The Complaints by Ian Rankin

Rankin has outdone himself with the first of a new mystery series set in Scotland. While one could always sense the potential in Rankin’s writing, he has entered the ranks of the finest with this new offering about the group of cops who look into the behavior and background of other cops to make sure they are all they should be in conducting their jobs. Malcolm Fox and his cronies in the office of the Complaints have sensitive jobs, but they are irreverent and funny as they negotiate barbs and arrows flung at them by the wily, bent, and armed police when investigations center on their activities.

I listened to the Hachette audio of this title, read as though it were literature by Peter Forbes. It was a perfect pairing of terrific writing and wonderful voice. The story itself leads us into the global financial meltdown as seen from Scotland’s side—the building disasters, the banks failures (remember the Royal Bank of Scotland was one of the big players), the slow economy. We have businesspeople and cops working together on some shady development schemes, and bending the law in the course of their duties.

This is an outstanding beginning for readers interested in starting Rankin for the first time, and I highly recommend the excellent audio production.




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