New Releases by Ian Rankin

On a notorious street where propriety and decadence clash, in the basement of a newly renovated bar, the bones of a woman and child are discovered beneath a cement floor. It''s an unusually gruesome find, even for Fleshmarket Alley. When Inspector John Rebus is called to investigate, every fact he finds unleashes a host of new questions. Are the bones those of a mother and child? Are they actual human remains or fakes? Were they planted there - and if so, why?It could be nothing more than a ruthless and enterprising pub owner looking to create a local legend that will help lure trade. Or it could be something far worse - something as grisly as the death of a recent immigrant found brutally murdered at a local housing project, or the murder of Donald Cruikshank, a recently paroled rapist whose body is found just as a young woman goes missing. The missing girl is a friend of Inspector Rebus''s colleague Detective Siobhan Clarke, and Siobhan is shocked to find herself in the same intricate web of murderers as Rebus - all somehow tied to that pile of bones under Fleshmarket Alley.In a race to stop the killings before more bodies turn up - even as the possibility of romantic entanglements distracts and entices them - Rebus and Siobhan plumb the darkest corners of their beloved city and confront the lawless, conscienceless men who dwell there. Writing with the unstoppable narrative force that has made him one of the bestselling writers in the world, Edgar Award-winner Ian Rankin delivers his most explosive and surprising mystery yet.

Ian Rankin''s guide to the places in Scotland that have provided inspiration for his bestselling Inspector Rebus novels. ''His novels are playing a significant part in redefining Scotland''s image of itself in literature'' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY In REBUS''S SCOTLAND Ian Rankin uncovers the Scotland that the tourist never sees, highlighting the places that inspired the settings for the Inspector Rebus novels. Rankin also reveals the story of Rebus and how he came into being, who he is, and what his - and Rankin''s - Scotland is like. With over 100 evocative photographs, specially commissioned to reflect the text, REBUS''S SCOTLAND is the perfect gift for anyone interested in Scotland or in the novels of Ian Rankin.

Over the years, Ian Rankin has amassed an incredible portfolio of short stories. Published in crime magazines, composed for events, broadcast on radio, they all share the best qualities of his phenomenally popular Rebus novels. Ranging from the macabre (''The Hanged Man'') to the unfortunate (''The Only True Comedian'') right back to the sinister (''Someone Got To Eddie'') they all bear the hallmark of great crime writing. Of even more interest to his many fans, Ian includes seven Inspector Rebus stories in this collection . . . ''Rankin forays into short stories to exhilarating effect'' Sunday Times.

Beggar''s Banquet is a new collection of short stories from Ian Rankin. In 1997 he was awarded the Macallan Gold Dagger for Fiction for Black and Blue. His subsequent Rebus novels have all been international bestsellers.

Damon Mee was last seen in a blurred security video on the dance floor of a Kirkaldy nightclub. It was a routine missing persons case and it wasn''t even on his patch, but inspector John rebus said he''d look into it as a favour to the boy''s father, a friend from his school days. In the deft hands of Ian Rankin, the ripples of the investigation widen rapidly. They lead to the club''s greasy owner, to a slightly bent casion croupier, to a drop dead blonde whose name nobody seems to know, to a Hibs striker with a talent for goals and a weakness for gambling and finally to the shadowed men who call the shots in Edinburgh''s underworld. When it''s over, Rebus has repaid a debt and his boss has received an unexpected birthday present.

The local constabulary is stretched to the limit by tragedies on and offshore and Rebus cannot afford to make one single mistake if he''s to stay alive, nevermind solve any one of the several murder cases now consuming his every waking thought.