Success has a price, and the remarkable acclaim (both critical and commercial) that greeted the gritty Edinburgh-set crime novels of Ian Rankin has set the author a considerable problem. How does he maintain the freshness of detail and atmosphere that have made his books such riveting reading? And how does he keep his tough detective DI John Rebus from degenerating into a series of mannerisms? If Raymond Chandler grew tired of Philip Marlowe and Conan Doyle of Holmes, Rankin would have been in good company if he gave up on Rebus. Fortunately, his belief in the character clearly remains as powerful as ever, and The Falls is the most impressive Rebus novel in many a moon. The detective's personal problems--overused of late--are wisely sidelined in order to concentrate on a highly intriguing (and topical) plot.When a student vanishes in Edinburgh, there is pressure on Rebus to find her, particularly as she is the scion of a family of extremely rich bankers. Needless to say, this is more than just the case of a spoilt rich girl breaking out of the cage of family responsibilities, and a carved wooden doll in a coffin found in her home village leads Rebus to the Internet role-playing game that she was involved in. And when DC Siobhan Clarke, a key member of Rebus' team, tackles the Virtual Quizmaster, Rankin finds himself struggling to save her from the same fate as the missing girl.
Consummate plotting has always been Rankin's trademark, and that skill is put to maximum use here. The balance between developing the characterisation of the ill-assorted team of coppers that Rebus assembles and the labyrinthine twists of the plot is maintained with an iron hand, and Rankin's mordant eye remains as keen as ever: "You okay, John?" Curt reached out a hand and touched his shoulder. Rebus shook his head slowly, eyes squeezed shut. Curt didn't make it out the first time, so Rebus had to repeat what he said next: "I don't believe in heaven." That was the horror of it. This life was the only one you got. No redemption afterwards, no chance of wiping the slate clean and starting over. Rebus said "There is no justice in the world." "You'd know more about that than I would", Curt replied.
--Barry Forshaw
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. Synopsis
A student has gone missing in Edinburgh - completely out of character. She's not just any student, though, but the daughter of extremely well-to-do and influential bankers. There's almost nothing to go on until Detective Inspector John Rebus gets an unmistakable gut feeling that there's more to this than just another runaway spaced out on unaccustomed freedom or worse. Two leads emerge: a carved wooden doll in a toy coffin, found in the student's home village, and an Internet role-playing game. The ancient and the modern, brought together by uncomfortable circumstance and a curmudgeonly detective happier with long playing records than digital technology ...In this powerful novel, Rankin, who 'moves dialogue with the precision of a chess-master', (Irish Times) brings together past, present and future in a terrifying duel of good - in the persons of DI Rebus and DC Siobhan Clarke - and evil. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Amazon.co.uk Review
Success has a price, and the remarkable acclaim (both critical and commercial) that greeted the gritty Edinburgh-set crime novels of Ian Rankin has set the author a considerable problem. How does he maintain the freshness of detail and atmosphere that have made his books such riveting reading? And how does he keep his tough detective DI John Rebus from degenerating into a series of mannerisms? If Raymond Chandler grew tired of Philip Marlowe and Conan Doyle of Holmes, Rankin would have been in good company if he gave up on Rebus. Fortunately, his belief in the character clearly remains as powerful as ever, and The Falls is the most impressive Rebus novel in many a moon. The detective's personal problems--overused of late--are wisely sidelined in order to concentrate on a highly intriguing (and topical) plot.When a student vanishes in Edinburgh, there is pressure on Rebus to find her, particularly as she is the scion of a family of extremely rich bankers. Needless to say, this is more than just the case of a spoilt rich girl breaking out of the cage of family responsibilities, and a carved wooden doll in a coffin found in her home village leads Rebus to the Internet role-playing game that she was involved in. And when DC Siobhan Clarke, a key member of Rebus' team, tackles the Virtual Quizmaster, Rankin finds himself struggling to save her from the same fate as the missing girl.
