''Tooth and Nail'' is a 1992 crime novel by

Ian Rankin Sir Ian James Rankin (born 28 April 1960) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels. Early life Rankin was born in Cardenden, Fife. His father, James, owned a grocery shop, and his mother, Isobel, worked in a sch ...

, originally entitled ''Wolfman''. It is the third of the

Inspector Rebus The ''Inspector Rebus'' books are a series of detective novels by the Scottish author Sir Ian Rankin. The novels, centred on Detective Inspector John Rebus, are mostly based in and around Edinburgh. They are considered an important contrib ...

novels.

Plot summary

Rebus is drafted in by Scotland Yard to help track down a cannibalistic serial killer called the Wolfman, whose first victim was found in the East End of

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

's lonely Wolf Street. His London colleague, George Flight, isn't happy at what he sees as interference, and Rebus encounters racial prejudice as well as the usual dangers of trying to catch a vicious killer. When Rebus is offered a psychological profile of the Wolfman by an attractive woman, it seems too good an opportunity to miss.

Connections to other Rankin books

* Journalist Jim Stevens from ''Knots and Crosses'' and non-Rebus book ''Watchman'' makes a cameo appearance, again basing off his status quo in ''Watchman''. * Rebus remembers the line "There are clues everywhere" at one point, a reference to the taunting messages he receives in

Knots and Crosses ''Knots and Crosses'' (also written ''Knots & Crosses'') is a 1987 crime novel by Ian Rankin. It is the first of the Inspector Rebus novels. It was written while Rankin was a postgraduate student at the University of Edinburgh. In the introduc ...

. * Rebus briefly thinks "don't talk to me about Hyde", a reference to the events of ''Hide and Seek''. * Morris Gerald Cafferty makes his first appearance, in the background as a gangster Rebus has to give evidence against.

Writing ''Tooth and Nail''

In the ''Exile on Princes Street'' foreword to ''Rebus: The Early Years'', Rankin says he was living in London at the time of writing and didn't enjoy it, so "I brought Rebus to London so he could suffer, too". The original title was ''Wolfman'' but Rankin's American edition editor came up with the title ''Tooth and Nail'', which Rankin "liked better" as it kept the early title sequence ( omething& omething going.

References

1992 British novels Inspector Rebus novels Novels set in London Century (imprint) books {{1990s-crime-novel-stub