Knots and Crosses by Ian Rankin

'And in Edinburgh of all places. I mean, you never think of that sort of thing happening in Edinburgh, do you...?' That sort of thing... is the brutal abduction and murder of two young girls. And now a third is missing, presumably gone to the same sad end. Detective Sergeant John Rebus, smoking and drinking too much, his own young daughter spirited away south by his disenchanted wife, is one of many policemen hunting the killer. And then the messages begin to arrive: knotted string and matchstick crosses - taunting Rebus with pieces of a puzzle only he can solve.

This is the first of the excellent Rebus novels by Britain’s foremost crime writer, a real insight into the seedy world of the criminal world, and the geography of Scotland’s capital city. For those of you who love to watch CSI, Numb3rs, etc.. This is a must read series of 14 novels following the career of John Rebus, our loveable rogue of a copper.

SM

Friday Night Lights by H D Bissinger

Imagine if Queen Elizabeth’s School’s U19 football team played 20 matches in a season and each match was played in a 25000 seat purpose built stadium? And imagine that every match was sold out every Friday night? Imagine that the school employed a full time manager for the team, an ex-professional footballer, and that he had 6 coaches to help him? Imagine if this manager earned more than Mr Puttock? Imagine if he had a full back up team of physiotherapists and kit managers and secretaries? Imagine if more money was spent on this team’s medical supplies than on the entire Science faculty? Imagine if that team trained for 2 hours every day? Imagine if the team’s matches were shown live on Meridian TV? Imagine that this was the most successful school football team in England – EVER.

Imagine if you were part of that team and the sort of status you would enjoy. Where everyone in the town would know who you were and younger students would wear a shirt with your name on the back? Imagine that this will be the best moment of your life and everything afterwards will be an anticlimax?

Sounds like fantasy? Well all the above do happen in the small Texan town of Odessa where The Permian Panthers, the local high school’s American Football team, are the pride of the whole community; where they enjoy a similar level of support to most ‘Championship’ football teams in England.

Friday Night Lights by H D Bissinger documents the season of the Permian Panthers American football team, their coach and players of the high school football team from the small, economically-depressed town of Odessa that supports and is obsessed with them.

RR