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Ian Rankin recommends a gritty crime novel and a Jilly Cooper romance

December 14, 2024

Ian Rankin is the best-selling author of the Inspector Rebus mysteries and other books. A multiple-award winner, the Edinburgh-based novelist has received an OBE and knighthood for his service to literature. Early one morning while traveling in Paris recently, Rankin took the Q&A and shared a wealth of book recommendations and more.

Q. Please tell readers about your new Rebus novel, “Midnight and Blue.”

“Midnight and Blue” sees retired cop John Rebus imprisoned for murder. He is surrounded by people who mistrust him, hate him, wish harm on him. But when a seemingly impossible crime takes place in a locked cell Rebus is best placed to solve it before the prison erupts.

Q. How challenging is it to deal with changing technology as you write your books?

Technology does give me headaches. Cellphones and surveillance have to be taken into account. Scientific methods of crime-solving evolve rapidly. Vehicles have trackers et cetera. Detailing all of this can become tedious for the reader so I tend to mention it in passing while my main characters focus on the physical detecting.

Q. Music has been an important part of the Rebus books as well as your life. Can you talk about how your use of music has informed the books over time?

Like many authors, I am a frustrated rock star. I bring music into my books to help me get over that fact. And because there is so much music in my books, musicians have become fans and in some cases I have been able to work with them. I interviewed Van Morrison onstage, wrote lyrics for The Charlatans, and made an album with the late great Jackie Leven.

Q. Is there a book or books you always recommend to other readers?

My favourite book is probably “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” by Muriel Spark, a masterclass in concision. It’s only 125 pages long but it is morally and structurally complex, funny and tragic, and says a lot about Edinburgh and Scotland.

I met the author once and got her to sign my copy.

Q. What are you reading now?

I’ve just finished reading “White City” by Dominic Nolan. If James Ellroy were English and writing about London in the 1950s, this would be his book. It’s tough-minded, poetic and bloody, and twistily plotted.

Q. How do you decide what to read next?

I have piles of books waiting to be read. If I’m travelling I might slip a slim novel into my pocket. Or a cover or title might pique my interest.

Q. Do you remember the first book that made an impact on you?

“A Clockwork Orange” by Anthony Burgess. A friend loaned me his copy in high school. The film wasn’t available to view in the U.K. and I knew it was a controversial book. But it was also an experimental novel in terms of its language. It showed me what literature could do. It lit a flame.

Q. Is there a book you’re nervous to read?

I’m always nervous to read the latest book by authors I hold in high esteem – especially if I know them personally! Because at some point I’ll meet them and they’ll ask me what I think. Please be good, I tell the book as I open it…

Q. Can you recall a book that felt like it was written with you in mind?

My wife and I were snowed in one winter in rural France. The only book in the house I hadn’t read was my wife’s copy of “Rivals” by Jilly Cooper – a frothy concoction set in a mythically posh England with lots of romance, sex and intrigue – not my usual fare! But I devoured it and have reread it with pleasure since. You never know what type of book might be just your thing!

Q. What’s something – a fact, a bit of dialogue or something else – that has stayed with you from a recent reading?

I reread “The Big Sleep” by Raymond Chandler recently and the opening paragraph is just perfect. We learn a lot about the detective Marlowe from his clothes choices. Then we learn he is about to commence work on a case involving big money. The reader has to read on. We’ve been hooked.

Q. Do you have any favorite book covers?

I remember at high school we studied “Catch-22.” The cover contained no clues, just the title. I was intrigued. I wanted to know what was inside those pages.

Q. Do you listen to audiobooks? If so, are there any titles or narrators you’d recommend?

I don’t listen to audiobooks but when my son was small we had the [U.K. edition] Harry Potter cassettes narrated by Stephen Fry and he was unimprovable.

Q. Is there a genre or type of book you read the most – and what would you like to read more of?

I read mostly crime fiction and literary fiction. I’d like to read more historical non-fiction but I find that my mind wanders, just as it did in lecture theatres!

Q. Which books are you planning to read next?

I’m about to start reading “Tommy the Bruce” by James Yorkston. James is a very fine Scottish musician who’s also a nifty novelist.

Q. Do you have a favorite character or quote from a book?

My favourite character has to be John Rebus (sorry). I wouldn’t have spent 40 years of my life with him if that weren’t the case!

Q. Is there a person who made an impact on your reading life – a teacher, a parent, a librarian or someone else?

I had a terrific English teacher at high school, Mr. Gillespie. He taught us that great song lyrics are poetry. He also admired my earliest attempts at fiction writing.

Q.What do you find the most appealing in a book: the plot, the language, the cover, a recommendation? Do you have any examples?

I’m a plot guy. I want a good story that keeps me on my toes and hungry to know what happens next. I remember reading Gillian Flynn’s “Gone Girl” and thinking at the end – how did the author do that? So I started again from the beginning, this time reading it as an author rather than a reader.

Q. What’s a memorable book experience – good or bad – you’re willing to share?

My wife and I went on safari in Kenya some years back. I needed a long book so packed “War and Peace.” At night it was stiflingly hot in our tent and I would read aloud the sections set during the Russian winter – this was our equivalent of air conditioning!

Q. Do you have a favorite bookstore or bookstore experience?

We are blessed in Edinburgh to have several independent book stores. I use The Edinburgh Bookshop most frequently as it is closest to my home.

Q. What’s something about your book that no one knows?

The character of Christine Esson (one of my detectives) is a real person. She’s a local businesswoman who paid at a charity auction to become a character in my book.

Q. If you could ask your readers something, what would it be?

What is it about John Rebus that you like? I find him complicated and sometimes infuriating. And yet…

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