Ian Rankin assumes that Edinburgh’s most famous fictional detective wouldn’t like him very much. Rankin may have devoted the past 20 years of his life to creating Detective Inspector John Rebus, but he thinks Rebus would find him too tame, too nice, perhaps unable to keep up, pint for pint, at the pub. But the fictional John Rebus is wise enough to know that Rankin has just been using him all these years to explore places in Edinburgh only a cop can go.
Rankin picked a policeman as his protagonist and murder as each book’s plotline, but it’s all centered in the city of Edinburgh. Rankin takes pains to depict the city in careful detail, so much so that it becomes a well developed character in the series. Opening a file on Ian Rankin, his detective and his city.
Guests:
Ian Rankin, best-selling Scottish mystery writer. His most recent book is “Fleshmarket Alley: An Inspector Rebus Novel”. He won the 2004 Edgar Award for Best Novel.