Black and Blue (Inspector Rebus, #8)

'Bible John' killed three women, taking three souvenirs. 'Johnny Bible' has killed to steal his namesake's glory. Oilman Allan Mitchelson died for his principles. And convict Lenny Spaven died just to prove a point.

Terrorizing Glasgow in the sixties and seventies, 'Bible John' murdered women he met in a local ballroom--and was never caught. Now a copycat nicknamed 'Bible Johnny' by the media, is a new and violent menace.

The 'Bible Johnny' case would be perfect for Inspector John Rebus, but after a run-in with a crooked senior officer, Rebus has been shunted aside to one of Edinburgh's toughest suburbs, where he investigates the murder of an off-duty oilman. His investigation takes him north to the oil rigs of Aberdeen, where he meets the Bible Johnny media circus head-on. Suddenly caught in the glare of television cameras and in the middle of more than one investigation, Rebus must proceed with caution: one mistake could mean an unpleasant and not particularly speedy death, or, worse still, losing his job.

Written with Ian Rankin's signature wit, style and intricacy, Black and Blue is uncommonly intriguing.