Customer Reviews

The Black Book: An Inspector Rebus Novel

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4 star:		(10)
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2 star:		(2)
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Early last year I read a British publication of this book and found it one of the best Inspector Rebus novels yet. Inspector Rebus himself, is such a fascinating charachter that his inner conflicts, history of broken relationships, addiction to good Scottish whiskey and love of his extensive and eclectic music collection make him as much of a mystery as the series of mysterious murders he investigates. Sometimes, as he has done here, Ian Rankin introduces other similarly intriguing by players, some of whom have previous and again mysterious histories with Rebus. The interaction between Rebus, other charachters and the history and surroundings of Edinborough itself paint such a vivid, moody and tense atmosphere that often the obligatory murder or two seem almost superfluos. The murder/s however, are in fact never too much. Each is different, unexpected and initially seemingly unsolveable and, as in this book, the answers and Rebus' manner of finding them lead the reader through an entirely unexpected journey that, as the plot developes, twists like Rebus' mind and Edinborough's ancient streets and alleyways.

To be more specific as to the who's, what's and where's involved in this tales' journey would ruin the prospective delight of any new readers reactions and absorbsion of those details. It's a fine book by an accomplished Master of Mystery and Creator of Charachter. Rankin is so much more than those two phrases infer .... he is a true and fascinating Novelist.

Rankin lives up to expectations with this his fifth full length Rebus novel. The plot leads the reader on a chase around Scotland for the truth behind a hotel fire five years ago and a series of more contemporary crimes and misdemeanors. With more twists and turns than the Hampton Court Maze, this book is sure to delight anyone who likes to be taken up numerous garden paths and back again. From the first page to the last your sure to find plenty of suprises in this novel. Definitly one of the best I've ever read.

Ian Rankin must now hold the position as one of the UK's finest crime writers with his 5th "Inspector Rebus novel", The Black
Book. Set in the depths of Edinburgh's criminal fraternity, Rankin captures the persona of a hard-nosed Scottish policeman,
(John Rebus) as he attempts to solve a five-year old case. Notes about it are hidden in a black book kept by his colleague,
Brian Holmes, the victim of a brutal assault. The scene is the Central Hotel, a paradise for the degeneracy and squalor which
breed within its walls until it is razed to the ground; the eventual investigation yields one dead body but no clues. Five years on and Morris Gerald Cafferty (one of Edinburgh's most notorious criminals) is under surveillance for his role in a gang of loan sharks. In the course of this Rebus is blighted by personal problems and eventual suspension from the police force whilst trying to link the fire at Central Hotel to Cafferty's own illegal dealings. Amidst the lies and intrigue there lies a terrifying link that, if exposed, could result in vicious reprisals for many other people. With all detective novels it is difficult to fully explain a plot without revealing the conclusion but with Rankin, nothing is certain until the final page. This is a stunning piece of work; particularly striking is the originality of the characters and plot that culminates in an energetic yet decisive result. If you read no other crime thriller this year then read Ian Rankin's work, impressive and highly elegant.

Rankin's Edinburgh police Inspector John Rebus forges a narrow path through office politics, his shambles of a life, and the mean streets of his city in this 1994 novel.

The title refers to a notebook found on one of Rebus's men, ambushed outside a favorite nightspot and remaining unconscious in the hospital.

Determined to find out who wanted to silence the policeman, Rebus deciphers the notes and finds himself pursuing a five-year-old arson and murder case while maintaining a pointless surveillance on a bookie insisted upon by his superiors.

Rankin's writing is as gritty and moody as his put-upon hero, with his shambles of a personal life. Steeped in an atmosphere of Edinburgh's shadowy and unsavory corners, "The Black Book" is a taut, suspenseful tale.

Ian Rankin's "The Black Book" is the 5th of his Inspector John Rebus series set in Edinburgh; this is the first of his novels I've read. Although in his early thirties when he wrote this tale, Rankin shapes Rebus with a world-weary cast, delivering a startlingly interior view of his middle-aged detective. Rebus isn't a 20s-something swashbuckler; nor has his passion died -- instead, it smoulders, burning red hot when correctly fanned, flicking encrusted ash skyward contemptuously.

