CRIME-“MYSTERY Set In Darkness Ian Rankin (Orion £16.99) firt‘kt
Set In Darkness is Ian Rankin's eleventh Inspector Rebus novel,
and sees Edinburgh's favourite
crime-solving anti-hero plunged once more into the seedy underworld of Scotland's capital. This time, the inevitable murders and mystery are linked to the setting up of the first Scottish Parliament in 300 years, and the influx of money and power which it will bring.
The book sets off at a cracking rate, with bodies piling up in the first few chapters. A suicide and two murders separated by twenty years seem unconnected at first, but gradually and inevitably intertwine to reveal sinister goings-on from people in power across the city. Running parallel to the excellently paced plot is the
RA‘xKlN AND REBUS - NUMBER O-Nf BESTSELLERS
k
New Town, top Rankin: Set In Darkness
theme of Scotland's national identity, its past and future, its regeneration
and re-evaluation.
Throughout, Rankin imbues Rebus with his usual mix of quick wit and self-loathing. Plagued by ghosts from the past, a system he hates and a history of failed relationships, the inspector endearingly stumbles drunkenly through the story, analysing his own failings and raising the
hackles of others.
More so than most Rebus adventures, the story’s location in Edinburgh
is vital. All the scenes are placed skilfully and precisely. hardly a page going by without mention of a well-known pub, restaurant or landmark. Set In Darkness sees Rankin in impeccable form and will undoubtedly please his legions of fans and increase his appeal even further.
(Doug Johnstone) I Set In Darkness is published on Thu 77 Feb.
HISTORICAL ROMANCE City Of Light
Lauren Belfer (Sceptre £6.99) **
I-./\[’l\’l{.\' Bljlllik’
Louise Barrett is an anomaly in turn of the century Buffalo, New York. A professional woman of independent financial means, she is privy to the
secrets of some of Buffalo’s most
carry the literary weight of Ragtime nor
powerful citizens, while concealing her own less than sensational skeleton-in- closet.
Lauren Belfer’s debut novel might have been part E.L. Doctorow, part James EIIroy, but City Of Light doesn’t
does it pack the crime fiction punch of LA. Confidential. Belfer's period detail is thorough, but her stOrytelling is
l watered-down by Barbara Cartland-
style romance prose. Mysterious women and corruption in
high places aside, as hard not to be
turned off by lines like: 'I felt as if I was trapped between his body and the wall. He was tall — over six feet, Margaret had told me —- and strong.’ For Babs fans, only. (MF)
HISTORICAL DRAMA
The Poisonwood Bible
Barbara Kingsolver (Faber £7.99)
* ‘k ‘k ‘k *
When Baptist preacher Nathan Price takes his wife and daughters to the Belgian Congo in 1959, the blind folly
' of his Christian zeal has tragic
consequences for the colonisers and colonised alike. In the decades to follow, his family must try and reconcile themselves with their own choices as well as with the implications of their missionary past.
A historical confession of our own complicity as well as an exploration of family politics, The Poisonwood Bible is an epic novel with a brilliance and moral complexity that matches writer Barbara Kingsolver’s detailed research
and poetic ambition.
The author’s major triumph here is her quick-smart diversion within the literary terrain. While her previous books were smart and quirky,
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STAR RATINGS * t * i * Outstanding * *ir * Recommended it t 1: Worth a try * i So-so * Poor
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