Consummate plotting has always been Rankin's trademark, and that skill is put to maximum use here. The balance between developing the characterisation of the ill-assorted team of coppers that Rebus assembles and the labyrinthine twists of the plot is maintained with an iron hand, and Rankin's mordant eye remains as keen as ever: "You okay, John?" Curt reached out a hand and touched his shoulder. Rebus shook his head slowly, eyes squeezed shut. Curt didn't make it out the first time, so Rebus had to repeat what he said next: "I don't believe in heaven." That was the horror of it. This life was the only one you got. No redemption afterwards, no chance of wiping the slate clean and starting over. Rebus said "There is no justice in the world." "You'd know more about that than I would", Curt replied.
--Barry Forshaw
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Review
'The scene setting is vivid and the narration by a Scot, actor James Macpherson, essential to bringing the story to life.' www.FromBumptoGrump.co.uk --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Review
It may be the 12th time out for Rankin's maverick detective, but The Falls still feels as fresh as ever . . . If you haven't read the other 11 Rebus novels, it's about time you did (THE MIRROR)
The Falls, the 12th full-length Inspector Rebus story, finds his creator, Ian Rankin, at his brilliant, mordant best, with the dark heart of the city featuring almost as strongly as Rebus himself (Antonia Fraser SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)
A complex mystery novel, as you would expect from Rankin, one of a handful of truly outstanding British mystery writers . . . Terrific (OBSERVER)
An extraordinarily rich addition to crime literature (INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY)
Rankin continues to be unsurpassed among living British crime writers . . . He makes the reader feel part of the scene, and enhances the experience with his virtuosity with dialogue . . . But all these virtues would count for little if Rankin didn't also possess the most important asset of them all - the ability to tell a damned good story (Marcel Berlins THE TIMES)
A very skilful entertainment . . . its clues are as learned and cross-word-puzzling as any in John Buchan (TLS)
The Falls is an inventive and absorbing book . . . Once again the city, cast in shadows and light, is centre stage, as complex and brooding as Rebus himself . . . Ian Rankin, a crime writer with style, has produced another highly enjoyable and exciting book (THE SCOTSMAN)
It is a fact universally acknowledged that Ian Rankin leads the field in the category of British humanistic crime writing . . . his ability to wrap together diverse ingredients into a plot-sandwich bulging with flavour is ingenious (SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY)
Rankin has an intuitive grasp of the dark magic of narrative: at its simplest, you read the books because you want to know what will happen. He writes beautifully, too . . . Few would disagree that Ian Rankin is making a contribution to crime fiction that will last. His novels are playing a significant part in redefining Scotland's image of itself in literature. He is one of a handful of British crime writes whose books are not only commercially successful but also build a strong case for why crime fiction, at its best, can and should be considered as literature (INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY)
Whatever it is that makes a good crime writer, Ian Rankin has it in spades (IRISH TIMES) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From the Inside Flap
Outstanding Praise For Ian Rankin And His Award-Winning Rebus Novels
"A modern Dickens...A remarkable achievement."-The Daily Mail
"A dark and gritty read that never disappoints."--San Francisco Chronicle/Examiner
Set In Darkness
"Rebus is surely one of the most rounded, warts-and-all characters in modern crime fiction...those who want to plunge deeply into a world of convincing characters and brilliantly rendered atmospherics can't do much better than this."-Washington Post Book World
"Ian Rankin is one of the shrewdest writers working the mystery turf."-Chicago Tribune
"The Falls...pushes all the crime fiction buttons while delivering the heady whiff of real life as it is lived. Pity readers of 'serious' fiction who would look down their noses at this gritty detective story. They don't know what they're missing."-Philadelphia Inquirer
"Brilliant...mesmerizing...think Patricia Cornwell/Kay Scarpetta with a bit of Walter Mosley tossed in."-Fort Worth Morning Star-Telegram
"Mr. Rankin has created a character in John Rebus who makes crime fiction a joy to read."
