Customer Reviews

Let It Bleed

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Ian Rankin is amongst the best crime novelists writing today. His books are always tense, tenacious, and thrilling. At the heart of them is Rebus, a cop with bad habits and a fair dose of caustic, Scottish wit - as human and blemished as they come. Rebus knows that murder is usually motivated by passion or greed, but when the bodies begin to pile up - four of them - Rebus realizes that there's nothing simple about his latest case. In his trail for the culprit, he stumbles across a conspiracy that runs all the way to the top of the Scottish political ladder. If you've not yet picked up a John Rebus mystery from Ian Rankin, you should do so now. Rankin is the thinking man's crime writer. He mixes social comment with deep characterization and stirs it all into great plots and sub plots. Let it bleed is one of his outstanding examples and there's a hole in your reading if you miss it.

The daughter of Edinburgh's Lord Provost is missing; a car chase of two possible kidnappers ends with the supposed perps' suicide; then another suicide occurs, seemingly unconnected. No crime there, and yet there are puzzling unexplained details, which Rebus can't get off his mind. These details, and the discovery of the missing daughter, lead to the unwinding of a Machiavellian scheme in which high-ranking businessmen and politicians are joined, for the supposed good of Scotland. To Rebus, "None of it's worth a single human life."

This is one of Rankin's best. Intricacy does not get in the way of clarity, and the evolving turmoil of Rebus' private life parallels his solving of this larger crime, which eventually leads to the revitalization of one of his most important relationships. His implacable pursuit of justice might seem self-righteous in a less flawed human being, but his battle with the drink ("It's the drink makes me maudlin. It's only the drink."), his tendency to put off his dental work (great dentists' chair episode), his devotion to the Rolling Stones ("What a shambles the band was, yet sometimes they could get it so exactly right that it hurt."), his sensitivity masked by a morbid sense of humor, his tendency to be brutally honest even when this is not desirable, make him a most appealing character.

The weather of Edinburgh has a leading role; after reading several Rankin books, its volatility is as real to you as Rebus himself. Rankin's writing can be direct, even lyrically serious, and then suddenly morph into a gruesome simile, as in this description of a pub: "It had a burgundy linoleum floor and matching colored walls, and was like staring into somebody's throat."

Knowledge of the previous books (this is the 7th in the Rebus series) would not be necessary to enjoy this read, but would add to your appreciation of the characters.

Before Let It Bleed, I'd never read a book set in Scotland. It was fascinating to see the dark side of Edinburgh, a place I'd only "visited" in history books. The book is as raw as any urban tale, and it was both entertaining and disturbing for all that. The very first line made me want to read on: "A winter night, screaming out of Edinburgh" and the story is off and running. John Rebus is no shining hero. He holds on to the seismic shifts in his slippery moral framework with all the confusion and pain that we all feel these days. He's very human and very flawed, and I liked him. The plot was very interesting, yet with so much political and business corruption in stories today, just the plot alone would not have made this a winner. It is Rankin's expert and empathetic treatment of his poor confused and flawed characters that make this book a winner. I'm ready for more Rebus stories.

In this instalment of the Inspector John Rebus series, we are given a much deeper insight into Rebuses world, his life outside the police force, and how hes dealing with the loneliness of living alone.

From the opening scene Rebus is involved in an all-out thrill ride of a chase through the streets of Edinburgh. Unfortunately for Rebus the chase doesnt end well, although it has an even worse ending for the me he was chasing. A suicide soon after is linked to the original case and Rebus is soon chasing down clues and digging up dirt. When hes warned off the case by influential men from both inside and outside the police force, his resolve is hardened and he redoubles his efforts, convinced that he must be onto something pretty big.

Just what it was he was on to was a little hard to decipher. Corruption in government departments is the bone that he latches onto and then he finds that hes up against some pretty powerful customers. His job is on the line which means the world to him because as he points out, without his job, hes nothing.

We get a very candid look into Rebuses life outside of the police force and realise that hes not doing too well at this point. His realisation that he may have a drinking problem is highlighted by the admission that when he tries to sleep sober he is haunted by nightmares, so he ensures he has a few drinks before bed each night. There is also a disturbing reference to suicide in the book and the fact that Rebus has given it some thought was indicative of his current frame of mind.

Poor Rebus. When I read about his life, my heart goes out to him. Even when his life is full of problems of his own making. Rebus dislikes obeying authority, and chooses to obey his own moral compass, and that compass is not always pointed in the right direction.

