The Copper Peacock - Ruth Rendell

The Copper Peacock: a hideous bookmark given to Bernard, a writer, by his attractive cleaning lady, Judy. She had given him order in a hitherto chaotic life, but now the bookmark destroys all this, shattering his razor-sharp sensibilities. If only she had given herself, and not the copper peacock, then she might have lived

In this and eight other landmark short stories, including An Unwanted Woman, a new Wexford tale, Ruth Rendell. who in 1991 was awarded the WA’s Cartier Diamond Dagger Award for her outstanding contribution to crime writing, once again proves she is the mistress of the genre