Rather Be the Devil Quotes

“I've just worked out what the music on the speakers is," he said. "It's John Martyn, Over The Hill."
"And ?"
"And nothing. It's just, maybe I'm not there yet.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“There were always dog walkers out & about. Sometimes they even stopped for a chat while the various mutts inspected each other. Rebus would be asked how old his dog was.
No idea.
The breed, then ?
Mongrel.
And all the while, he would be thinking about cigarettes.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“The Ends of Justice: Scotland’s Greatest Unsolved Crimes. Bible John was in there,”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“Ann Street was reckoned by many to be the most beautiful terrace in the city. Tucked away between Queensferry Road and Stockbridge, its two elegant facing rows of Georgian homes were separated by a narrow roadway constructed of traditional setts.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“You’re a stubborn old bastard and you’d rather go to your grave than let anyone see a weak spot in that armour you think you put on every morning.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“Ann Street was reckoned by many to be the most beautiful terrace in the city. Tucked away between Queensferry Road and Stockbridge, its two elegant facing rows of Georgian homes were separated by a narrow roadway constructed of traditional setts. The front gardens were immaculate, the black metal railings glossy, the lamp posts harking back to a more elegant age.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“the club coincided.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“So Clarke was in her Vauxhall Astra, on her way to the Royal Infirmary. The hospital sat on the southern edge of the city, plenty of space in the car park at this hour. She showed her ID at the Accident and Emergency desk and was shown where to go. She passed cubicle after cubicle, and if the curtains were closed, she popped her head around each. An old woman, her skin almost translucent, gave a beaming smile from her trolley. There were hopeful looks from others, too – patients and family members. A drunk youth, blood still dripping from his head, was being calmed by a couple of male nurses. A middle-aged woman was retching into a cardboard bowl. A teenage girl moaned softly and regularly, knees drawn up to her chest”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“I’m game if you are.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“James and his team were readying to brief a lawyer from the Procurator Fiscal's office. The Fiscal Depute's name was Shona MacBryer. MacBryer knew Clarke, and the two shared a nod of greeting as she arrived. Fox and Oldfield were handing round mugs. Someone had splashed out on a cafetière and proper coffee, and the biscuits were Duchy Originals.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil

“You weren't kidding about the rolls," Rebus said, taking another bite.

"Bacon just the right side of crispy," Robert Chatham agreed.

They were seated across from one another at a booth with padded seats and a Formica-topped table. Mugs of dark-brown tea and plates in front of them, Radio Forth belting out from the kitchen.”
― Ian Rankin, Rather Be the Devil