Midnight and Blue

Oh it’s so good to slip into a new Rebus novel again! It’s been far too long since the last book. This one is different though because we see our beloved grumpy detective banged up in prison for a setup crime from the last book. Rebus feels very vulnerable in this setting, and he certainly realizes that he is a very small fish in a shark pool. But that doesn’t stop him from investigating a murder that occurs in his cell block. DI Clark has her own investigation into the disappearance of a teneage girl that seems to be tied to the murder in the prison, and to another murder of an odious filmmaker of what could be called kiddie porn. We are also graced with the presence of the repellent DI Malcom Fox to add just a little to the full show more house of creepy bad guys. So, in other words, not much is happening here (she says with tongue in cheek). I agree with so many esteemed reviewers that Rebus is one of fiction’s greatest creations. Even in prison, the old boy can’t be beat or fooled for that matter. If you’re a long-term Rebus fan, I’m sure this book is on your TBR, but if you’re new and wondering what I’m talking about, pick up a copy of Knots and Crosses and begin your journey with the inimitable Rebus. show less

Just when I thought Rebus had run his race, number 25 pops up with an intriguing tale with a few twists.You would think that Rebus in jail would be beaten. Never going to happen. He is up to his usual tricks.
The plots intertwine, a tweak and a coincidence to nudge them along but nothing implausible. The characters, most well-known now, interact and play out their parts convincingly. What makes Rankin such a good writer is that the characters tell the story themselves, his command of dialogue is unsurpassed. His novels are driven by communication. You see this world, can see this world only through the eyes of Rebus, Clarke, Fox.
The ending is as always with Rebus a beginning. For how much longer?

Ian Rankin made us wait 2 years to find out what happened to John Rebus after he was found guilty of murdering Gerald Cafferty in the last book. In this book, John is in jail which is not a good place for an ex-cop to be. As always, Rebus manages to find an investigation to be part of.

Initially, Rebus was kept in solitary in jail but, after three months the prison governor asked him how he would feel about moving into one of the general halls. Darryl Christie, the inheritor of Gerald Cafferty's crime syndicate was an inmate of Trinity and he'd told the governor that he could guarantee Rebus's safety there. Rebus has a single cell and a job in the prison library and is as content as a prisoner can be. Except one morning it is discovered show more that another inmate, Jackie Simpson, has been violently killed overnight in his cell. His roomate was badly beaten but still alive. Since all the other prisoners were locked in their cells, it looks like it was a member of staff who did the deed. Coincidentally, the camera that covered that part of the prison was out of order so there is no direct evidence as to who it could be. Outside police officers, headed by Christine Esson, a former colleague, are investigating the murder. Surprisingly, Malcolm Fox also shows up at the dead man's cell and then he manages to insert himself into the investigation. Rebus' old friend, Siobhan, isn't part of the investigation. She and her new partner, Cammy Colson, have been asked to investigate the disappearance of a teenage girl. Rebus has his own problems with an inmate of another hall, Bobby Briggs, who is out to get revenge on Rebus for lying at the trial that put him inside prison years ago (but not the reason he is in prison now). Nevertheless, Rebus starts to put pieces together for who could have killed Simpson and he doesn't think it is the guard that is the main suspect. Christie may be in jail but he still controls his crime network in Edinburgh except now someone appears to be trying to take over his turf and he's not happy. That missing teenager was posing for an erotic online site that was run by an ex-footballer who winds up being killed. Maybe the teenager killed him or maybe she was a witness and has been kidnapped or worse. There are a lot of tangents in the plot but Rankin manages to weave them all together. The good news is that it looks like Malcolm Fox may be history and the even better news, delivered by Rebus' lawyer right at the end, is that something may happen about Rebus' conviction.

Another great book from Sir Ian Rankin. Hopefully, not the last. show less

Number 25 in the series and although Rankin tried to bring it to a close some time ago, things just have not worked out that way. And nor have they for Rebus who is now in prison, convicted for the attempted murder of Cafferty. A prisoner is murdered and so we end up in a locked room mystery in a locked up institution, and what I thought was the most interesting part of the book was the way Rankin shows us how power works inside prisons.

First you have the Governor, Tennent in this case, who allows access to visitors and has the power, which he uses, to move prisoners around and so Rebus finds himself on the open wing, no longer protected by the prison system but under the protection of another inmate, Darryl Christie. Slowly revealed show more throughout the story are the links between prisoners and those outside and the vacuum that has opened up with Cafferty's death. Christie is still running his gang from inside prison and accessing phones and drugs delivered by a drone to his window.

Siobhan Clarke is working on a case of a missing girl who has become involved in porn websites but who disappears when Zak Campbell, an ex-footballer is found dead in his house. This is the turning point for the book which starts to link to seemingly separate cases together with Clarke and Rebus still managing to meet despite the latter's residence.

I read this book between two more challenging novels and it was one I could slip into and feel comfortable as a reader, despite the setting, and lap it up. Perfect Christmas reading although now I feel like I need a Jack Reacher novel to complete my Christmas. There is something almost cozy-crime-ish about Rebus novels nowadays - they have lost their gritty edge - but are still very enjoyable. At one point as I was reading, I did almost think that it could be an Agatha Christie novel but Rebus is no Poirot. show less

It's a fast, snappy read, but not worth reflecting on. Once you start to think about it, you find too many holes. Rebus remains a good character, as does Siobhan, but I couldn't get too excited.

This is pretty much top drawer Rebus after a couple of slightly disappointing outings. Everything just as you'd expect. Less character driven and more actual crime and detecting, though the familiar faces are pretty well rounded out. Malcolm Fox dealt with interestingly. Some plot implausibilities but not derailing the thing.

A good solid Rebus, thoroughly enjoyable, but unexceptional. A pleasant way to spend some time. I'm personally not totally OK with what Rankin has done to Fox, I actually thought Fox might turn into an interesting alternative protagonist, but it seems Rankin prefers to use him as a rather pathetic creature.