A Heart Full of Headstones cover art

A Heart Full of Headstones

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About this listen

THE BRAND NEW REBUS THRILLER FROM THE ICONIC NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER. ONE OF THE MUST-LSTEN INOVELS OF THE YEAR.

'I loved it - Rebus is one of fiction's greatest creations' MARIAN KEYES

John Rebus stands accused: the once legendary detective is on trial, facing the rest of his life behind bars.

How does a hero turn villain?
Or have times changed, and the rules with them?

Detective Inspector Siobhan Clarke tackles Edinburgh's most explosive case in years, as a corrupt cop harbouring huge secrets goes missing.

But is her loyalty to the police or the public? And who can she trust when nobody is truly innocent - including her former mentor Rebus - and a killer walks among them?

As the time comes to choose sides, it becomes clear: after a lifetime of lies, the truth will break your heart...

* * * * *

PRAISE FOR A HEART FULL OF HEADSTONES:

'Phenomenal ... The ending is going to floor readers. Everyone is going to be talking about this!'
MICK HERRON

'Magnificent - beautifully written, clever - and what an ending!'
KATE MOSSE

'Peerless. Immaculately crafted, gripping, intricately textured. By turns wry, brutal, unflinching, heart-filled.'
SARAH VAUGHAN

'The standout novel from one of the great storytellers of our generation ... The kind of ending you won't ever forget.'
CHRIS WHITAKER

Ian Rankin's A HEART FULL OF HEADSTONES was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 10th October 2022 and w/c 1st May 2023

©2022 Ian Rankin (P)2022 Orion Publishing Group Crime Thrillers Mystery Police Procedural Thriller Thriller & Suspense Fiction Crime Detective

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Rebus cover art
Another great addition to the Rebus story, full of mystery and a big helping of Rebus’s dark past.

Excellent as always

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The whole thing bloody brilliant xx a really good listen............. Most enjoyable more turns than a country road...

Wow.... Wot a ending....

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Is this the end for John Rebus, I still don’t know! I’m hoping there will be another book to find out what happens next.

Swan song

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Absolutely first class in terms of the story line and its execution by James McPherson. Ian Rankin is a master in his field and I continually wonder at his ability to knit incredible stories around the ageing John Rebus. Simply brilliant.

Outstanding, as always.

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Fantastic book that I tried to drag out as much as possible so it would last, but it was just too good to sit on for too long. Nothing to say about the narration really, still the best. I have McPherson's (Rebus) voice in my ears first thing when I wake up and last thing before I fall asleep. Now I have to figure out a way to survive until the next book.

What a story!

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Rebus, labouring up staircases due to his lung condition, is getting on a bit - though in this novel he manages a couple of action scenes - which might slightly stretch credulity, but only just... He's a kind of unofficial private eye these days, having long retired as a detective. And his latest paying 'client' is one Big Ger Cafferty, who wants Rebus to find an old associate - who was presumed to be dead. Meanwhile, a corrupt cop is murdered, and Siobhan Clarke is drafted in to find the killer. She had been investigating the victim over alleged domestic abuse. And he was part of a crew of bent cops at Tynecastle police station, who act as if they're above the law. Rebus is out of the force, but can't erase his past. He crossed paths with some of those dodgy characters from Tynecastle. And maybe his association with them went further and deeper than he'd like to remember... A Heart Full of Headstones is a gripping listen, with a fantastic cliffhanger. The heavy involvement of Big Ger didn't fill me with a lot of hope... I find him a bore. And yet this time around, he was more bearable (even if the otherwise excellent narrator does give him a panto villain gravelly voice). Some of the accents - particularly Siobhan's, and an Irish cop, Driscoll - aren't particularly plausible, but the narration is consistent and clear. The backdrop of police corruption works well - Rankin was keen to show that cops aren't all angels, and there are more than a few bad apples in the novel, which raises an important question - was Rebus one of them? My attention rarely, if ever, flagged - it's one of the most listenable Rebus novels for a while - and the plot is clever without being overly elaborate (which can't always be said of some previous titles). Rankin has said he may take next year off, which is bad news for Rebus fans. But the follow-up will be unmissable...

The old gang is back together

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An amazing twist on the usual Rebus tale makes one wonder what's left in store for him!

Rebus in reflective mood.

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The end of Rebus? Let’s really hope not. Would be a shame if it was

Another compelling listen

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Thoroughly enjoyable with the narrator, as always, bringing the characters old and new to life.

Rebus poking his nose in!

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As usual “a great story well told”
The biggest question is “is this finally the end”

Is this finally the end of Rebus

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