It's 1993 and Northern Ireland looks about ready to explode - again. This time there is a Scottish connection and Inspector John Rebus is seconded on to the investigation to ferret it out. Soon we find him in Belfast, remembering his history there when he was in the army, and trying to figure out who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.

No doubt about whose side Rebus is on. He's one of the good guys, the guys who put themselves on the line to try to keep the irrational and the inebriated from killing people. He is the most moral of police officers. Even when he breaks the rules, which happens on just about every page, he does so for the most moral of purposes - stopping murder and mayhem.

This story starts with a murder in Edinburgh - a brutal, vicious, torture murder of a young man. The act gives some evidence of being related to Northern Ireland groups which is the excuse for putting Rebus in the middle of the investigation. That's the excuse, but Rebus wonders what the real reason is. He doesn't find out until near the end of the book. Here's a hint: It has to do with his incorruptibility.

The ever-reliable Ian Rankin has delivered once again with this well-plotted tale. As a writer, he seems just about as moral as John Rebus. He always plays fair with the reader. The clues are there if one can only recognize them. Of course, there are a goodly number of red herrings, too, but then this IS a murder mystery. What did you expect?