A tour-de-force of psychological suspense, the novel culminates in a dramatic climax that's as unforgettable as what has preceded it. Rendell leaves nothing and no one unaccounted for, from the looks given by the neighbors over the fence to the idle thoughts that pass through characters' minds when they scan a room. Rendell follows the story's principal objects as closely as she does its characters: the diamond and sapphire engagement ring that Teddy's indifferent mother finds in a public bathroom the video case in which Francine's mother hid her love letters, the painting of two young lovers that shows Teddy the perfect beauty he would kill for. Francine's stepmother, for example, progresses from simple worry about her stepdaughter's well-being to obsessive anxiety that borders on dementia. Instead, Rendell (Road Rage, etc.) focuses more on how a few sedately bizarre ticks can build exponentially into insanity. Though several deaths occur in the book, the only real mystery is that of the murder of Francine's mother, which Francine overheard (near the novel's beginning) when she was seven. Their troubled affair takes a while to get going, but once it does, Rendell's sharp characterizations and idiosyncratic descriptions are riveting. It is an extraordinary story by a writer who, after 45 books, countless awards, and decades of international acclaim, is still getting better with every book.A pair of English teens, Teddy and Francine (who have grown up in dysfunctional families where common parenting faults are taken to extremes), meet and think that in each other they might find the beauty and freedom their own lives are lacking. A Sight for Sore Eyes is not just the work of a writer at the peak of her craft. When these three plots strands finally converge, the result is harrowing and unforgettable. Bored by marriage to a wealthy, much older man, she scans the local newspapers for handymen to perform odd jobs around the house, including services in the bedroom.
Thirdly, we meet Harriet, who from an early age has learned to use her beauty to make her way in the world. Free of societal mores, he becomes a sociopath, who eventually discovers that killing can be an effective way to get what he wants.
Secondly, we become privy to the life of a young man, Teddy, born of unthinking young parents, who grows up almost completely ignored.
The first is a story of a little girl who has been scolded and sent to her room when her mother is brutally murdered as Francine grows up, she is haunted by the experience, and it is years before she even speaks. A Sight for Sore Eyes tells three stories, and for the longest time, the reader has no inkling of how they will come together.
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