Party with Rebus

As Ian Rankin’s fictional detective, Inspector John Rebus, approaches the 20th anniversary of his first appearance, in Knots & Crosses (1987), Rankin’s UK publisher, Orion, is gearing up for a full-scale blowout.

It began in September with a whisper, when Rankin let The Guardian know that his 2007 novel might well be John Rebus’ last.
(As of yet, we’ve no confirmation either way on that. It’s possible that, at this point, even Rankin himself doesn’t know.)

Now, Publishing News UK has unveiled a Rebus 20 party spot that features links to all things Rebus. “This will be a publishing event,” the site trumpets, “and celebrations will last all year.”

At Rebus 20 you can, of course, read or listen to an excerpt from Knots & Crosses, as well as listen to Rankin talk about the latest novel featuring his Edinburgh detective, The Naming of the Dead. But the big focus is on next year and the 20th anniversary. From the looks of things, if there are UK readers who haven’t heard of Rankin and Rebus, there won’t be after 2007. Promised are a “special Rebus beer and whisky” (I’m not sure what that means, but I’m willing to find out), “major Rebus exhibitions in Scotland” (ditto), “reading guides available for all Rebus backlist titles, Rebus on TV.”

There’s more, all of it clearly aimed at booksellers, but of interest to us mere fans and mortals, as well. Not the least of the attractions are some really great photos of Rankin and links to many points of related interest. The Rebus 20 site can be found here.