The Chimney Sweeper’s Boy

By: Barbara Vine

Narrated by: Jenny Sterlin

Writing as Barbara Vine, award-winning mystery author Ruth Rendell outshines even her own brilliant reputation for psychological intrigue. The Chimney Sweeper’s Boy is mesmerizing as it probes the dark recesses of the psyche. Vine lures you, clue by clue, into a labyrinth of sexuality, love, and shame. When literary celebrity Gerald Candless suddenly dies, the beautiful façade he has carefully created begins to crumble. Behind the vision of the happy family on the English seashore lie Candless’ inexplicable cruelty toward his wife, his manic devotion to his daughters, and the mysterious sources of his fiction. To assuage her grief, his loving daughter Sarah begins a memoir project. But it soon becomes an obsessive search for identity. As Sarah digs deeper and deeper into her father’s secret past, the startling logic of his puzzling behavior is revealed. Narrator Sterlin, with her soft British accent and perfect pacing, coaxes out all the novel’s haunting nuances.

©1998 Kingsmarkham Enterprises, Ltd. (P)1998 Recorded Books, LLC

At the heart of a mystery

A writer with an unusually close and powerful relationship with his two daughters is at the center of this story. Writing his biography after his death, the younger daughter discovers that her father held a secret, something so terrible that he changed his whole life to escape it, ruining the happiness of his wife along the way. Of course she sets out to discover the truth, uncovering more and more mystery with every step. The ultimate answer is both more and less terrible than I could have imagined.

Barbara Vine develops character as well as any author I know, and this novel is no exception. The mother and two daughters are fascinating people whose lives have been shaped around the somewhat bizarre personality of this strange and brilliant man, and there are no easy explanations for anything.

Another twisted tale

If you like dark and twisty mysteries that keep you guessing till the very end this is for you.

Insightful and moving tale of unforeseen consequences and constrained lives

This novel is unexpectedly daring, not for its subject matter which is more easily guessed today than when it was written or set, but for the slow reveal. It’s a mystery, yet one in which nothing actually happens for most of the book. And yet it keeps you riveted. It unflinchingly portrays casual cruelty within a society and a family. Of special note is the hypocrisy and ignorance of even the most ‘tolerant’ and ‘progressive’ people not so long ago. Detailed characters and believable dialogue, expertly voiced by a great voice talent.

Great Book

This is a great mystery book. I love how the writing pulls you into the mystery and you can't put the headphones down :)

One of my Top 20 books

Loved this book when I read it and equally love audible version. I know Ruth Rendell's detective sells more books, but I LOVE her books written under name of Barbara Vine. Psychological suspense at its best.

Not compelling

I'm a big fan of Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine. But somehow this book didn't do it for me. The characters were not especially interesting and the 'reveal' not much either. Perhaps it's a matter of how culture has changed regarding homosexuals. The writing is as good as ever but the story itself just disappointed.