detail is really impressive and she gets inside characters' heads in a quite spooky way. Disappointing, not up to her usual form.

I wish she could return to the superb standards of the early Barbara Vine novels. Accessibility help Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer. Make informed decisions with the FT. Choose the subscription that is right for you. For 4 weeks receive unlimited Premium digital access to the FT's trusted, award-winning business news.

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Join our subscribers with digital access to our essential news and opinion. Join over half a million subscribers with unrestricted digital access to all the essentials, plus premium deeper insights and analysis. Learn more about Amazon Prime. When Stuart Font throws a housewarming party, he invites all the residents of his new building—among them, three flippant young girls, a lonely spinster, a man with a passion for classical history, and a woman determined to drink herself to death.

He definitely does not want his girlfriend, Claudia, in attendance, as he would also have to invite her lawyer husband. But careful planning can only get a person so far. As it turns out, this party will be one everyone remembers. As though from some strange urban fairy tale, she emerges infrequently to exert a terrible spell. Read more Read less. Prime Book Box for Kids. Add all three to Cart Add all three to List. These items are shipped from and sold by different sellers. Buy the selected items together This item: Ships from and sold by allnewbooks. Ships from and sold by Amazon. Ships from and sold by nannerb.

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