A Song for the Dark Times
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $15.98
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
James Macpherson
-
By:
-
Ian Rankin
About this listen
'Genius ... Only great novels capture the spirit of the age. This is one of them.'
THE TIMES
* * * * *
'He's gone...'
When his daughter Samantha calls in the dead of night, John Rebus knows it's not good news. Her husband has been missing for two days.
Rebus fears the worst - and knows from his lifetime in the police that his daughter will be the prime suspect.
He wasn't the best father - the job always came first - but now his daughter needs him more than ever. But is he going as a father or a detective?
As he leaves at dawn to drive to the windswept coast - and a small town with big secrets - he wonders whether this might be the first time in his life where the truth is the one thing he doesn't want to find...
PRAISE FOR A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES:
'Magnificent ... utterly unputdownable and an immersive pleasure' MARIAN KEYES
'This is Rankin at his best, Rebus at his best, storytelling that meets the moment and transcends all genres and expectations' MICHAEL CONNELLY
'An outstanding addition to one of the finest bodies of work in crime fiction' MICK HERRON
'Rankin remains the king of the castle' THE TIMES
'Typically compelling' DAILY TELEGRAPH
'Masterly storytelling' SUNDAY EXPRESS
'Excellent' LIZ NUGENT
'The best that the crime genre can offer' FT
'Rankin grows better with time . . . Rebus grows ever more compelling' DAILY MAIL
* * * * *
PRAISE FOR THE ICONIC NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER:
'Ian Rankin is a genius'
LEE CHILD
'A master storyteller'
GUARDIAN
'Rebus is one of British crime writing's greatest characters: alongside Holmes, Poirot and Morse'
DAILY MAIL
'Great fiction, full stop'
THE TIMES
'One of Britain's leading novelists in any genre'
NEW STATESMAN
'Rankin is a phenomenon'
SPECTATOR
'Worthy of Agatha Christie at her best'
SCOTSMAN
'The king of crime fiction'
SUNDAY EXPRESS
****
Ian Rankin's SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES was a Sunday Times bestseller w/c 5th October 2020©2020 Ian Rankin (P)2020 Orion Publishing Group
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Impossible Dead
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Peter Forbes
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Complaints: that's the name given to the Internal Affairs department who seek out dirty and compromised cops, the ones who've made deals with the devil. And sometimes The Complaints must travel. A major inquiry into a neighboring police force sees Malcolm Fox and his colleagues cast adrift, unsure of territory, protocol, or who they can trust. An entire station-house looks to have been compromised, but as Fox digs deeper, he finds the trail leads him back in time to the suicide of a prominent politician and activist.
-
-
It's Not a Popularity Contest
- By Thor Finn on 04-29-12
By: Ian Rankin
-
Westwind
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Ian Rankin, Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Europe, the Americans are pulling out their troops in a tide of isolationism. Britain, torn between loyalties to America and the continent, is caught in the middle. Across the pond, a space shuttle crashes on landing, killing all but one of the crew on board: A British citizen named Mike Dreyfuss, who will become vilified by the US press and protesters. Halfway across the world, at English ground control headquarters, Martin Hepton watches with dismay as they lose contact with the most advanced satellite in Europe.
-
-
Ian Rankin does Moonraker
- By scott on 01-29-20
By: Ian Rankin
-
The Complaints
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Peter Forbes
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nobody likes The Complaints—they're the cops who investigate other cops. It's a department known within the force as The Dark Side, and it's where Malcolm Fox works. He's a serious man with a father in a nursing home and a sister who persists in an abusive relationship, frustrating problems about which he cannot seem to do anything.
-
-
Excellent Use of a Credit
- By MJ on 12-05-11
By: Ian Rankin
-
The Rise
- A Short Story
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Indira Varma
- Length: 2 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Rise is a gleaming residential tower, newly constructed from steel and blackened glass, that stands on some of London’s most prestigious real estate. Looming imposingly over Hyde Park, only multi-millionaires need apply for one of its sumptuous apartments. But when the young night concierge is found murdered in the building’s lobby, the elite residents quickly find their gilded lifestyles under unwelcome police scrutiny.
-
-
Great performance, okay story
- By Jill on 11-01-23
By: Ian Rankin
-
An Accidental Death
- A DC Smith Investigation Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Grainger
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The story opens with the apparently accidental drowning of a sixth form student in the Norfolk countryside. As a matter of routine, or so it seems, the case passes across the desk of Detective Sergeant Smith, recently returned to work after an internal investigation into another case that has led to tensions between officers at Kings Lake police headquarters. As an ex-DCI, Smith could have retired by now, and it is clear that some of his superiors wish that he would do so.
-
-
Excellent British Mystery
- By Customer on 09-07-16
By: Peter Grainger
-
Laidlaw
- A Laidlaw Investigation, Book 1
- By: William McIlvanney
- Narrated by: William McIlvanney
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Jack Laidlaw, the original damaged detective. When a young woman is found brutally murdered on Glasgow Green, only Laidlaw stands a chance of finding her murderer from among the hard men, gangland villains and self-made moneymen who lurk in the city's shadows.Winner of the CWA Silver Dagger.
