Shake Hands Forever

Inspector Wexford is plunged into a perplexing case when Angela Hathall is found brutally strangled in her bed. The scene is disturbingly neat, the bed perfectly made, yet the victim, known for her paranoia and deep affection for her husband, appears to have offered no struggle. The mystery deepens with contradictory clues: the inexplicable presence of a strange woman's fingerprints on the bathtub, her husband's suspicious lie about a stolen library book, and the unusually immaculate state of their normally disheveled home on the day of the murder. As Wexford navigates a labyrinth of deceit and psychological complexities, a charming and enigmatic neighbor offers assistance, inadvertently drawing him into an obsessive quest for the truth. What begins as a straightforward investigation spirals into a personal crusade that threatens to unravel Wexford's career and even his marriage, forcing him to confront the darkest corners of human nature and the corrosive power of secrets. Rendell masterfully crafts a chilling narrative that keeps the reader guessing until the very end.