--Dallas Morning News
"Gritty...intensely paced...powerful."-Cleveland Plain Dealer
"Sharply plotted...among the most consistently well-plotted, fully realized series in the genre. Rankin is at the top of his form in The Falls."-Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
"The plot is worthy of the series: raging and racing and teetering on the edge of falling apart, before Rankin slams the reader with a final masterful twist."-Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Set in Darkness is filled with memorable sequences, well-drawn characters, and enough Scots words...to make some readers think of John Buchan's Thirty Nine Steps."-Wall Street Journal
"Gritty...atmospheric...you can't go wrong with Rankin."-Orlando Sentinel
"[A] consistent level of excellence unmatched in the field of British crime fiction."-The Times of London
"Rankin's best novel to date."-New Statesman
"A series whose time has come...complex, humane, and gripping, this is a perfect introduction to the art of Ian Rankin, head capo of the Scots mystery MacMafia."-Manchester Guardian
"One of the very best practitioners of police procedurals around today." -Library Journal, starred review
"Like Philip Marlowe, Rebus is a knight in search of a hidden truth'."-Newark Star Ledger
"A novelist of great scope, depth, and power...brilliant."-Jonathan Kellerman
"Ian Rankin brings a compelling voice to the genre." -BookPage
"The murder mystery is intelligent and entertaining, and the characters...retain that feeling of genuineness while dealing with power-struggles and intrigue."-BookBrowser
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From the Back Cover
"A...beautifully written series." -The New York Times Book Review
When the privileged daughter of a merchant banker disappears, a search through her e-mails uncovers her secret life-and a bizarre correspondence with an on-line game player who delights in macabre puzzles. The first game was for the girl. The next one is for Inspector John Rebus, a man haunted by the impenetrable riddles of his own troubled past. But the lead is soon complicated by an unexpected twist.
"Rankin is the master of the moody, modern police procedural, working on the same high plateau as Ruth Rendell, Reginald Hill, and P.D. James." -The Wall Street Journal
A hand-carved wooden doll in an eight-inch coffin is found on the grounds of the victim's home-a clue that links her vanishing to the deaths of four other women, and to a centuries-old offense that still scars the grisly history of Edinburgh.
"[A] Brilliant Series."-Entertainment Weekly
From the shadowy world of an Internet stalker to the quicksand of lies in the missing girl's dissolute family, Rebus is led into the soul of evil. And to a shattering crime that only he, a man who treads the fine line between investigative brilliance and personal oblivion, could ever hope to understand.
"Finish one of Rankin's book, and you'll feel you've been taken inside the river body of Edinburgh from top to the darkest bottom, a journey that calls Charles Dickens and Wilke Collins to mind as often as it does Inspector Morse." -Los Angeles Times
--This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Review
It may be the 12th time out for Rankin's maverick detective, but The Falls still feels as fresh as ever . . . If you haven't read the other 11 Rebus novels, it's about time you did (THE MIRROR)
The Falls, the 12th full-length Inspector Rebus story, finds his creator, Ian Rankin, at his brilliant, mordant best, with the dark heart of the city featuring almost as strongly as Rebus himself (Antonia Fraser SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)
A complex mystery novel, as you would expect from Rankin, one of a handful of truly outstanding British mystery writers . . . Terrific (OBSERVER)
An extraordinarily rich addition to crime literature (INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY)
Rankin continues to be unsurpassed among living British crime writers . . . He makes the reader feel part of the scene, and enhances the experience with his virtuosity with dialogue . . . But all these virtues would count for little if Rankin didn't also possess the most important asset of them all - the ability to tell a damned good story (Marcel Berlins THE TIMES)
A very skilful entertainment . . . its clues are as learned and cross-word-puzzling as any in John Buchan (TLS)
The Falls is an inventive and absorbing book . . . Once again the city, cast in shadows and light, is centre stage, as complex and brooding as Rebus himself . . . Ian Rankin, a crime writer with style, has produced another highly enjoyable and exciting book (THE SCOTSMAN)
It is a fact universally acknowledged that Ian Rankin leads the field in the category of British humanistic crime writing . . . his ability to wrap together diverse ingredients into a plot-sandwich bulging with flavour is ingenious (SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY)
