The first series is very different in both format and style. Hannah's portrayal of Rankin's world-weary detective was questioned by many who knew the books, as he did not physically match their image of Rebus. Hannah himself has said he felt forced into the role, having been executive producer, when his own choice for the role, Peter Mullan, was rejected by STV. [2]

Rebus finds himself drawn towards a cold case after a prostitute is buried alive beneath a famous Scottish landmark, but finds himself stonewalled when his prime suspect turns out to be a member of parliament – forcing his superiors to draft in a fellow DI to rein him in. Then there is the case of a missing boy who goes missing right around the time that it is discovered that Darren Rouse, the convicted pedophile, is living in the same apartment complex. Arthur's Seat crouches behind him, humped and silent as though offended by his presence, coiled to pounce. He tells himself it is papier-mâché. He smooths his hands over strips of newsprint, not reading the stories, then realises he is stroking the air and withdraws his hands, laughing guiltily. Somewhere behind him, he hears a voice. Rebus takes on the case of a man who shoots himself during a meeting with the head of his local bank, but a photograph in his wallet leads him to a chemical plant preparing a pesticide for the third world, and a disgruntled ex-employee with a grudge over a false sexual assault claim. Rankin being Rankin, there are a panoply of other features with which Rebus has to contend: a third case involving the missing adult son of two of Rebus' childhood friends; a fling with an old high school flame; thinly-veiled criticism of the 1% (fifteen years before it was popular); the fallout from his daughter's near-death experience in the previous book; the responsibility of the media not to turn killers into celebrities; and so on. It's a little busy. But somehow Rankin keeps all the plates spinning, even while he attempts to explore larger issues of morality.For the first time in ten books starring Detective Inspector John Rebus, Ian Rankin explores this issue in Dead Souls. As with most of the books in this series, there are two cases that first seem unrelated but which eventually intertwine in ways that are compelling and inevitable, and in this case both of them touch on the question of how much a criminal's past is to blame for his present. The more obvious example is Darren Rough, a convicted pedophile (who himself was a victim of sexual abuse as a child living in an orphanage) who served his jail sentence and has now been set free. When Rebus discovers that Rough has been assigned an apartment with a view of a children's playground, he "outs" Rough to the other tenants with disastrous consequences. In Rather Be the Devil (2016), however, Cafferty seizes control of a string of Edinburgh bars and betting-shops, and he continues to thrive in In a House of Lies (2018). He also a leading character in A Song for the Dark Times (2020) and (in a wheelchair) in A Heart Full of Headstones (2022). Laura Smith is the crime reporter for The Scotsman, beginning in Saints of the Shadow Bible (2013). She is a friend of DI Siobhan Clarke. Professor "Sandy" Gates is a forensic pathologist who appears frequently in the Rebus series between 1996 and 2006. He and Dr. Curt are the usual medical examiners who dissect the bodies of victims. In 2013's Saints of the Shadow Bible (Chapter 13) we hear that he has been dead for some years.

In addition, a convicted murderer who spent 25 years in an American prison has been released and deported to Edinburgh, where he grows up. He is seeking to settle old scores but not until he spends some time with a local reporter talking about his life for a series of articles. I'm sure that the format of a novella; its brevity and concision, lends itself perfectly to some stories. Hey, it might even do so for the tale of a Scottish detective and a missing person. But I'm not convinced it particularly works for Rebus. The compelling new story follows 40-year-old police detective John Rebus ( Richard Rankin), who finds himself at a psychological crossroads following an altercation with an infamous Edinburgh gangster. Detective Inspector Stefan Gilmour appears in Saints of the Shadow Bible (2013) and the related short story, "Dead and Buried." He was in charge of a CID team at Summerhall police station in the early to mid-80s, when Rebus was posted there as a Detective Constable. When the violence and corruption of the Summerhall team was close to exposure, he resigned his post to shut down the inquiry. In Saints he has become a prominent builder of hotels and a proponent of the "No" vote in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.

Even so, I never felt this was a question of genetics as much as it was learned behavior. The nature vs. nurture question has always felt sort of beside the point. I mean, it's obvious to me that while some personality traits are clearly handed down from parent to child (case in point, I have my dad's social awkwardness and my mom's passive-aggressiveness – a winning combo!), much of the way we act day-to-day has everything to do with the way we were taught – explicitly or implicitly, by parents and other sources – to make our way in the world. I was taught by my parents to be civil and to err on the side of kindness, and those are two lessons that have served me well. As I grew older, I was able to extrapolate that into an understanding that I should appreciate diversity, keep an open mind, and, above all else, try to remember that not everyone sees the world the way I do. I don't think I won any kind of genetic lottery; I just know my parents and the way they tried to raise my brother and me.

His search for answers to all his questions involves him in discovering how implicated a respected doctor had been in protecting two paedophiles then on trial for conspiring to abuse children in care homes. Darren Rough had, in fact, been brought to Edinburgh to testify against them. And while investigating Damon Mee's last appearance at a party held by Ama and Nichol Petrie, the children of a high-profile judge, he finds out that the son is a cross-dresser and had brought Damon to the party while in his female role. In a world of divisive politics and national discord, does the law still have meaning, or is everyone reverting to an older set of rules? And if so, why shouldn’t Rebus do so too?” [3] Cast [ edit ] The list of responsibilities goes on and on. Rebus is involved and more than determined to bring each perpetrator to justice. After all that's his life's blood. His personal life is a sideline. As a high school teacher, there were many times a student's behavior would become crystal clear after meeting his parents. I'd run into problems with work ethic or attitude or whatever, and I'd think, "What's the deal with this kid?" Then I'd meet Mom and/or Dad in a parent conference and immediately realize, "Oh, of course that's why he [fill in the blank]." It would be some sort of weird mirror image, where son's classroom surliness was reflected in Dad's obvious displeasure at coming to school for a meeting.

This is my fifteenth John Rebus novel, and before starting this book I had a question in my mind. When an author as successful as Rankin has been with his tough and idiomatic Scottish thrillers, a problem sets in after several books: how to keep the formula fresh?