A Heart Full of Headstones by Ian Rankin: A review

It seems that fate and all his bending of the rules over the years may finally have caught up with John Rebus. As this book opens, we find him on trial for some unnamed misdeed. Well, there are plenty of those in Inspector Rebus' past. Rebus has never let a minor point of law keep him from putting the bad guys away. But now, in retirement, he is finally being called to account. As he awaits his trial, we get some of the background that has led him to this point.

We find Rebus in a reflective mood. He muses about his career and about his relationship with the notorious "Big Ger" Cafferty. Both are older now and "Big Ger" is confined to a wheelchair, but he is still the head of his crime "family." Rebus and "Big Ger" always understood each other and managed to operate within their respective spheres without ever stepping on each other's toes.

But now it seems that "Big Ger" needs Rebus' help. A former employee of his has vanished and he asks Rebus to find him or to find out what happened to him. Cafferty insists that he has not had anything to do with the man's disappearance.

In a parallel plotline, it appears that the lid may be just about to blow on the corruption at the infamous Tynecastle Police Station. Rebus' protege, Siobhan Clarke is working the case that might expose it all and Malcolm Fox is there to keep an eye on things and hoping that he can contain the scandal and preserve the reputation of Police Scotland.

Added to all this, there is a new group of gangsters on the scene, evidently ready to move into any vacuum left as "Big Ger's" influence begins to fade.

Through it all, the retired Rebus and his faithful dog Brillo wander, just doing their thing. It all appears to be unconnected until it isn't. Eventually, the various plotlines do converge a bit. But this is evidently the first of a two-part series and we'll have to wait for the next installment for the ultimate denouement.

It may be that the old rascal Rebus is nearing his own denouement. His health is deteriorating and one wonders how much longer he can keep up the fight. One gets the sense that his own "headstone" may loom in the near future.

There are twenty-four books in the Rebus series. I've read them all beginning with Knots and Crosses back in the 1980s. Ian Rankin has kept the quality remarkably consistent over the years. Moreover, he has allowed his characters to age and grow in a believable manner, something which I think is often hard for writers to accomplish. In the beginning, Rebus was impatient for justice to be served and, as noted, he was perfectly willing to bend rules to see that his version of justice was served. As he now enters his "twilight years," he is just as irascible as ever but has perhaps gained a bit of patience and wisdom and might even occasionally be willing to consider another person's point of view. Nevertheless, he still maintains his passion for justice and his concern for the underdog. It's what makes Rebus Rebus.

Poetry Sunday: Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver

How about we share another Mary Oliver poem? After all, you can never have too many of those. In this one, the poet seems to acknowledge that it is often hard to simply live in and enjoy the moment, perhaps because we are afraid it can't last. She urges us to give in to that moment and fully experience the joy. Although "much can never be redeemed, still, life has some possibility left." Don't Hesitate by Mary Oliver If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy, don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty of lives and whole towns destroyed or about to be. We are not wise, and not very often kind. And much can never be redeemed. Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this is its way of fighting back, that sometimes something happens better than all the riches or power in the world. It could be anything, but very likely you notice it in the instant when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid of its plenty. Joy is no...

Poetry Sunday: Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman

You probably remember poet Amanda Gorman from her appearance at the inauguration of President Biden. She read her poem "The Hill We Climb" on that occasion. After the senseless slaughter in Uvalde this week, she was inspired to write another poem which was published in The New York Times. It seemed perfect for the occasion and so I stole it in order to feature it here, just in case you didn't get a chance to read it in the Times . Hymn for the Hurting by Amanda Gorman Everything hurts, Our hearts shadowed and strange, Minds made muddied and mute. We carry tragedy, terrifying and true. And yet none of it is new; We knew it as home, As horror, As heritage. Even our children Cannot be children, Cannot be. Everything hurts. It’s a hard time to be alive, And even harder to stay that way. We’re burdened to live out these days, While at the same time, blessed to outlive them. This alarm is how we know We must be altered — That we must differ or die, That we must triumph or try. ...

Poetry Sunday: Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney

My mother was a farm wife and a prodigious canner. She canned fruit and vegetables from the garden, even occasionally meat. But the best thing that she canned, in my opinion, was blackberry jam. Even as I type those words my mouth waters! Of course, before she could make that jam, somebody had to pick the blackberries. And that somebody was quite often named Dorothy. I think Seamus Heaney might have spent some time among the briars plucking those delicious black fruits as well, so he would have known that "Once off the bush the fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour." They don't keep; you have to get that jam made in a hurry! Blackberry-Picking by Seamus Heaney Late August, given heavy rain and sun For a full week, the blackberries would ripen. At first, just one, a glossy purple clot Among others, red, green, hard as a knot. You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it Leaving stains upon the tongue and lust ...

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