Ian Rankin : Fictional World of John Rebus

 Ian Rankin : Fictional World of John Rebus

Ian Rankin

Ian James Rankin is famous Scottish crime writer, who is born on 28 April, 1960. He is best known for his famous character, Inspector John Rebus. The story and plot of John Rebus novels are set up in Edinburgh, Scotland. He studied literature and graduated from university of Edinburgh. He spent some years in London and France during his establishing careers as novelist.

As happens to most of the novelists, his ambition was to establish himself as mainstream writer, not to be a crime writer. He consider his first novels like Knots and crosses and Hide and Seek as main stream books. His later novels, in which Inspector John Rebus is central character, are major contributions to Scottish Crime Fiction. Later on his novels were adapted as TV series in which actor John Hannah and Ken Stott played as Rebus.

John Hannah as John Rebus

Ken Stott as John Rebus

In Rebus novels, Ian Rankin plot involves murders, un-natural deaths and mysterious disappearances where Rebus takes the centre stage investigations. In his novels, Edinburgh is present as a character along with stark realities of corruption, poverty and organized crime.

Apart from crime, Ian Rankin provides struggle of Rebus with internal politics of police department, his tendency to bend the rules and ignorance of his superior. His personal and emotional life is also intricately woven which runs parallel to his crime investigations. In his life, apart from his daughter, Samantha Rebus, five women are involved, i.e., , Rhona ( his separated-wife), Patience Aitkin (ex girlfriend), Gill Templer (his boss), Jean Burchill ( lady friend and friend of Gill Templer) and Deborah Quant (pathologist).

    Novels of Ian Rankin:

1. Knots and Crosses (1987)
2. Hide and Seek (1991)
3. Tooth and Nail (1992)
4. Strip Jack (1992)
5. The Black Book (1993)
6. Mortal Causes (1994)
7. Let it Bleed (1996)
8. Black and BlueBlack and Blue (1997)
9. The Hanging Garden (1998)
10. Dead Souls (1999)
11. Set in the Darkness (2000)
12. The Falls (2001)
13. The Ressurrection Man (2002)
14. The Blood Hunt (2002)
15. A Question of Blood (2003)
16. The Bagger's Banquet (2003)
17. Flesh Market Close (2004)
18. The Flood (2005)
19. The Naming of Dead (2006)
20. Exit Music (2007)
21. Doors Open (2009)
22. A Good Hanging (2010)
23. The Complaints (2010)
24. The Watchman (2010)
25. Standing in Another Man's Grave (2012)
26. The Impossible Dead (2012)
27. Saints of Shadow Bible (2013)
28. The Beat Goes On -Short Stories (2014)
29. Even Dogs in the Wild (2015)
30. Rather Be the Devil (2016)
31. In a House of Lies (2018)
32. A song for the Dark Times (2020)
33. West wind: The Classic lost Thriller

                 Collections of Ian Rankin:-

• Rebus - Early years ( Knots and Crosses, Hide and Seek, Tooth and Nail) (1990)
• Rebus - The St. Leonards' Years (Strip Jack, The Black Book, Mortal Causes) (2001)
• Rebus - Lost Years (Let it Bleed, Black and Blue, The Hanging Garden) (1998)
• Rebus - Capital Crimes (Dead Souls, Set in Darkness, The Falls) (2004)
• Rebus - Three Great Novels (Resurrection Men, A Question of Blood, Flesh market Close) (2008)
• The Complete Short Stories (A Good Hanging and Other Stories, Beggars Banquet, Atonement) (2005)

Ian Rankin