Day 6 - My Xmas Month Countdown - A Book and a Song

It's a rainy Friday but also fairly mild out there. I went to our favorite cafe in Courtenay and got us lunch sarnies and apple strudels for dessert. Yummy. I've made my picks for the weekend footie matches. It will be a bit more interesting what with the new managers in place for a few of the teams. I'm still a little nark'd about TSN and Sportsnet no longer showing the games because some online company bought the rights for the game. I hope nobody has been paying to watch the games from them. Let them go out of business! At least I get a Saturday game on NBC and I can still follow the rest on the BBC site live text.

Now for your Friday book and song, this time #20.

Book 20

Ian Rankin

Ian Rankin - Fleshmarket Close (Inspector Rebus #15).

When Jo and I first married we got hooked on the various Inspector Rebus TV series, the first starring John Hannah and then the second starring Ken Stott. In 2008, we were living in Victoria while I was stationed there. Coming home (back to Comox) for Xmas that year, Jo made a couple of stops, one to one of my favorite books stores, Chronicles of Crime. I discovered that she had purchased me almost the complete set of Rebus books; I think the store was missing only three or four. She presented this package to me Xmas day. Since then I've been enjoying the Rebus books immensely. I have 7 left to read, some just Rebus but a couple of others featuring his new character Malcolm Fox of the Complaints division. Anyway, there really haven't been any naff books in the series. Rebus is a great character. My review of Fleshmarket Close follows.

"Fleshmarket Close is the 15th book in Ian Rankin's Inspector John Rebus mystery series set in Edinburgh. It's the second Rebus book I've read this month, this one even more enjoyable than the previous.

DI Rebus and DS Siobhan Clark, Rebus's partner have been moved to the Gayfield Police sub-station as part of a reallocation of resources in the Edinburgh PD. The story starts with Rebus assisting with a murder of an immigrant in the Knoxland housing development, not technically within Rebus's area of responsibility. In the meantime, Siobhan is meeting with the Jardine family. There oldest girl had been raped by one Donald Cruickshank and afterword committed suicide. He is now out of prison and their other daughter, Ishbel, has disappeared. As well both Rebus and Siobhan are called to the discovery  of the bones of a woman and a baby buried in the cement in the basement of an Edinburgh pub.

This is a very rich story and also quite topical to today, dealing with immigrants and refugees and their treatment. We also get to meet Rebus's nemesis, Edinburgh gangster Cafferty. There are tensions between Rebus and Siobhan after events from the previous story and they find themselves working differing cases for the most part. There is also a bit of a frisson between Rebus and a woman he meets when he visits the refugee holding facility at Whitemire.

The story wanders from Rebus to Siobhan and back and flows very nicely. We meet some old characters, especially DS Ellen Wylie who spends time with Rebus. I quite like her, even if her part isn't extensive. Big Ger Cafferty of course plays a role. But there are new interesting characters who play varying roles in the story, refugee lawyer Dirwan, DI Les Young, AKA Captain Underpants, Siobhan's partner for the most part, Caro Quinn, who monitors Whitemire and develops a tentative relationship with Rebus.

This is one of my favorite Rebus stories. I really like his portrayal of the immigrant situation, the differing points of view, the difficulty of even coming to terms with it. He also presents the different cases and how they ultimately tie together in the end in a flowing, easy manner. It was a pleasure to read. (4.5 stars)"

Song 20

Freya Ridings

Castles by Freya Ridings

English singer / songwriter, Freya Ridings, is a new artist for me. She was born in London in 1994 and released her most well known single to date, Lost Without You in 2017. It peaked at #9 on the UK Singles charts in 2019. Castles was released as a single in May 2019 and was the fifth single from her debut album. It's a lovely song. Enjoy.

Well, there you go. If I have time, I might do a reading update today. Otherwise it'll be here tomorrow after Day 7.