Most Popular Books by Ian Rankin

"The Rebus books are a masterclass in plotting, character, and atmosphere." — The Scotsman The Hanging Garden is a page-turning literary thriller that offers readers a chilling glimpse into the darkest extremes of human cruelty. This ninth entry in Ian Rankin''s genre-defining Inspector Rebus series confirms his reputation as a writer of rare and lasting gifts. Drugs. Extortion. Slavery. Organized crime is fighting for a hold on Inspector John Rebus''s peaceful Scotland. And when Rebus rescues a young Bosnian girl forced into prostitution, he breaks a policeman''s golden rule to never get personally involved in a case. Add to that the hunt for an elderly Nazi accused of slaughtering an entire French village, and Rebus wonders just how evil humans can be. Until his own daughter is mortally injured as a gangland warning for him to back off. Then even a dedicated cop like Rebus might make a deal with the devil to find the culprit. Not for justice. For revenge. Praise for Ian Rankin and the Detective Rebus novels "Ian Rankin is a genius." — Lee Child "Ian Rankin is up there among the best crime novelists at work today." —Michael Connelly "A beautifully written series." — New York Times Book Review "Crime fiction at its best." — Washington Post Book World "Ian Rankin is a novelist of great scope, depth, and power." — The New York Times "A superior series of novels—addictive, brilliantly written, and altogether rewarding." — The Washington Post "The Rebus series stands as one of the great achievements in modern mystery writing." — The Globe and Mail "Ian Rankin''s Edinburgh is a modern noir masterpiece of place, character, and atmosphere." — Los Angeles Times "Rebus remains one of the most distinctive characters in crime fiction." — The Times Literary Supplement

A student has gone missing in Edinburgh. She''s not just any student, though, but the daughter of well-to-do and influential bankers. There''s almost nothing to go on until DI John Rebus gets an unmistakable gut feeling that there''s more to this than just another runaway spaced out on unaccustomed freedom. Two leads emerge: a carved wooden doll in a toy coffin, found in the student''s home village, and an Internet role-playing game. The ancient and the modern, brought together by uncomfortable circumstance ... ''Rankin continues to be unsurpassed among living British crime writers... He makes the reader feel part of the scene, and enhances the experience with his virtuosity with dialogue ... But all these virtues would count for little if Rankin didn''t also possess the most important asset of them all - the ability to tell a damned good story'' The Times

A cold case involving a missing private investigator threatens to unearth skeletons from Rebus''s past in this "must-read" mystery (Tana French). Former Detective John Rebus'' retirement is disrupted once again when skeletal remains are identified as a private investigator who went missing over a decade earlier. The remains, found in a rusted car in the East Lothian woods, not far from Edinburgh, quickly turn into a cold case murder investigation. Rebus'' old friend, Siobhan Clarke is assigned to the case, but neither of them could have predicted what buried secrets the investigation will uncover. Rebus remembers the original case -- a shady land deal -- all too well. After the investigation stalled, the family of the missing man complained that there was a police cover-up. As Clarke and her team investigate the cold case murder, she soon learns a different side of her mentor, a side he would prefer to keep in the past. A gripping story of corruption and consequences, this new novel demonstrates that Rankin and Rebus are still at the top of their game.

In this Edgar Award-winning novel, human bones are discovered in the basement of a newly renovated bar on Fleshmarket Alley in Edinburgh''s red-light district. Called to investigate, Inspector John Rebus soon finds himself near the center of an intricate web of murders.

From #1 international bestseller Rankin comes this tale of an unlucky spy whogets one last chance at redemption.

They call him the Wolfman - because he takes a bite out of his victims and because they found the first victim in the East End''s lonely Wolf Street. Scotland Yard are anxious to find the killer and Inspector Rebus is drafted in to help, thanks to his supposed expertise in the modus operandi of serial killers. But his Scotland Yard opposite number, George Flight, isn''t happy at yet more interference - it''s bad enough having several Chief Inspectors on your back - and Rebus finds himself dealing with racial prejudice as well as the predations of a violent maniac. When Rebus is offered a serial killer profile of the Wolfman by an attractive female psychologist, it''s too good an opportunity to miss. But in finding an ally, he may have given his enemies an easy means of attack.

John Rebus spent his life as a cop putting Edinburgh''s most deadly criminals behind bars. Now having been convicted of a homicide, he''s joined them… A convict is brutally murdered in his locked cell deep in the heart of Scotland’s most infamous prison. Sleeping in a cell across the floor lies John Rebus, the equally notorious detective. Stripped of his badge and estranged from his police family, he is now fighting for his own life - protected by an old nemesis but always one wrong move away from the shank. As new allies and old enemies circle, and the days and nights bleed into each other, even this legendary figure struggles to keep his head. They say old habits die hard, though. The death stirs Rebus’s deductive - and manipulative - impulses, setting off a domino-chain of scheming criminals, corrupt prison guards and perhaps only one or two good souls who may see it all through. But how do you find a killer in a place full of them?

