“The Naming of the Dead,” by Ian Rankin

FM's ratings:

1.      Premise 7

2.      Prose 8

3.      Plot 7

4.      Characters 9

5.      Overall 7

Comments (optional - but try to keep it under 3000 words!)

It could just be me.  I have read somewhere around 10 different John Rebus Series books by Ian Rankin, and might be getting just a bit jaded.  The characters, as always, are compelling; not the least of which is Rebus himself.  The premise here is almost run-of-the-mill murder mystery content with some mildly interesting twists.  The prose, especially the dialog, is very good, but there is a sense of aimlessness that I didn’t notice so much in other books in this series.  Rebus’s intuitive flashes of insight are here, but not as dramatic as usual.  These novels, especially the later ones, tend to be a little long, as if the weight of the book lends weight to the story.  I think that actually works for many readers, but I like my fiction a little more streamlined.  A book this long needs to have some extremely unexpected plot twists to keep me interested, and they just aren’t here.  If you have never read a Rebus novel, I wouldn’t start with this one.  Try the very first one, “Knots and Crosses” or, more recently, “Standing in Another Man’s Grave.”