Rebus: 'Black and Blue' by Ian Rankin Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. At the start of 'Black & Blue', the eighth Rebus case, Detective Inspector John Rebus needed to interview a murder suspect. What was the man's nickname?

Answer: Craw

William Crawford Shand had turned himself in to police to confess to a string of murders. Rebus did not believe him, all the details that Shand quoted has been culled from newspapers.

2. At the start of 'Black & Blue', Detective Inspector John Rebus conducted an interview at Edinburgh's Craigmillar police station. What nickname did police officers have for the station?

Answer: Fort Apache The Bronx

"Craigmillar was about as tough an area as you could find in Scotland's capital city, and the station fully merited its nickname. Being up an alley meant a mob could cut it off from civilisation with ease, and the place had been under siege numerous times," Ian Rankin noted. Rebus had been sent there because he had upset too many people.

3. A serial killer was stalking the streets of Edinburgh and D/I John Rebus wanted a piece of the investigation. In 'Black & Blue', what was the name given by the Press to the killer.

Answer: Johnny Bible

'Bible John' had terrorised Glasgow in the 1960s, killing three women before disappearing. Years later, a similar killer struck in Edinburgh and other parts of Scotland. 'Bible John' would be in his 50s, the new killer was in his 20s, therefore "Johnny Bible, spiritual son of Bible John"

4. According to D/I John Rebus in "Black & Blue", what two things were given to a policeman on joining the CID?

Answer: A handshake and a decree nisi

Rebus knew that his former partner Brian Holmes was under domestic pressure; his girlfriend wanted him out of The Job. "She wanted someone whose mind was on her when he was at home, who wasn't immersed in casework and speculation, mind games and promotion strategies. Often as a police officer you were closer to your working partner than your partner in life," Rebus knew.

5. A drinking spree with two new 'friends' led to the gruesome death of a man in 'Black & Blue'. Allan Mitchinson died on his first night back in Edinburgh after a period working away. What was his job?

Answer: He worked on North Sea oil rigs

Mitchinson was befriended by two men who got him drunk and took him back to a semi-derelict tower block in one of Edinburgh's toughest estates, where they intended to kill him. In trying to escape, he ended up equally dead. In case you are playing this quiz over breakfast, I won't repeat the nature of his death.

6. In 'Black & Blue', D/I John Rebus was 'doorstepped' by a TV crew looking for an interview about an old case he had been involved in, the conviction of a man for murder. What was the name of the man who was convicted?

Answer: Lenny Spaven

Rebus had been a young detective teamed up with a partner, Lawson Geddes, who was convinced that Spaven was a killer. Eventually Geddes and Rebus raided a garage where Spaven was working on stolen goods. They found evidence that linked him to a woman's murder and he was charged and convicted. Spaven insisted he had been framed and wrote a book naming Geddes and Rebus as the men behind the fit-up.

He became a celebrity behind bars. The TV programme pestered Rebus for an interview.

7. What was the nickname of the Glaswegian gangland leader who attracted John Rebus's interest in 'Black & Blue'?

Answer: Uncle Joe

Joseph Toal, also known as Uncle Joe, practically ran Glasgow's criminal underworld. Rebus spoke to him in trying to track down the killers of Alan Mitchinson.

8. A long 'retired' serial killer returned to Scotland in the Rebus mystery 'Black & Blue'. What were his intentions?

Answer: To catch a new serial killer

'Bible John' was back and he wanted to track down 'Johnny Bible', whom he regarded as an upstart, before the police did. He had advantages that the authorities did not have; inside knowledge of how a serial killer worked, thought and lived.

9. A familiar character made a reappearance in 'Black & Blue' in the shape of Morris 'Big Ger' Cafferty. He and Rebus had been protagonists for years and had long conversations at times. What was the nickname Big Ger had for Rebus?

Answer: Strawman

Rebus had been instrumental in jailing Big Ger, a crook who had a finger in many of Edinburgh's criminal pies. Big Ger had once called Rebus "a man of straw", hence 'Strawman'. In 'Black & Blue', Rebus visited Cafferty in Glasgow's notorious Barlinnie Prison.

10. John Rebus made a quick visit to Aberdeen as part of his investigations in 'Black & Blue'. Local people called it 'Granite City'. What did Rebus think it should be called?

Answer: Furry Boot Town

In Aberdeen, Rebus noted, when people asked where you were from, it sounded as if they were saying "furry boot ye frae?", thus Furry Boot Town. (Note to any Aberdonian quizzers who feel aggrieved; write to Ian Rankin, not me).

11. In 'Black & Blue', Scottish police were called on to investigate a new serial killer. The killer first struck in Aberdeen. What was the name of the club at which he identified his first victim?

Answer: Burke' Club

John Rebus was not centrally involved in the serial killer enquiry, but it held a fascination for him and he could not help trying to rationalise and resolve the various clues that came his way. On a trip to Aberdeen, he visited the club from which the victim had been taken by the killer nicknamed 'Johnny Bible'.

At the time he also failed to realise that he had met the original 'Bible John' - who also wanted to stop the latest serial killer.

12. While John Rebus was in Aberdeen in 'Black & Blue', a young woman was found murdered - with all the hallmarks of a serial killer. The killer had kept a souvenir. What was it?

Answer: One of her shoes

The woman's body was discovered near the docks, where Rebus had been earlier. He found himself hauled in by senior officers and accused of killing her.

13. In 'Black & Blue', D/I John Rebus investigated the suspicious death of a man called Alan Mitchinson. Why had someone wanted him dead?

Answer: He had tried to blackmail a leading businessman

Mitchinson worked for an oil company, the boss of which was an American called 'Major' Weir. Weir was obsessed with everything Scottish - he had even named his oil field 'Bannock' after the Battle of Bannockburn. Weir had a dark secret, though, and Mitchinson found out. If you want to know what; read the book. If you want to know what Rebus did about it; read the book.

14. In 'Black & Blue', the eighth Rebus mystery, which of the detectives discovered the identity of the new serial killer?

Answer: D/Con Siobhan Clarke

The detectives had worked on the theory that the serial killer had been someone who could move about the country. Clarke worked out that the victims were women who came into contact, in one way or another, with employees of the oil industry. She pieced together names of companies that had employees in locations at the relevant times, and from them pinpointed one man - a middle ranking company man. Armed with a name, the police went looking for him. If you want to know what happened next; read the book.

15. 'Black & Blue' presented D/I John Rebus with a lot of challenges. However, he crowned a successful piece of detective work by arresting an old serial killer who had eluded the police for 20 years.

Answer: False

Ian Rankin based the older serial killer on a real murderer, 'Bible John', who terrorised Glasgow for years before stopping his spree. At the time Rankin wrote 'Black & Blue', (1997) 'Bible John' had still not been identified, hence his fictional representation also went unapprehended.
If you are interested in learning more about 'Bible John', play 'Unsolved Killers: Bible John' by FunTrivia quiz architect burmlvr2478.

Source: Author darksplash

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

A man ends up dead in one of Edinburgh's meanest estates and that should be plenty of work for D/I John Rebus, yet he can't stop poking his nose into the hunt for a serial killer.

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