The seventh novel featuring Inspector John Rebus, available for the first time as an e-book and featuring an exclusive introduction by author Ian Rankin. Detective Inspector John Rebus understands that murder is usually very simple. Passion and greed are the most common motives, but when the bodies begin to pile up—two suicides, one murder, and the mysterious death of an inmate in one of Scotland''s largest prisons—Rebus realizes that there''s nothing simple about his latest case. What Rebus knows is that it all began with a petty embezzlement scheme. What he discovers is that beneath the killings a conspiracy is hidden, one that runs all the way to the top of the political ladder. And the cost of unraveling this complex web could be horrifyingly high. Everything he holds dear—his job, his life, even his young daughter—is at stake. Powerful men are telling Rebus to "let it take its course," but none of them will reveal just what it is. Rebus stubbornly decides to go forward with his investigation no matter what the cost may be. Men have died for whatever lies at the heart of this plot, and Rebus is determined that those who have set these events in motion will not escape the punishment they deserve.

John Biblia aterrorizo a Glasgow en los anos 60 y 70, cuando asesino a tres mujeres que habia conocido en una sala de baile; asesinatos por los cuales nunca pudieron detenerlo. Ahora, Johnny Biblia, como lo han bautizado los medios de comunicacion, parece matar para apropiarse la gloria del legendario asesino. Son cuatro los casos que el inspector, John Rebus, relaciona y que aparentemente conducen al depravado asesino. La descripcion que Ian Rankin hace de los personajes, escenas y estados de animo tienen una precision y autenticidad dificil de superar. Con un estilo agil y cargado de humor sutil, el autor transmite el hedor genuino de los bajos fondos de la ciudad. Su prosa vibrante y su especial manera de mantener la intriga hacen de Black and Blue una novela policiaca de excepcion. Sin duda, perdurara como un hito en su genero.

The horror has just begun... A brilliant thriller from the No.1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES. ''No one writes more gripping stories than Rankin'' TLS It begins with a phone call. Gordon Reeve''s brother has been found dead in his car in San Diego. The car was locked from the inside, a gun was in his hand. In the US to identify the body Gordon realises that his brother has been murdered. What''s more, it''s soon obvious that his own life is in danger. Once back in Scotland he finds out his home has been bugged by professionals. But Reeve is a professional too. Ex-SAS, he was half of a two-man unit with someone he came to fear, then to hate. It looks like his nemesis is back...

Malcolm Fox returns in the stunning second novel in Ian Rankin''s series... ''Criminally good'' WOMAN & HOME From the No.1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES. ''Excitingly gripping storytelling'' THE TIMES Malcolm Fox and his team are back, investigating whether fellow cops covered up for Detective Paul Carter. Carter has been found guilty of misconduct, but what should be a simple job is soon complicated by a brutal murder and a weapon that should not even exist. A trail of revelations leads Fox back to 1985, a year of desperate unrest when letter-bombs and poisonous spores were sent to government offices, and kidnappings and murders were plotted. But while the body count rises the clock starts ticking, and a dramatic turn of events sees Fox in mortal danger.

An illegal immigrant is found murdered in an Edinburgh housing scheme: a racist attack, or something else entirely? Rebus is drawn into the case, but has other problems: his old police station has closed for business, and his masters would rather he retire than stick around. But Rebus is the most stubborn of creatures. As Rebus investigates, he must visit an asylum-seekers'' detention centre, deal with the sleazy Edinburgh underworld, and maybe even fall in love...Siobhan meanwhile has problems of her own. A teenager has disappeared from home and Siobhan is drawn into helping the family, which will mean travelling closer than is healthy towards the web of a convicted rapist. Then there''s the small matter of the two skeletons - a woman and an infant - found buried beneath a concrete cellar floor in Fleshmarket Close. The scene begins to look like an elaborate stunt - but whose, and for what purpose? And how can it tie to the murder on the unforgiving housing-scheme known as Knoxland?

In Edinburgh you''re never far from a peaceful spot, or from a hellish one either. Now, in the heart of summer, in the midst of a nationalist festival, Inspector John Rebus is on the murder case of a young man left hanging in a spot where his screams would never be heard. To find the victim''s identity--and his killer--Rebus searches from Edinburgh''s most violent neighborhood to Belfast, Northern Ireland--amongst petty thugs, gunrunners, and heavyweight criminals. But before Rebus can get to the truth, he''s bloodied by the dream of society''s madmen--and staring into the glint of a killer''s eyes. Once again, Ian Rankin has demonstrated his incredible crime writing skills in Mortal Causes.

