 First edition | |
| Author | Ian Rankin |
|---|---|
| Country | Scotland |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Detective novel |
| Publisher | Orion Books |
Publication date | 3 September 2009 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 381 pp |
| ISBN | 0-7528-8951-6 |
| Followed by | The Impossible Dead |
The Complaints is a novel by Scottish crime writer Ian Rankin. It was published in the United Kingdom on 3 September 2009.
Detective Inspector Malcolm Fox works in the Complaints and Conduct Department of Lothian and Borders Police, members of which are invariably treated with suspicion and hostility by regular police officers. Fox and his team are tasked with investigating Detective Sergeant Jamie Breck, suspected of being a member of a child pornography ring. However, Breck is in turn investigating the death of Vince Faulkner, who was in an abusive relationship with Fox's sister. This brings Fox into direct contact with Breck, and as he develops both a friendship and a working relationship with him he begins to doubt the validity of his assignment. Despite his personal connection to the case, and against protocol, Fox gets involved in the investigation into Faulkner's death. This brings him into conflict with Breck's superior officer, who harbours a dislike of Fox for investigating a corrupt officer under his command.
Eventually, Fox and Breck are both suspended and Fox himself is placed under investigation. However, they continue to investigate Faulkner's death, discovering that he had links to a bankrupt property developer who appears to have committed suicide. This leads to further links to members of the criminal underworld, and in turn to a senior member of the police force, who is found to be responsible for having Breck framed and for having Fox placed under investigation.
The action of The Complaints takes place on February 3-24, 2009, with the days specified by the book's sections. Dividing a larger number of chapters into groupings under the date and day of the week is a practice Rankin used in the two previous Rebus novels, The Naming of the Dead (July 1-9, 2005, the week of the real-life G8 Summit in Edinburgh) and Exit Music (November 15-27, 2006, roughly Rebus's last week before his retirement). In the case of The Complaints, the dates place the action at a moment when the effects of the Great Recession of 2007-2008 are impacting Scottish banking, real estate, and underworld activities. [1] As in the Rebus novels, Rankin offers a temporally precise topography of the city of Edinburgh, including in this case the disruption of traffic by the construction of the Edinburgh Trams. [2] He refers to Edinburgh's real-life police stations and districts by name, and the officers by their correct titles and ranks, providing continuity with Rebus's world.
The office of Complaints and Conduct is a presence in the Rebus novels, with Rebus himself investigated by a Complaints officer, Mullen, in A Question of Blood. However, Mullen does not appear in The Complaints, nor does any other named character from the Rebus novels. Notably, the benign DI Shug Davidson of Exit Music has been replaced at Torphichen (West End) station by the egregious "Bad Billy" Giles, and the elderly Jack Broughton operates in the Edinburgh underworld without reference to "Big Ger" Cafferty, who dominates that world in the Rebus novels. Although Siobhan Clarke, at the end of Exit Music, implies that a treacherous constable will be turned over to the Complaints, Rankin does not take the opportunity to establish continuity with the Rebus novels by mentioning the case.
The only possible reference to John Rebus is Fox's recollection that "One cop he'd known had been offered a promotion to pastures new but had asked for it to be offered to a rival. Why? To move the bastard on...." [3] In Let it Bleed (1996), Rebus asks that a promotion offered to him (at a station far from Edinburgh) be given instead to DI Alister Flower, a problematic member of the CID at St. Leonard's, Edinburgh police station.
Detective Inspector John Rebus is the protagonist in the Inspector Rebus series of detective novels by the Scottish writer Sir Ian Rankin, ten of which have so far been televised as Rebus. The novels are mostly set in and around Edinburgh. Rebus has been portrayed by John Hannah and Ken Stott for Television, with Ron Donachie playing the character for the BBC Radio dramatisations.
Sir Ian James Rankin is a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels.
The Inspector Rebus books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Sir Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh.
Knots and Crosses is a 1987 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the first of the Inspector Rebus novels. It was written while Rankin was a postgraduate student at the University of Edinburgh. In the introduction to this novel, Rankin states that Rebus lives directly opposite the window in Marchmont that he looked out of while writing the book.
Hide and Seek is a 1991 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the second of the Inspector Rebus novels. This novel is not to be confused with James Patterson's 1996 novel Hide and Seek.
Strip Jack is a 1992 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the fourth of the Inspector Rebus novels.
Let it Bleed is a 1995 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the seventh of the Inspector Rebus novels. The US edition has a final chapter which the UK edition does not have, as the author's 'Introduction' explains.
Black & Blue is a 1997 crime novel by Ian Rankin. The eighth of the Inspector Rebus novels, it was the first to be adapted in the Rebus television series starring John Hannah, airing in 2000.
The Hanging Garden is a 1998 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the ninth of the Inspector Rebus novels. It was the second episode in the Rebus television series starring John Hannah, airing in 2001.
Set in Darkness is a 2000 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the eleventh of the Inspector Rebus novels. It won the 2005 Grand Prix du Roman Policier (France) under the title Du fond des ténèbres.
Resurrection Men is a 2002 novel by Ian Rankin. It is the thirteenth of the Inspector Rebus novels. It won the Edgar Award for Best Novel in 2004.
The Falls is a 2001 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the twelfth of the Inspector Rebus novels.
The Naming of the Dead is a crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the sixteenth of the Inspector Rebus novels. It is set in Edinburgh in July 2005, in the week of the G8 summit in Gleneagles.
Exit Music is the seventeenth crime novel in the internationally bestselling Inspector Rebus series, written by Ian Rankin. It was published on 6 September 2007. The book is named after the Radiohead song "Exit Music ".
The Impossible Dead is a novel written by the Scottish author, Ian Rankin. It is the sequel to the previous novel, The Complaints. Like the previous book the crime thriller theme is continued throughout and outlines an investigation carried out by the protagonist, Malcolm Fox.
Standing in Another Man's Grave is the eighteenth instalment in the bestselling Inspector Rebus series of crime novels, published in 2012. The title of the book is a mondegreen, Rankin having misheard the Scottish singer songwriter Jackie Leven singing "Standing in Another Man's Rain", which mistake he gives to Rebus. Excerpts from Leven's songs appear with each division of the book.
Rather Be the Devil is the 21st instalment in the Inspector Rebus series of crime novels, published in November 2016. Rather Be the Devil topped the bestseller charts for hardback fiction. The title was inspired by a John Martyn song from his 1973 album Solid Air.
In a House of Lies is the 22nd instalment in the Inspector Rebus series written by Ian Rankin. In a House of Lies entered the hardback chart at No. 1 on the first week of its release.
A Song for the Dark Times is the 23rd installment in the Inspector Rebus series written by Ian Rankin. Retired John Rebus investigates the disappearance and death of his daughter's partner Keith Grant. Malcolm Fox and Detective Inspector Siobhan Clarke (Shiv) are major players in a parallel investigation, and 'Big Ger' Cafferty is also involved with Fox.