The story is simple yet effective though some have criticised the twists as being unrealistic especially given our hero is a detective, not your average bobby on the beat. His relationship with his love interest – and senior officer – DI Templar blends personal and professional life without falling foul of the ‘lover in peril’ template that has blighted the police procedural genre for many years. Stealing food from his local convenience store and being related to a brother who is on the dark side of shady, Rebus has his quirks but Rankin is artful in his ability to play to these quirks whilst not overplaying the point. He still ticks a few of those boxes but his backstory – being a part of the SAS and the subsequent trauma he lived through – added a further dimension to his character and allowed the story to flow smoothly. Rebus is unique in a universe of alcohol abusing, divorced police officers. With the help of lover Detective Inspector Templar and his brother Michael, John tries to find the killer before he strikes closer to home. Meanwhile John’s world is thrown into turmoil when his personal life collides with the horrific case of the strangled girls. He suspects that his brother John, a police officer, knows or even supports his brother’s illegal activities. Journalist Jim Stevens runs his own investigation, and has uncovered Michael Rebus’s drug dealing. Edinburgh has been shocked by the abduction and subsequent strangling of two young girls.
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