what are Ruth Rendell books like?

[beautifuldays]

ok i have read and re-read all of my agatha christies, and i know whodunnit in every book. i need to find a new author!
i love murder mystery but prefer the agatha christie stiff upper lip detective in tweed type, rather than modern blood and guts. what's ruth rendell like? are her books similar to agatha christie? trying to work out whether it's worth buying some or not and whether i would like them.

am definately more of a midsummer murders than a rebus girl iykwim

thanks everyone.
will go and investigate (excuse pun ) ruth rendell's early stuff, dorothy sayers and patricia wentworh. the ones i was thinking of getting were these are these earlier or later do you know?

also has anyone read any of M.C Beaton's stuff? is it any good or is it terribly naff?

thanks for all the suggestions

beautifuldays - the book people selection is a mix of old and new wexfords (from doon with death is the very first one).

i've read a couple of M.C. Beaton's Agatha Raisin books - quite acerbic for a "cozy` but entertaining in small doses.

Don't think anyone on the thread has suggested the Campion series by Margery Allingham. Also the post WWI series by Charles Todd is good.

Oh and the Mamur Zapt series set in pre WWI Cairo is good but not too gory if that sort of thing is up your street (by Michael Pearce)

From Doon with Death is her first and it's still a goody.
Put on By Cunning is good. So is Shake Hands for Ever.
Simisola and Road Rage are both Rendell doing "issues" and are weak because of it.

thanks, the wentworth, sayers and ngaio marsh all look good too. will get some out of the library on monday to try them out.

thanks everyone

I like Ruth Rendell and my favourite is "A judgement in stone". Also good are "The face of trespass" and "The bridesmaid".
I discovered her Barbara Vine's books fairly recently and have only read 2: "A Dark-Adapted Eye" and "King Solomon's carpet", and I liked both of them a lot.

i always think i'll like rr books from the description but can never get into them
tried

PD James
Val McDermid
Elizabeth George?

This guy is quite good and has been compared to Agatha Christie in the past, if only for his old fashioned style of writing/characters

www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2004/04/19/boakunin.xml

[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article551700.ece ]]