Death on Demand
cozy mystery
Series · police procedural
Inspector Rebus
The Inspector Rebus series by Ian Rankin has 25 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Knots and Crosses (1987).
- Books
- 25 books
- First published
- 1987
- Status
- ongoing
- Last checked
Start here: Knots and Crosses (1987) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Knots and Crosses
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Knots and Crosses - Book 2:
Hide and Seek
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Hide and Seek - Book 3:
Tooth and Nail
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Tooth and Nail - Book 4:
Strip Jack
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Strip Jack - Book 5:
A Good Hanging and Other Stories
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Good Hanging and Other Stories - Book 6:
The Black Book
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Black Book - Book 7:
Mortal Causes
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Mortal Causes - Book 8:
Let It Bleed
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Let It Bleed - Book 9:
Black & Blue
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Black & Blue - Book 10:
The Hanging Garden
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Hanging Garden - Book 11:
Dead Souls
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Dead Souls - Book 12:
Set in Darkness
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Set in Darkness - Book 13:
The Falls
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Falls - Book 14:
Resurrection Men
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Resurrection Men - Book 15:
A Question of Blood
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Question of Blood - Book 16:
Fleshmarket Close
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Fleshmarket Close - Book 17:
The Naming of the Dead
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Naming of the Dead - Book 18:
Exit Music
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Exit Music - Book 19:
Standing in Another Man's Grave
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Standing in Another Man's Grave - Book 20:
Saints of the Shadow Bible
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Saints of the Shadow Bible - Book 21:
Even Dogs in the Wild
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Even Dogs in the Wild - Book 22:
Rather Be the Devil
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Rather Be the Devil - Book 23:
The Beat Goes On: The Complete Rebus Stories
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Beat Goes On: The Complete Rebus Stories - Book 24:
In a House of Lies
Alternative text for cover: Cover of In a House of Lies - Book 25:
A Song for the Dark Times
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Song for the Dark Times - Book 26:
A Heart Full of Headstones
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Heart Full of Headstones - Book 27:
Midnight and Blue
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Midnight and Blue
About the Inspector Rebus series
John Rebus is a Detective Inspector with Edinburgh CID: a hard-drinking, rule-bending insomniac who solves cases as much through stubbornness and an instinct for the city's underside as through procedure. Ian Rankin builds each novel around a real strand of Edinburgh life — the tourist Old Town sitting on top of a much darker New Town of gangsters, corrupt councillors and old sectarian grudges — and lets Rebus's insubordination with his superiors (and his complicated, decades-long feud-turned-uneasy-alliance with gangster Big Ger Cafferty) run through the whole series. Colleague-turned-equal Siobhan Clarke grows from rookie DC in the early books into a DI running her own cases by the later ones, and the series ages Rebus in something close to real time: he retires, comes back as a civilian cold-case consultant, retires again, and by the most recent books is dealing with COPD and his own mortality while still getting pulled into cases.
What makes the series distinctive is that tension between a classic tartan-noir mystery-of-the-week structure and a genuinely serialised life — relationships, health, Edinburgh politics and Rebus's own record all carry forward book to book. It's for readers who want their police procedurals morally grey, their setting almost a character in its own right, and their detective allowed to actually grow old.
Frequently asked questions
How many Inspector Rebus books are there?
There are 25 Inspector Rebus novels, plus two short-story collections (A Good Hanging and Other Stories, 1992, and The Beat Goes On, 2014). The most recent novel is Midnight and Blue (2024).
What order should I read the Inspector Rebus books in?
Publication order, starting with Knots and Crosses (1987). The series is written as one continuous timeline, so publication order and story order are effectively the same.
Do I need to read the Inspector Rebus books in order?
Ian Rankin himself recommends starting from the beginning: Rebus's career, his rivalry-turned-uneasy-truce with gangster Big Ger Cafferty, and his partnership with Siobhan Clarke all build across the series, so reading in order gives the fullest experience, even though most individual mysteries are self-contained.
Is there a new Inspector Rebus book coming?
No new Rebus novel has been announced as of August 2026. Ian Rankin's next book, The Heights (October 2026), is a standalone thriller outside the Rebus series.
Is Inspector Rebus finished or ongoing?
Ongoing. Ian Rankin has continued writing Rebus well past the character's police retirement, with Midnight and Blue (2024) the most recent entry, and has given no indication the series is over.
If you like the Inspector Rebus series
Reading order last verified .