In this dark view of Scotland, Rebus happens to be on hand when chasing two young men who have absconded with a car, and maybe a daughter of a prominent politician. Cornering these two kids on a bridge, Rebus is horrified to see them fall backwards off the bridge, on purpose. That horrible sight is enough to send Rebus searching for answers to a whole bundle of questions...all of which end up pointing to a corrupt city government. Those in charge of this whole fiasco are astute enough to appeal to Rebus' own sense of concern for his city and his land...if he blows the scandal wide-open, many jobs will be lost. Rebus is mortal enough to not want to hurt families by forfeiting possible jobs...and the corrupt men who are raking in a fortune through financial shennanigans know this.

In the end, Rebus finds a way to solve the problem. I am not sure he is happy with the solution, but then Rebus is rarely happy. Too bad he cannot seem to work as hard at his own relationships and his excessive drinking, as he does at his work.

Scotland must be the sister city of Pittsburgh, USA. We have the same overcast skies, and a bar on every other corner, and a church on the rest of them. Loads of bridges too!

Karen Sadler

All of the Inspector Rebus novels share a gritty sensibility, a dry Scottish wit, and well drawn characters. Sometimes the plots don't live up to the rest of the package. But not this novel: Ian Rankin has put together a wonderfully dark and intricate mystery that remains plausible and compelling to the end. Don't miss it!

A girl is missing. Two teenagers suddenly seem to jump off a bridge, a man takes his own life at an unlikely town meeting. Ian Rankin's John Rebus is the investigator. Set in Scotland and Wales, Rebus is a very likeable detective. The story is well crafted and I found as a reader that I was hooked from the get go. Well worth it!

Scottish author Rankin's eighth Inspector John Rebus novel begins on "A winter night, screaming out of Edinburgh." A car chase in pursuit of two young maybe-kidnappers, ends in violence and suicide, launching this dark, atmospheric tale of conspiracy and greed.

The Edinburgh winter is nearly as vivid a character as the intense, brooding Rebus. Alone again and incapable of expressing his emotions, Rebus lives for his job and sleeps in his chair - after more than a few pints and shots.

Still haunted by the surreal death of the would-be kidnappers, Rebus is confronted with another spectacular suicide, this one for the edification of an ambitious councilman. Doggedly pursuing tenuous connections, Rebus begins to unravel an elaborate scheme with roots in the prisons and slums and the highest offices in Scotland. And more people die.

With a complex and absorbing plot, shot through with blasts of icy Edinburgh wind and Rebus' bleak determination, this is another powerful and absorbing winner from a strong, talented writer.

LET IT BLEED is a prime example of Ian Rankin's Rebus, bucking the system in order to pursue the pure essence of justice, consequences be damned. Far from a Galahad, Rebus is a deeply flawed man, tough on family and any who try to get too near, entirely too dependent on alcohol to quell the feeling of rage and hurt he feels.
The gradual shift from a search for a solution to some mysterious suicides to finding a way to punish those who seem to be beyond punishment is classic Rankin. Rebus's response to the class system seems much more than a plot device; it becomes a vital link to understanding Rebus a bit better. His rage, when directed at injustice is a fearsome weapon, but it also becomes evident how important his life as policeman is to his continued existence. Rankin continues to combine an excellent procedural with a truly interesting and believable figure. LET IT BLEED is an excellent example of when Rankin is firing on all cylinders.

More than the seven books before it, this one builds from a tiny thread until it creates a magnificent tapestry. Starting with a car chase, after two supposed kidnappers, in which "Fart" Lauderdale is taken out of the picture, and replace by Rebus' old flame Gill Templer; to the end, where "Wee Weed" Flower gets his just desserts, the action just builds and builds.

Though he loses Patience, in more than one way, he gains a better and stronger relationship with his daughter Sammy, who has come back to Edinburgh to do social work with prisoners and ex-cons.
I won't tell you the story because that's why you read the book in the first place, and I would only spoil some of the more surprising parts. But, all you favorite characters and neighborhoods are in it, or their facsimilies.

I do have two complaints: 1) John is getting to the point where he needs to go into AA, and after the accident he now has more burns, brakes and bruises than Luke Davenport, 2) Ian has to learn to write better dialogue in the american vernacular if he is going to include one as a character. I know Rankin, FYTP.

Slainte.