Knots and Crosses

Book 1: Inspector Rebus Novels

by Ian Rankin

Genres: Police Procedurals; Hard-Boiled

Synopsis

Detective John Rebus's city is being terrorized by a baffling series of murders…and he's tied to a maniac by an invisible knot of blood. As the ghoulish killings mount and the tabloid headlines scream, Rebus cannot stop the feverish shrieks from within his own mind. Because he isn't just one cop trying to catch a killer-he's the man who's got all the pieces to the puzzle….

"Ian Rankin is up there among the best crime novelists at work today." -Michael Connelly

"A superior series." -The New York Times Book Review

"Ian Rankin, you cannot go wrong." -The Boston Globe

"A novelist of great scope, depth, and power." -Jonathan Kellerman

Release date: October 21, 2014

Publisher: St. Martin's Publishing Group

Print pages: 272

Sample

Chapter One

THE girl screamed once, only the once.

Even that, however, was a minor slip on his part. That might have been the end of everything, almost before it had begun. Neighbours inquisitive, the police called in to investigate. No, that would not do at all. Next time he would tie the gag a little tighter, just a little tighter, just that little bit more secure.

Afterwards, he went to the drawer and took from it a ball of string. He used a pair of sharp nail-scissors, the kind girls always seem to use, to snip off a length of about six inches, then he put the ball of string and the scissors back into the drawer. A car revved up outside, and he went to the window, upsetting a pile of books on the floor as he did so. The car, however, had vanished, and he smiled to himself. He tied a knot in the string, not any special kind of knot, just a knot. There was an envelope lying ready on the sideboard.

Excerpted from Knots and Crosses by Ian Rankin.

Copyright © 2006, 1987 by Ian Rankin.

Published in 1987 by St. Martin's Press

All rights reserved. This work is protected under copyright laws and reproduction is strictly prohibited. Permission to reproduce the material in any manner or medium must be secured from the Publisher.