As with the first, to me the relationships are the strength. I found the mystery more intriguing than in the first in the series. I look forward to seeing how Fox's life evolves in the next outing. ( )

As a fan of Rankin's Rebus series I found Malcolm Fox disparate in character and yet he has so much in common with Rebus, both flawed and unhappy. However, being in the Complaints division gives Fox a less abrasive approach, usually more rewarding particularly when investigating political corruption. While the story was more introspective, the Fife atmosphere and character development is just as strong. I'm looking forward to more in this series. ( )

DI Malcolm Fox and his team of Edinburgh’s Complaints officers are called to investigate several police officers in Fife who are alleged to have helped cover up the illegal behaviour of another officer there, an officer who had been charged and convicted of several crimes. While interviewing the uncle of the convicted cop, who had actually filed the original complaints against his nephew, Fox learns of a long-buried possible political cover-up, one stretching back to the 1980s and Scottish Nationalist groups. But the information he uncovers has repercussions in the present day, up to and including murder…. I think this series by Ian Rankin is much less well-known than his Inspector Rebus books, but they contain a certain grim grittiness that works very well in the setting of Edinburgh. Fox is a complicated character, both as a cop and as a human being, with various family dramas in addition to the work that he does, work that is generally unthanked given that his fellow police officers despise his work. This is only the second book in the series and a reader could start here without too much difficulty, but I think it has more resonance if one reads the first (“The Complaints”) novel before tackling this one, if only to have a better understanding of the familial and work relationships involved; recommended, but not for the squeamish! ( )

Una delle prime indagini dell'ispettore Fox, che negli ultimi anni ha affiancato i romanzi che vedevano protagonista l'ispettore Rebus: entrambi scozzesi ma di città diverse e con caratteri opposti.
Non è un romanzo molto avvincente, sembra scritto frettolosamente, tanto per lanciare un nuovo prsonaggio: dialoghi e avvenimenti scarni, pochi colpi di scena.
...erano molto meglio le avventure di Rebus!! ( )

Gripping fast moving story with the complaint head Malcolm Fox and his team playing bit part. ( )