I’m a very ordered person and a bit of a collector so when I read a particular author’s novels I like to do so in the correct sequence. Consequently, I was mortified (well perhaps that’s a bit of an overstatement) when I discovered recently that my gradual sequential reading of Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels was not quite as sequential as I thought it was. It turned out that four or five Rebus novels ago I missed a chunk of the series out – I don’t know why or how, but now I have to fill in that gap, and that meant going back to Mortal Causes. It was classic Rebus, centred on the sectarian issues that divide Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland cropping up in the context of Scottish Nationalism. So there is a gruesome punishment killing at the start and then a series of bomb threats relating to Edinburgh Festival venues, a particularly nasty villain and the usual mix of curious characters. Was it good? Well it’s Ian Rankin and Rebus so, of course, the answer is yes although I wouldn’t class it as one of the more gripping or intriguing stories in the series.
Tim O'Hare 