Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not brilliant
Review: 'Harm Done' is the latest in the Inspector Wexford series from Ruth Rendell, and isn't a bad addition to the pile. Firstly, it's good points. It is complex, joining together several different mysteries (which are in fact not at all related, at least not directly) and is well written. It also picks up pace at the end of the book and keeps the reader guessing. Even better, it is socially applicable as Rendell strides into a commentary relevant to modern day society over paedophilia and domestic abuse.On the downside, the book loses paces towards the middle, when it is less exciting. It also always feels like each conclusion is rather rushed and does not really have any evidence to back it up - Wexford seems to simply somehow get it right and - magic - he gets a confession. There is good characterisation and I will certainly give Rendell the fact that the book is complex and intriguing in this respect, but she has done better.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the Best, but not Bad!
Review: A friend who glanced at this book sniffed, "I don't know how you can read those English who-killed-the-vicar-in-the-library things, I don't have the patience", and I had to laugh because this is just about as opposite a novel as you can get. This book has three themes, the disappearance of two young women; an elderly pedophile released from prison; and a severely abused housewife. Ms. Rendell writes so well, detailing the hellish life of the housewife in stomach-roiling detail. She also includes some of her deliciously psychotic character studies, and of course all this is seen through the eyes of dear familiar Insp. Wexford. There is a trace of humor in this book involving the inhabitants of a lowish class housing development picketing the old reprobate's apartment, singing "Stand By Your Kids" to the tune of "Stand By Your Man", and similar silliness that would make Jerry Springer feel right at home! Sally Jesse, Maury Povich, and Jenny Jones would fit right into this modern day England, and not a vicar in sight! I am only giving it 4 stars because the stories do not tie together and they meander somewhat, this is not Ms. Rendell's usual top=notch work. Also, Ms. Rendell and Insp. Wexford are both getting up there in years, and I hope she goes on writing forever, but there are hints the refined and compassionate policeman may be getting weary of the crazy modern day world that is not only lived in England, but all over. I hope Ms. Rendell has many, many more novels in her yet and we will see her policeman back on top of the game. When she is great, words cannot express the deep emotional impact her novels have on my psyche. When she is merely good, as in "Harm Done", she is still sublime. Rather than 4 stars, let me give this a "9" on a one to ten scale. I look forward to her next books, both Wexford and non-Wexford.
Rating:
Summary: Doesn't add up
Review: An imperfect Rendell novel is still better than 99% of the crime fiction available. That said, this one isn't perfect. It definitely pales in comparison with *Simisola*, which dealt with similar issues in a tighter and more devastating way. I would have expected Rendell to weave together the 3 sub-plots (the abducted girls, the pedophile, and the kidnapped toddler) in a shocking, revelatory way, but she doesn't. The book feels more like 2 novellas and a short story, with Wexford as the common thread. I appreciate the feminist consciousness that Rendell's been weaving into the Wexford novels; it makes a great counterpoint to her visions of female evil and criminality. However, I found the presentation of the battered-woman plot strangely cold. Even the sympathetic "good man" Wexford remains an outside observer, unable to comprehend the horrible events he discovers, and so the reader does too. *Harm Done* falls short of the tragic power and immediacy of Roddy Doyle's *The Woman who Walked into Doors*.
Rating:
Summary: No Harm Done Here
Review: I have just stumbled upon some of the great books by Ruth Rendell, the first being "A Sight for Sore Eyes" which I absolutely loved. "Harm Done" was the 2nd book I read (actually listened to on audiobook) and liked it too, but not as well as the first. I was really getting into the story line about the girls who mysteriously disappeared, then returned in a few days unwilling or unable to tell police what had happened to them. I was sure the pedophile brought into the story was the culprit, but the two things had nothing to do with the other. I was a bit disappointed when the explanation came out midway through the book and it wasn't anything to get too worked up about. Then the author went on a completely different track with the abused woman plot. I guess they did all tie in together as the abused woman's baby had turned up missing too. I liked the book and will be reading more of Ruth Rendell's work, but I prefer the books that are more suspense and less Inspector Wexford.
Rating:
Summary: Not Rendell's best work.
Review: I love Inspector Wexford. He is down-to-earth and he has a dry sense of humor. Wexford is a person who knows that he is flawed, and he tries to improve himself, especially in his relationship to his daughters. I like how Rendell describes the Wexford family dynamics. Rendell always writes well, but in this novel, she resorts to cliches about domestic violence. We have read this type of story so many times, and it doesn't tell us anything new about domestic abuse. The story flags badly in the middle, and it doesn't pick up any steam until the very end. Rendell breaks no new ground here, and this book is tepid compared to "Simisola," one of her better works. However, her dialogue is always well-written and she is worth reading, even when her work is not excellent. She needs to work on plot development and make her mysteries more compelling. Her last work, "A Sight for Sore Eyes," was depressing but excellently written.
Rating: 
Summary: No Harm Done
Review: I really liked this book. Other reviewers have written that they thought there were too many unconnected stories. I think it just shows you what a mix of people there are in this small town in England. Crime touched all neigborhoods it seems. The explanation for two of the disappearing girls was touching. What would you do in Vicky's situation? I even liked the part about the lost raincoat. The author has a nice, typically English sense of humor.
Rating:
Summary: I liked it
Review: I've seen so many reader reviews who say they're bored with Wexford. I find him very refreshing and down-to-earth compared with the psychos he's dealing with. He's no saint; he's just a regular guy. Many of Rendell's characters are SO creepy that I need a little normality in there.
This book, politically correct or not, was scarier than any of her others, because it's real and happens every day, everywhere. And it's practically invisible. Rendell gives this "P.C." novel her own Rendellesque twists, which makes it well worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: The biggest disappointment yet
Review: If there is ever a place where the political correctness does not belong, it's mystery. Ruth Rendell has sold out to the PC crowd - the book is bland and preachy. I think the damage is irreversible, at least for me. Mystery will never be the same.
Rating:
Summary: Bizarre crimes in a small town
Review: Inspector Wexford is called upon to solve a very strange case. Young women are being kidnapped and forced to do housework. In another case a small child is kidnapped. In the midst of all this, a pedophile is released from prison. The violence resulting from the public outcry results in the death of a policeman. Wexford's daughter is working in a home for abused women, and contributes her expertise to the case, especially the kidnapping. This was a very busy mystery, several plots intertwining. Ms. Rendell manages to tie them all together rather neatly at the end, keeping the reader engrossed in each detail of each plotline.
Rating:
Summary: Not A Speaker Of Mandarin Yet No Harm Done
Review: It is quite difficult to witness Reg (Inspector) and Dora Wexford being pulled into the twenty-first century beset with political correctness, domestic violence, ad hoc babysitting duty, and a daughter's crumbling marriage. It was ever so much nicer when they were insulated from these distractions because we became insulated along with the Wexfords as we turned the pages and vicariously lived in the lovely Kingsmarkham mythical town for a time. Well, Harm Done, is still a page-turner and not once did I not enjoy the novel. It was a bit tepid when stacked up against the wonderful, A Speaker Of Mandarin, and earlier Ruth Rendell Inspector Wexford fiction. Nonetheless, a lukewarm Ruth Rendell offering is worth a thousand mediocre mystery bestsellers we could all name. So, dear readers and fellow fans, dive in anytime to Harm Done for a truly decent read.
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