Doors Open - Hardcover

It convincingly shows that he can move with aplomb into another crime form, and tell a story that's typically at once gripping and full of subtle effects, without his depressive detective holding it together (SUNDAY TIMES - John Dugdale)

Doors Open is a lot of fun. It's pacy, witty, full of action, twists and splendid dialogue. And Rebus does make a subtle appearance when an officer describes his police station as "a damn sight quieter since you-know-who retired" (THE TIMES)

Because Rankin is a master story-teller, that means the reader is quickly swept up and carried along. I read this in one sitting, on a swelteringly hot beach in Greece; I kept meaning to do other things - find a beer, fetch a sunhat, check the BlackBerry - but somehow had to keep putting them off until I finished this chapter; and then the next; until I'd reached the end (GUARDIAN - Andrew Marr)

An immensely satisfying, bloody and constantly surprising story of middle-class amateurs mixing it with the big boys. And, as usual, Edinburgh - "a village masquerading as a city" - is a character in itself. So much so that "you-know-who" is hardly missed (EVENING STANDARD)

Rankin has taken a holiday from Rebus before, notably in the Jack Harvey thrillers. Here he is trying something new, a "caper" that is also a publishing experiment. Doors Open was serialised in the New York Times so it should reach even more readers than Rebus did (TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT)

It's different - and it's good (DAILY MAIL - Carla McKay)

Rankin is having fun here, name-checking Ocean's Eleven and Banksy, inverting the Rebus idea and writing a heist thriller from the criminals' point of view (METRO)

Ian Rankin can pull off an audacious criminal caper even without his trademark detective (SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY)

a superbly-plotted, light-hearted romp which owes a debt to Ocean's Eleven, but has plenty of charm of its own too (BIG ISSUE IN SCOTLAND)

Rankin is enjoying himself here examining the flipside of Rebus' world: the mindset of the criminal attempting the perfect crime. The plotting and suspense are as impeccable as ever, and his ear for dialogue and insight into his home city remain perfectly honed. Freed from his Rebus back-story, Rankin sets a rattling pace, and Doors Open is an untrammelled joy to read. Consummate in its execution, this is another fine addition to Ian Rankin's career, Rebus or not (THE LIST)