The king of Tartan Noir. Rankin's Inspector Rebus — hard-drinking, rule-breaking, Edinburgh born and bred — is one of crime fiction's most beloved detectives and the definitive portrait of a city.
About Ian Rankin
Ian Rankin (born 1960) is Scotland's best-selling author and the undisputed master of "Tartan Noir" — crime fiction set against the specific social and political landscape of Scotland. His Inspector Rebus series has sold over 30 million copies worldwide.
Rankin began the Rebus series in 1987 as a young postgraduate student, and the novels grew in ambition alongside his career. Rebus is inseparable from Edinburgh — Rankin uses crime as a lens to examine Scottish society, from sectarianism to devolution to the 2008 financial crisis.
After "retiring" Rebus in Exit Music (2007), reader demand brought him back in Standing in Another Man's Grave (2012). Rankin has continued publishing new Rebus novels alongside Malcolm Fox books, with the two characters now regularly appearing together.
Start Here
Knots and Crosses
The novel that introduced Inspector John Rebus. A serial killer is targeting young girls in Edinburgh — and Rebus's own past may be connected. A tighter, darker noir than the later books, but the essential starting point.
There are 24 Inspector Rebus novels as of 2025, with Rankin showing no signs of stopping.
Each works as a standalone, but Rebus ages and Edinburgh changes throughout the series. Reading in order rewards you with a richer portrait of both.
Black and Blue (1997) won the Gold Dagger and is most critics' choice for his best. The Falls and Resurrection Men are also excellent mid-series entries.
Yes. Fox and Rebus eventually appear together in the same novels — Fox represents the institutional side of policing that Rebus constantly butts against.