BOOK REVIEW: Rather Be The Devil by Ian Rankin

Rather Be The Devil by Ian Rankin
Series: Inspector Rebus #21
Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Detective

Rebus is back. And he’s not getting old, age seem just a number for him and his creator, Ian Rankin. He’s 21 books old now. Rather Be The Devil is the new entitlement released on November, 3rd. When I heard earlier this year that Ian Rankin has rejected to my request for an interview with for a third time in three years, I thought, ‘Oh Boy! Either I am a pretty bad interviewer or he’s upto something really good. Probably a new Rebus novel. I’ll take that gladly, sir.’

Rebus is into his retirement for almost a couple of years now. But curiosity is a disease and when one’s neurone start sending the type of electrical signals, the giant awakens. Mind gets to work and pulls bits and pieces out of the back of itself. It happens to humans, generally. Nonetheless, Rebus breathe and lives to the extent you can almost smell the cigarette he’s been smoking, but not this time, anyway.

So now you know the process, Rebus mind draws his conscious attention to a cold case from 1970s involving a murder of a female socialite in one of the Edinburgh’s luxurious hotels. An unturned stone for over forty years, and no one was found guilty. Lacking hobbies in his sixties, Rebus, starts up a personal investigation with series of meetings with some old frenemies like Big Ger Cafferty and an ex-cop. Things have already begin to turn nasty in Edinburgh when both DI Siobhan Clarke and Malcolm Fox come across each other once again despite their lack of communication over time to look into those nastier things themselves. Local crime boss and entrepreneur is hurt. Money problems, shell companies, skeletons in the closet and a dangerous mobster hovering over the city of Edinburgh.

What I like about this book the most is the characterisation in this novel is mature enough. Accurate. Or if there’s better word. There are no side-kicks or underdeveloped characters. For example, let’s take a look on John Rebus. As I have mentioned before and in this essay, Rebus is a living creature. He has his own way of thinking, talking, his own demons and the terrifying nature of being alone. He is difficult to define in an exact single word, just like any other human being. It is just the complexity. Like Rebus other characters like Malcolm Fox and Big Ger Cafferty are compelling and unique. You can’t ignore them and not think of them like they are in front of your eyes when they are introduced in the text. This thing drove me to read each and every John Rebus novel, to understand the complexity, his tangled humanity.

Other than characters the plot is not flat as you may find in most crime fiction novels. The beauty of Edinburgh reflects in this book too. It is a good thing that Rankin inhabits the place where he has set his characters. There is a surprise and I bet you cannot crack the whole story before reaching the end. This books plot makes it unique because of this spirally twisty plot.

I personally want to thank Mr. Rankin for writing this novel and maybe this time when I contact him for the interview he’d have time to spare for some questions. What a birthday gift.

Highly Recommended.