A review by berlinbibliophile
Even Dogs in the Wild by Ian Rankin

4.0

Another good entry into the Rebus series, but one in which it took a while for me to really get caught up in the story and the characters. I was surprised and interested to see the greater involvement of Big Ger Cafferty in the story, he and Rebus have a fascinating dynamic and a relationship which becomes more complex with every book in which they interact. I was generally delighted to see Rebus as a retiree, and both the changes to his life (a dog!) and the way in which it stayed the same (still basically a policeman, even if he's now technically a "Consulting Detective"...) were lovely to see. It was nice to see Rebus more connected the world, both with his family and with his former colleagues, especially with Siobhan, who is my favourite.
I wasn't quite sure what to think of Malcolm Fox. He is a good contrast against Rebus, being a different style of police officer, but at the same time he made so many stupid mistakes that it was very frustrating to read about him. No wonder he gets surprised by the criminals when he goes without backup and had told them that he suspected them beforehand.
The topic of this book is of course very upsetting, but I think Rankin handles it with grace and respect.