Even Dogs in the Wild
A Rebus Mystery
Ian Rankin
Orion 2015

It is hard to believe but Even Dogs in the Wild, the twenty-first Rebus mystery is my first crack at Ian Rankin. Here, Rebus is retired but a case involving an old nemesis named Big Ger Cafferty has Siobhan Clarke calling him in for some assistance. Once a cop, always a cop so soon Rebus is neck deep into investigating a series of seemingly unrelated killings.  Even Dogs in the Wild (Inspector Rebus Series Book 20) Kindle

You do not need to be familiar in any way with Ian Rankin’s Rebus series to enjoy this mystery. There are no major references to characters and events past. It is obvious though a fan of the series will appreciate the relationship between Rebus, Clarke, and Malcolm Fox a lot more and get some of the inferences.

Even Dogs in the Wild seemed to be spinning its wheels a bit with inquiries and surveillance and a bunch of tertiary characters. The solve works but you do see faint fingerprints of Deus Ex Machina.  The resolution of some of the secondary plot points was a bit rushed and much but it does not take away from the enjoyment.