''Tigerlily's Orchids
was well received by critics. Sue Gaisford of The Independent wrote in a positive reviews: "Ruth Rendell, grande dame of the thriller, knows how to spring surprises. Rendell inexorably accelerates the pace from tortoise to hare, and with wisdom, compassion and satisfactorily sardonic wit." Publishers Weekly'' wrote of the book: "Rendell's spare, sleek novel of psychological suspense gets off to a slow start, then picks up speed to become vintage Rendell, not the powerhouse of the 1990s but with enough plot petrol to blow most American authors out of the water ... as always, Rendell spices the action with just the right gothic ingredients to keep things baroque but consistently believable." Writing for
The Guardian, Laura Wilson summarized the book as a "thoughtful, slow-paced and immensely readable novel ... about the effect that crimes, both small and large, have on the community." Another positive review came from Steve Donoghue of
The Washington Post, who praised the novel's characters, writing: "Rendel presents us with [the characters] in all the scrupulous, almost forensic detail for which she’s famous. We get the aggressively supercilious building superintendent, the trio of flighty young girls, the brainless middle-aged married couple, the reserved elderly gentleman — all rendered perfectly, with the throwaway ease of a practiced master." ==Availability==