What should I read after Inspector Rebus?
February 15, 2017 3:18 AM Subscribe
I have read all of the Inspector Rebus novels by Ian Rankin. What should I read next in the detective fiction genre?
What I liked about Inspector Rebus series was not just the police procedural bit, but also the rest of the atmosphere of Edinburgh/Scotland and the placing of the crimes/stories in the context of the times. I would like to read something similar, preferably British detective fiction. It should be a series and not just a one-off novel. Thank you.
What I liked about Inspector Rebus series was not just the police procedural bit, but also the rest of the atmosphere of Edinburgh/Scotland and the placing of the crimes/stories in the context of the times. I would like to read something similar, preferably British detective fiction. It should be a series and not just a one-off novel. Thank you.
Best answer: You might enjoy the Shetland novels by Ann Cleeves. A different but also very atmospheric / evocative Scottish setting - similar tone & material to Rebus.
posted by rd45 at 3:41 AM on February 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by rd45 at 3:41 AM on February 15, 2017 [4 favorites]
Sharing the modern Scottish thematic setting are Chris Brookmyre's novels. They have a number of lead characters and recurring characters. Mostly they are humorous/left leaning satirical takes on criminal acts but more recently they have been straight up crime related novels.
posted by biffa at 3:51 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by biffa at 3:51 AM on February 15, 2017
Best answer: The Inspector Banks series by Peter Robinson is a long-running police procedural series set in Yorkshire. It reminds me a lot of the Rebus books.
posted by Daily Alice at 4:20 AM on February 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Daily Alice at 4:20 AM on February 15, 2017 [2 favorites]
A. D. Scott's Highland Gazette series is a great snapshot of a period in recent history. Centres around a woman reporter in a small town.
posted by chapps at 4:28 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by chapps at 4:28 AM on February 15, 2017
Seconding Reginald Hill and Anne Cleeves.
Maybe give Elly Griffiths a try too.
posted by BoscosMom at 4:46 AM on February 15, 2017
Maybe give Elly Griffiths a try too.
posted by BoscosMom at 4:46 AM on February 15, 2017
Best answer: Ken Bruen's books (check the Jack Taylor series) are a little darker--okay, significantly darker--than the Rebus books, but they seem like something you might enjoy.
posted by box at 4:58 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by box at 4:58 AM on February 15, 2017
Tana French, though she's Irish. Probably Susan Hill.
posted by jeather at 5:40 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by jeather at 5:40 AM on February 15, 2017
Thirding the Dalziel and Pascoe novels.
They are chronological, so it's probably better to read them in sequence after a point (probably Dialogues of the Dead) although before then you switch around pretty easily. A good place to dip your toe in the water is The Wood Beyond (the first one I read). Having said that, they're all pretty good. An Advancement of Learning (second in the series) is actually pretty key, as one of the main characters reappears 20 odd years down the line in the series.
posted by Hartster at 5:58 AM on February 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
They are chronological, so it's probably better to read them in sequence after a point (probably Dialogues of the Dead) although before then you switch around pretty easily. A good place to dip your toe in the water is The Wood Beyond (the first one I read). Having said that, they're all pretty good. An Advancement of Learning (second in the series) is actually pretty key, as one of the main characters reappears 20 odd years down the line in the series.
posted by Hartster at 5:58 AM on February 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Best answer: If you enjoy detective novels firmly grounded in a finely-drawn sense of place, I recommend the Kate Shugak series from Dana Stabenow. The entire series is brilliant.
posted by DarlingBri at 6:15 AM on February 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by DarlingBri at 6:15 AM on February 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
Best answer: ooo, I've got this: Denise Mina. She has three different character series, set in Glasgow. The "Alex Morrow" one features a policewoman but they are all worth reading.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 7:32 AM on February 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by TWinbrook8 at 7:32 AM on February 15, 2017 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Tana French, as noted above, has a set of books broadly known as the "Dublin Murder Squad" books; they're related, but each takes a different policeman as the focal character as time passes. The first, In The Woods (2007), is from the point of view of Rob Ryan; the second (The Likeness, 2008) shifts and takes Ryan's partner Cassie Maddox as the POV on a later case. The third is from the POV of Cassie's former undercover mentor, and so forth.
I read the first one around the same time I was sampling the Rebus books, and found it both (a) similar in flavor but (b) much deeper and more rewarding than the first couple Rebus stories. YMMV of course, but she's definitely worth checking out.
There are currently "only" six of these, but she's still writing them.
BTW, she's not actually born-there Irish; she's an American expat who's lived in Dublin since 1990.
posted by uberchet at 7:37 AM on February 15, 2017
I read the first one around the same time I was sampling the Rebus books, and found it both (a) similar in flavor but (b) much deeper and more rewarding than the first couple Rebus stories. YMMV of course, but she's definitely worth checking out.
There are currently "only" six of these, but she's still writing them.
BTW, she's not actually born-there Irish; she's an American expat who's lived in Dublin since 1990.
posted by uberchet at 7:37 AM on February 15, 2017
The Erast Fandorin mysteries by Boris Akunin are amazing (first book: The Winter Queen). The books are set in (exquisitely observed) nineteenth century Russia, but there are frequent trips to London and other fascinating places.
posted by ourobouros at 8:48 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by ourobouros at 8:48 AM on February 15, 2017
Nthing Reginald Hill and Tana French. The Dalgliesh series by P.D. James scratches this itch for me as well.
posted by snez at 9:55 AM on February 15, 2017
posted by snez at 9:55 AM on February 15, 2017
Best answer: I don't know the Rebus series well, but I think if you like them, you'd like the Slough House series by Mick Herron.
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:53 AM on February 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by The corpse in the library at 10:53 AM on February 15, 2017 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Get yourself 120 miles further North of Edinburgh with Stuart MacBride's Logan Macrae series, set in Aberdeen.
Peter May's Lewis Trilogy, as suggested by rd45, is also brilliant.
posted by IanMorr at 11:25 AM on February 15, 2017
Peter May's Lewis Trilogy, as suggested by rd45, is also brilliant.
posted by IanMorr at 11:25 AM on February 15, 2017
Best answer: Mo Hayder is *ahem* criminally overlooked, in my opinion. For many years, Rebus was my favourite in the genre, until I tried Birdman on the off-chance. Now, it's DI Jack Caffery.
Birdman is the first in the Jack Caffery series. Unlike Rebus, I think, it's best to read the series in sequence. The first two books are set in London, then Caffery relocates to Bristol. The books are very dark, and have an arc that crosses the entire series.
posted by veedubya at 6:59 AM on February 16, 2017
Birdman is the first in the Jack Caffery series. Unlike Rebus, I think, it's best to read the series in sequence. The first two books are set in London, then Caffery relocates to Bristol. The books are very dark, and have an arc that crosses the entire series.
posted by veedubya at 6:59 AM on February 16, 2017
Response by poster: Thank you, everyone. Have marked best answers based on what I think I might like, but I intend to explore them all.
posted by vivekspace at 6:11 PM on February 16, 2017
posted by vivekspace at 6:11 PM on February 16, 2017
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by thomas j wise at 3:26 AM on February 15, 2017 [7 favorites]