Ian Rankin’s novels featuring the wry, damaged detective John Rebus have been with us since Knots and Crosses appeared in 1987. A new extended interview by Mark Lawson asks who is Rebus after 25 years?
“A character that changes through the course of the series … a cipher in the first books … but also an outsider within the legal limits of the law”. Ian goes on to explore with candour how Rebus carries in his soul part of society’s depravity from dealing with criminal behaviour – “the darkness at his core that isn’t allowed to escape” .
Over the course of the series the author tries to change Rebus’s mind about the world.
The 45 minute interview is available here.
Scorpion Press has published Rebus novels, a short story collection and an anthology. The most recent is Standing in Another Man’s Grave (2012).