Set in Darkness

By: Ian Rankin

Narrated by: Samuel Gillies

For the first time in 300 years, Scotland has its own Parliament, and to go with it, its own newly developed Parliament buildings. Detective Inspector John Rebus views the whole thing through a rather jaundiced eye, given that he's been chosen to liaise with the restructuring of the whole building.

At first he thinks that the building's murky past may just be a break from the tedium - not every building has stories of a mad earl roasting a servant to death, after all - but when he is shown the legendary site, it's to discover a rather more recent body occupying the same place. As if that's not enough, a prospective Member of Parliament is found dead a few days later on the same site. As always, it's up to Rebus to find out what's going on.

©2000 Ian Rankin (P)2002 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"The plot is worthy of the series: raging and racing and teetering on the edge of falling apart, before Rankin slams the reader with a final masterful twist." ( Publishers Weekly)

I actually didn't get to listen to this book.

What made the experience of listening to Set in Darkness the most enjoyable?

I wanted to listen to this book but the narration was so awful that I gave up. Really poor.
I love these books and think they should re-record it with someone else!

How could the performance have been better?

Somebody else...espeicailly with a slight Scottish accent.

a complex story in the series....

a complex story in the series makes you wonder where things will eventually all fall out. most of the major characters at risk of being destroyed by the elite in charge in the future.... it's a realistic picture of people having to decide whether they're going to get along or they're going to stand up for what they believe.... maybe with no gain at all and plenty of risk

solid Rebus novel

This novel is a bit slow starting, compared to say Fleshmarket Alley, but is a good, solid representation of Rebus. The characters are well defined and nicely flawed and the reader does a decent job at separating the various voices. This book meanders a bit during the story going off on seemingly random tangents, but I enjoy how the characters deal with the underbelly of Edinburgh enough to see it through. If you are needing a solid Rebus fix after hitting the more drama/story driven books, this will do it.

Exceptional series

I really love this series. I've probably written that in previous reviews.

Rebus is amazing. Not the most politically correct or as straight-laced as many of the police and he certainly doesn't always make the best decisions. (Lorna?? Really??) But he has great cop sense and is able to figure things out. This story of three deaths proves all those things.

Am I the only one who likes Cafferty a little bit?

The narration, for some reason, was not up to par but still good. As I'm bingeing on the Rebus audiobooks I'm beginning to think with a Scottish burr. 😃

One for the true Rebus fans

I don't think Gilies is the best of the Rebus narrators. Though I am not from Scotland, his accent sounds a bit too formal for my likings compared to the others who really do a good job capturing class differences with their various accents. Also, a few of his voices sound too similar to his Rebus, but his Cafferty is amazing. Beyond him, the book is quite good, and of the 9 rebus books Ive listened to, this is one of my favorites. It takes a while to get settled into, as this is one of Rankins more complex plots, but its worth it if you can stick with it and the ending is very satisfying. Not sure if Id pay $30 for it but it was definitely worth the credit.

For Rebus fans

I can see why this book might not appeal to casual readers, but for Rebus fans, it's a pleasure.

So many characters, so many suspects!

I loved the book. The return of Big Ger is always interesting. Lots of characters to pay attention to.

Horrible narrator

The narrator was just awful it was difficult to get past some of his accents.

Slow and slower

This book was very slow. I never really got into it either. It ran on and on while I just kept wondering the plot. There were too many dead people and not enough suspense. The only twist was just lame and predictable.

Not my favorite

I am a mystery book junkie and have listened to 100+ books from Audible over the past several years. Seldom have I NOT finished a book, but this one just didn't hold my interest. I kept rewinding it(thinking my train of thought was interrupted) but it still didn't help. Sorry, but this is a boring book with lots of characters and difficult to follow.