Rankin has an intuitive grasp of the dark magic of narrative: at its simplest, you read the books because you want to know what will happen. He writes beautifully, too . . . Few would disagree that Ian Rankin is making a contribution to crime fiction that will last. His novels are playing a significant part in redefining Scotland's image of itself in literature. He is one of a handful of British crime writes whose books are not only commercially successful but also build a strong case for why crime fiction, at its best, can and should be considered as literature (INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY)
Whatever it is that makes a good crime writer, Ian Rankin has it in spades (IRISH TIMES) --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. Book Description
The twelfth Inspector Rebus bestseller - a powerfully gripping novel where past and present collide... Unabridged edition. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Born in the Kingdom of Fife in 1960, Ian Rankin graduated from the University of Edinburgh in 1982, and then spent three years writing novels when he was supposed to be working towards a PhD in Scottish Literature. His first Rebus novel was published in 1987, and the Rebus books are now translated into thirty-six languages and are bestsellers worldwide.Ian Rankin has been elected a Hawthornden Fellow, and is also a past winner of the Chandler-Fulbright Award. He is the recipient of four Crime Writers' Association Dagger Awards including the prestigious Diamond Dagger in 2005. In 2004, Ian won America's celebrated Edgar Award for Resurrection Men. He has also been shortlisted for the Anthony Award in the USA, won Denmark's Palle Rosenkrantz Prize, the French Grand Prix du Roman Noir and the Deutscher Krimipreis. Ian Rankin is also the recipient of honorary degrees from the universities of Abertay, St Andrews, Edinburgh, Hull and the Open University.A contributor to BBC2's Newsnight Review, he also presented his own TV series, Ian Rankin's Evil Thoughts. Rankin is a number one bestseller in the UK and has received the OBE for services to literature, opting to receive the prize in his home city of Edinburgh, where he lives with his partner and two sons. www.ianrankin.net Twitter @Beathhigh --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
The Falls is an inventive and absorbing book . . . Once again the city, cast in shadows and light, is centre stage, as complex and brooding as Rebus himself . . . Ian Rankin, a crime writer with style, has produced another highly enjoyable and exciting book * THE SCOTSMAN * An extraordinarily rich addition to crime literature * INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY * A very skilful entertainment . . . its clues are as learned and cross-word-puzzling as any in John Buchan * TLS * Rankin has an intuitive grasp of the dark magic of narrative: at its simplest, you read the books because you want to know what will happen. He writes beautifully, too . . . Few would disagree that Ian Rankin is making a contribution to crime fiction that will last. His novels are playing a significant part in redefining Scotland's image of itself in literature. He is one of a handful of British crime writes whose books are not only commercially successful but also build a strong case for why crime fiction, at its best, can and should be considered as literature * INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY * A complex mystery novel, as you would expect from Rankin, one of a handful of truly outstanding British mystery writers . . . Terrific * OBSERVER * This is the 12th novel featuring Inspector Rebus, one of the undoubted stars of modern British crime fiction . . . Ian Rankin is a first-rate storyteller in the classic mould, but what really distinguishes his work is his gift for characterisation * MAIL ON SUNDAY * The Falls, the 12th full-length Inspector Rebus story, finds his creator, Ian Rankin, at his brilliant, mordant best, with the dark heart of the city featuring almost as strongly as Rebus himself -- Antonia Fraser * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH * It may be the 12th time out for Rankin's maverick detective, but The Falls still feels as fresh as ever . . . If you haven't read the other 11 Rebus novels, it's about time you did * THE MIRROR * Rankin masterfully pulls his fascinating plot together, and his sense of place casts a powerful shadow on this subtle tale of the recurrence of evil. The unopposed champion of the British police procedural field * GUARDIAN * Rankin continues to be unsurpassed among living British crime writers . . . He makes the reader feel part of the scene, and enhances the experience with his virtuosity with dialogue . . . But all these virtues would count for little if Rankin didn't also possess the most important asset of them all - the ability to tell a damned good story -- Marcel Berlins * THE TIMES * It is a fact universally acknowledged that Ian Rankin leads the field in the category of British humanistic crime writing . . . his ability to wrap together diverse ingredients into a plot-sandwich bulging with flavour is ingenious * SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY * Whatever it is that makes a good crime writer, Ian Rankin has it in spades * IRISH TIMES * --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
![The Falls: From the iconic #1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES (Inspector Rebus Book 12) by [Ian Rankin]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/516-ySA+X1L._SY346_.jpg)