In this outing, Rebus has to deal with his girl-friend who's had enough of him, his returning brother (an ex-con) with no where else to stay except with John, a flat full of late teenage university students on their own for the first time (and sharing his flat he's been forced to return to). And that's just his personal life. On the job, he becomes engulfed by a five year old murder, pursuing the investigation "on his own time" (and literally, too, as he is suspended at one point from the force), which leads to a gay bar / Elvis themed restaurant and ongoing encounters with ghosts from the arson of the Central Hotel where the body was found ... with links to organised crime in the present day. As the story threads come together, Rebus's personal and professional life become entirely entangled as a key piece of evidence to the old murder lands in his hands. And that's just the start of his troubles.

Rankin shifts between a third person narrative focussed on Rebus to the other characters as they uncover their own motives in the moment and on to richly detailed commentary about life and surroundings in the chief setting of Edinburgh. Dialects pop up; the Edinburgh lilt can be heard vividly; and local words are sprinkled into dialogue as a chef adds secret sauce to a favourite dish. Somehow, Rankin manages the verbal sleight-of-hand to conjure this Scottish setting in a way that seems entirely familiar, like ones own home town -- but wait, that's not true is it? And his winning character, Rebus, worms his way off the page like the best of the hard-boiled detectives, utterly convincing and sympathetic but no one's ideal of the perfect husband for your daughter. No wonder the series is occasionally dubbed "Tartan Noir"!

I read the Kindle edition so I can't say it was a page turner. I can say I enjoyed, and enjoyed savouring, every e-inked turn of phrase as it flashed by, reading much further into the night on multiple occasions than is good for me. Highly recommended.

This novel is full of many different storylines all bumping togetheer as John Rebus tries to do what he does best and that's solve crimes. This includes the introduction of Morris Gerald Cafferty and DC Siobhan Clarke, who would go on to become a main part of this series in later novels.

Rebus is suffering from many things, including: trouble with his girlfriend Patience, investigating a man being stabbed and then walking into a butchers shop owned by his cousin, and his good friend DC Brian Holmes being attacked outside a restaurant. This book really holds the reader as it experiences the cold murders and attacks along with the dark "black humour" that Detective Inspector Rebus uses to get through life. Easilly readable, highly recommended.

"When a close colleague is brutally attacked, Rebus is drawn into a case involving a hotel fire, an unidentified body and a long-forgoten night of terror and murder. Pursued by dangerous ghosts and tormented by the coded secrets of the colleague's notebook, Rebus must piece together a jigsaw that no one else seems to want completed."

This is a perfectly good Inspector Rebus book. It is not Ian Rankin's best in the series, but it is not the worst.

This novel is the fifth in the Inspector John Rebus collection, and is another fine addition to the series. The novel's premise concerns a hotel fire which occurred five years earlier, and the cause and reason have yet to be determined. And, most important, an unidentified corpse was found amid the rubble, and the murder remains unsolved. A local crime boss with connections to loan sharking, the protection rackets, and illegal gambling is the odds on favorite as the culprit, and Inspector Rebus explicates and develops the case in his inexorable fashion. The rather elaborate plot-line is well thought-out and executed, and Rankin treats the reader to a striking and appealing peek at the mean and dirty streets of Edinburgh, Scotland

The fifth book in the Inspector Rebus series is the real start of the classic series. This is the novel where Ian Rankin matures into a seriously talented writer.

Rebus is investigating the brutal bashing of his friend when he is drawn into a 5 year old mystery involving a fire at a hotel and a dead body.

In the meantime, Rebus's home life is in disarray as his girlfriend kicks him out.

The story is quite good, not as good as his later novels would be, but well on the way to becoming bestsellers.

If you have not read a John Rebus book, and if you like hard-hitting, fast-paced British mysteries, then you have a treat in store for you. I highly recommend Edinburgh's Dick Tracy (DI John Rebus). This is the fifth book in this series, and as always it's best to start at the beginning, but if you don't and start with this book that's OK too. Rebus has morphed by this book. He is a really strong character with the tenacity of a bloodhound when he's on the hunt. When a close colleague is mugged in an alley, Rebus is drawn into a case that began five years ago when a famous hotel burned to the ground. When the smoke cleared a body with a bullet hole in his head is found. The body has not been identified by the time Rebus gets on the case. With the help of his new DC Siobhan Clarke, they try to bring down a huge crime ring that has been terrorizing Edinburgh for ages. This is an intelligently written, hard-hitting, tightly written book that kept me turning pages.