Make Death Love Me (original 1979; edition 1980)

by Ruth Rendell

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Fiction. Mystery. HTML: Alan Groombridge had a fantasy. Husband to a woman he didn't like, father of two children he had never wanted, and manager of a tiny bank, Alan was doomed to a life of domestic boredom and tedious routine. All that saved him was that one fantasy: stealing enough of the bank's money to allow him just one year of freedom�one year in which to live a different sort of life. Alan Groombridge had a fantasy. Husband to a woman he didn't like, father of two children he had never wanted, and manager of a tiny bank, Alan was doomed to a life of domestic boredom and tedious routine. All that saved him was that one fantasy: stealing enough of the bank's money to allow him just one year of freedom�one year in which to live a different sort of life. But one day the bank was robbed, the manager and cashier disappeared, and a brutal and chilling nightmare began... .… (more)

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Member:	adithyajones
Title:	Make Death Love Me
Authors:	Ruth Rendell
Info:	Arrow Books Ltd (1980), Edition: New Ed, Paperback, 216 pages
Collections:	Your library
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Make Death Love Me by Ruth Rendell (1979)

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davidrgrigg | Mar 23, 2024 |

An assured, satisfying, standalone thriller from crime supremo Rendell about a dull bank manager who fantasises about a different life and sees an opportunity to achieve it when his branch is robbed. It’s the characters that make this, defiant bank teller Joyce, somewhat hapless robbers Marty and Nigel, and bank manager Alan. All 4 are believable and engaging, none of them perfect but all with enough that is sympathetic about them to make the reader really care what happens. The book was published in 1979 and the depressing backdrop of 70s Britain, filled with shallow dinner parties, casual racism and the shadow of the IRA is perfect for this bleak tale of crime, punishment and redemption. It’s an elegantly told, suspenseful tale, with no bloat at all in its 200-odd pages. I thoroughly enjoyed it. (

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whatmeworry | Apr 9, 2022 |

When a small British bank is robbed, the manager escapes with some of the money, because he had been fondling it in his office. The teller is kidnapped by the robbers. We follow the manager as he attempts to begin a new life, and the robbers and teller as they figure out what to do. It's not really a mystery in that we don't have anyone trying to solve the crime; we just follow the characters as they live out the inevitable consequences of their decisions. (

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Jim53 | Mar 13, 2013 |

This is a good thriller. It's the story of Alan Groombridge, bank manager, who dreams of escaping with some of the bank's money and changing his boring life to be free to do as he pleases.

A bank robbery gives Alan the opportunity to live his dreams for a while, until his nightmare really begins..... (

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lsh63 | Feb 11, 2009 |

Alan Groombridge, a bank manager who dislikes his job and his family life, dreams of robbing the bank one day to escape to a new life, for just one year.
One day the bank is robbed, and both manager and cashier disappear. The fantasy becomes a nightmare... A good thriller. (

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tripleblessings | Feb 2, 2007 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Ruth Rendell	—	primary author	all editions	calculated
Vesentini Ottolenghi, Maria Luisa	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Publisher Series

Colección Esfinge (63)

Il giallo [Mondadori] (1647)

Is contained in

The Third Ruth Rendell Omnibus by Ruth Rendell

▾Awards and Honors

Awards

Edgar Award (Nominee – Novel – 1980)

Martin Beck Award (Winner – 1980)

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Canonical title

Information from the German Common Knowledge. Edit to localize it to your language.

Mancher Traum hat kein Erwachen

Original title

Make Death Love Me

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Epigraph

Dedication

To David Blass with love

First words

Three thousand pounds lay on the desk in front of him.

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Disambiguation notice

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Blurbers

Original language

English

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Make Death Love Me

▾Book descriptions

Fiction. Mystery. HTML:

Alan Groombridge had a fantasy. Husband to a woman he didn't like, father of two children he had never wanted, and manager of a tiny bank, Alan was doomed to a life of domestic boredom and tedious routine. All that saved him was that one fantasy: stealing enough of the bank's money to allow him just one year of freedom�one year in which to live a different sort of life.

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