Barbara Vine

Rendell’s first Vine novel came out in 1986, when she had an idea that wouldn’t fit either of her categories of police procedural or psychological crime. She decided to write it using her middle name and her great-grandmother’s maiden name, and so Barbara Vine was born. In fact she was always called ‘Ruth’ by her father’s side, and ‘Barbara’ by her mother’s, but now has just one family member left who calls her ‘Barbara’.