The fourth Inspector Rebus novel from the No.1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES - ''unmatched in the field of British crime fiction'' THE TIMES. Gregor Jack, MP, well-liked, young, married to the fiery Elizabeth - to the outside world a very public success story. But Jack''s carefully nurtured career plans take a tumble after a ''mistake'' during a police raid on a notorious Edinburgh brothel. Then Elizabeth disappears, a couple of bodies float into view where they shouldn''t, and a lunatic speaks from his asylum... Initially Rebus is sympathetic to the MP''s dilemma - who hasn''t occasionally succumbed to temptation? - but with the disappearance of Jack''s wife the glamour surrounding the popular young man begins to tarnish. Someone wants to strip Jack naked and Rebus wants to know why... **** Ian Rankin''s A HEART FULL OF HEADSTONES was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 10th October 2022 and w/c 1st May 2023

An instant New York Times and USA TODAY bestseller and “a thriller reader’s ultimate fantasy” (Booklist), this one-of-a-kind anthology pulls together the most beloved characters from the best and most popular thriller series today. Worlds collide! In an unprecedented collaboration, twenty-three of the world’s bestselling and critically acclaimed thriller writers pair their series characters in an eleven-story anthology curated by the International Thriller Writers (ITW). The stories in FaceOff feature: -Patrick Kenzie vs. Harry Bosch in “Red Eye,” by Dennis Lehane and Michael Connelly -John Rebus vs. Roy Grace in “In the Nick of Time,” by Ian Rankin and Peter James -Slappy the Ventriloquist Dummy vs. Aloysius Pendergast in “Gaslighted,” by R.L. Stine, Douglas Preston, and Lincoln Child -Malachai Samuels vs. D.D. Warren in “The Laughing Buddha,” by M.J. Rose and Lisa Gardner -Paul Madriani vs. Alexandra Cooper in “Surfing the Panther,” by Steve Martini and Linda Fairstein -Lincoln Rhyme vs. Lucas Davenport in “Rhymes With Prey,” by Jeffery Deaver and John Sandford -Michael Quinn vs. Repairman Jack in “Infernal Night,” by Heather Graham and F. Paul Wilson -Sean Reilly vs. Glen Garber in “Pit Stop,” by Raymond Khoury and Linwood Barclay -Wyatt Hunt vs. Joe Trona in “Silent Hunt,” by John Lescroart and T. Jefferson Parker -Cotton Malone vs. Gray Pierce in “The Devil’s Bones,” by Steve Berry and James Rollins -Jack Reacher vs. Nick Heller in “Good and Valuable Consideration,” by Lee Child and Joseph Finder So sit back and prepare for a rollicking ride as your favorite characters go head-to-head with some worthy opponents in FaceOff—it’s a thrill-a-minute read.

Stalking a poisoner at the local zoo, Inspector John Rebus comes across a paedophile taking pictures of children. When the social workers claim he is there for legitimate educational reasons, Rebus is faced with a dilemma - should he be outed to protect local kids or given a chance to start anew? As the locals begin a hate campaign he gets a call from the past: the son of a friend has gone missing and no one else will make time to ask the right questions. And then a fragment of Scotland''s criminal history is repatriated at the end of a life sentence for murder. Once more Rebus''s cup of trouble runneth over and the ghosts of past misdeeds return to haunt Edinburgh''s streets.

''It was 28th April. Wet, naturally, the grass percolating water as John Rebus walked to the grave of his father, dead five years to the day.'' This is our first glimpse of the Scottish policeman with the puzzling name... before Ian Rankin hit the bestseller lists, before Rebus became a national institution... A story of the brutal abduction and murder of young girls, at first it seems that Detective Sergeant John Rebus, smoking and drinking too much, his own young daughter spirited away south by his disenchanted wife, is just one of many policemen hunting the killer. Then messages begin to arrive: knotted string and matchstick crosses - taunting Rebus with pieces of a puzzle only he can solve. So begins the case that introduced the crime world to one of its most compelling characters. Whether you''re turning the pages for the first time, or reliving the mystery, KNOTS AND CROSSES is unmissable reading.

"Twelve terrific stories starring Detective Inspector John Rebus in his home city of Edinburgh, as only Ian Rankin can portray it: not just the tartan tearooms and cobbled streets of the tourist brochures, but a modern urban metropolis with a full range of criminals and their victims..."--P. [4] of cover.