Ian Rankin: Knots And Crosses

In what ways does Knots amp; Crosses reveal the passage of time since it was written?

Rebus’s relationship with his brother Michael isn’t easy; is this a metaphor for the difficulties Rebus faces regarding other sorts of ‘brotherhood’, such as within the police force or the army?

Ian Rankin refers several times to ‘practical jokes’; in Knots amp; Crosses how does he explore themes of jokes, games and linguistic trickery?

Are the skills of journalist Jim Stevens mirrored by those of Rebus? Do the two men respect the similarities between them? And what do they each feel about drawing close to the ‘big fish’? Does the act of reading a crime story put the reader in a similar role to that of either detective or investigative journalist and, if so, in what way?

What contrasts does Jim Stevens make between ‘old-fashioned’ crime, such as the ‘families’ of 1950s Glasgow gangsters, and the ‘new’ crime wave, such as drug-dealing? And which does he favour?

What do you make of Rebus’s behaviour towards the woman he picks up at the Rio Grande Bingo Hall?

‘Was nothing arbitrary in this life?’ Rebus wonders. ‘No, nothing at all. Behind the seemingly irrational lay the clear golden path of the design.’ Consider how even in his debut novel Ian Rankin explores this notion.

Are there any signs remaining that Ian Rankin toyed with the idea of killing Rebus off at the end of Knots amp; Crosses?

If Ian Rankin had envisaged Knots amp; Crosses to be the opener for the lengthy and detailed series the Rebus books were to become, how could he have allowed his plotting to draw to a close in a more open-ended manner? And might this have made the narrative stronger ultimately?

01. Knots & Crosses 1987

02. Hide & Seek

03. Tooth & Nail

04. Strip Jack

05. The Black Book

06. Mortal Causes

07. Let It Bleed

08. Black & Blue

09. The Hanging Garden

10. Death Is Not the End ( novella )

11. Dead Souls

12. Set in Darkness

13. The Falls

14. Resurrection Men

15. A Question of Blood

16. Fleshmarket Close

17. The Naming of the Dead

18. Exit Music

The Flood

Watchman

Westwind

Witch Hunt

Bleeding Hearts

Blood Hunt

A Good Hanging and Other

Stories

Beggars Banquet

Rebus: The Early Years

(Knots & Crosses, Hide & Seek, Tooth & Nail)

Rebus: The St Leonard’s Years

(Strip Jack, The Black Book, Mortal Causes)

Rebus: The Lost Years

(Let It Bleed, Black & Blue, The Hanging Garden)

Rebus: Capital Crimes

(Dead Souls, Set in Darkness, The Falls)

Rebus’s Scotland