-
-
forerunner of good noir
- By Dr. William J. Kass on 01-12-14
-
The Impossible Dead
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Peter Forbes
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Complaints: that's the name given to the Internal Affairs department who seek out dirty and compromised cops, the ones who've made deals with the devil. And sometimes The Complaints must travel. A major inquiry into a neighboring police force sees Malcolm Fox and his colleagues cast adrift, unsure of territory, protocol, or who they can trust. An entire station-house looks to have been compromised, but as Fox digs deeper, he finds the trail leads him back in time to the suicide of a prominent politician and activist.
-
-
It's Not a Popularity Contest
- By Thor Finn on 04-29-12
By: Ian Rankin
-
Westwind
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Ian Rankin, Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Europe, the Americans are pulling out their troops in a tide of isolationism. Britain, torn between loyalties to America and the continent, is caught in the middle. Across the pond, a space shuttle crashes on landing, killing all but one of the crew on board: A British citizen named Mike Dreyfuss, who will become vilified by the US press and protesters. Halfway across the world, at English ground control headquarters, Martin Hepton watches with dismay as they lose contact with the most advanced satellite in Europe.
-
-
Ian Rankin does Moonraker
- By scott on 01-29-20
By: Ian Rankin
-
The Complaints
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Peter Forbes
- Length: 12 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nobody likes The Complaints—they're the cops who investigate other cops. It's a department known within the force as The Dark Side, and it's where Malcolm Fox works. He's a serious man with a father in a nursing home and a sister who persists in an abusive relationship, frustrating problems about which he cannot seem to do anything.
-
-
Excellent Use of a Credit
- By MJ on 12-05-11
By: Ian Rankin
-
The Rise
- A Short Story
- By: Ian Rankin
- Narrated by: Indira Varma
- Length: 2 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Rise is a gleaming residential tower, newly constructed from steel and blackened glass, that stands on some of London’s most prestigious real estate. Looming imposingly over Hyde Park, only multi-millionaires need apply for one of its sumptuous apartments. But when the young night concierge is found murdered in the building’s lobby, the elite residents quickly find their gilded lifestyles under unwelcome police scrutiny.
-
-
Great performance, okay story
- By Jill on 11-01-23
By: Ian Rankin
-
An Accidental Death
- A DC Smith Investigation Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Grainger
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The story opens with the apparently accidental drowning of a sixth form student in the Norfolk countryside. As a matter of routine, or so it seems, the case passes across the desk of Detective Sergeant Smith, recently returned to work after an internal investigation into another case that has led to tensions between officers at Kings Lake police headquarters. As an ex-DCI, Smith could have retired by now, and it is clear that some of his superiors wish that he would do so.
-
-
Excellent British Mystery
- By Customer on 09-07-16
By: Peter Grainger
-
Laidlaw
- A Laidlaw Investigation, Book 1
- By: William McIlvanney
- Narrated by: William McIlvanney
- Length: 7 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Jack Laidlaw, the original damaged detective. When a young woman is found brutally murdered on Glasgow Green, only Laidlaw stands a chance of finding her murderer from among the hard men, gangland villains and self-made moneymen who lurk in the city's shadows.Winner of the CWA Silver Dagger.
-
-
forerunner of good noir
- By Dr. William J. Kass on 01-12-14
-
A Long Time Dead
- A D.I. Duncan McAdam Mystery (The Misty Isle, Book 1)
- By: J M Dalgliesh
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
D.I. Duncan McAdam is dispatched home to the Misty Isle. A body has been found buried in a remote location on the Waternish peninsula. Well-preserved in the peat, Isla Matheson—missing for the better part of two decades—is revealed to a shocked island community. A teenage runaway is dead...and no one is talking.
-
-
totally enjoyed this
- By Owl8988 on 11-21-23
By: J M Dalgliesh
-
A Litter of Bones: A Scottish Crime Thriller
- DCI Logan Crime Thrillers, Book 1
- By: JD Kirk
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 7 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Was the biggest case of his career the worst mistake he ever made? Ten years ago, DCI Jack Logan stopped the serial child-killer dubbed "Mister Whisper", earning himself a commendation, a drinking problem, and a broken marriage in the process...When another child disappears a hundred miles north in the Highlands, Jack is sent to lead the investigation and bring the boy home. But as similarities between the two cases grow, could it be that Jack caught the wrong man all those years ago?
-
-
High hopes dashed: not just a little bit of child and animal torture
- By greyhound on 07-01-20
By: JD Kirk
-
The Turning of Our Bones
- DI Rob Marshall Mysteries, Book 1
- By: Ed James
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Met cop DI Rob Marshall is hot on the trail of the serial killer known as the Chameleon, who has abducted, tortured and killed a series of young women in Northwest London. As they close in, the Chameleon—who switches identity to get close to his victims—shoots Marshall’s partner and escapes.
-
-
DI Marshall sanctimonious and stupid
- By Stephanie on 04-30-23
By: Ed James
-
The Secret Hours
- By: Mick Herron
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 12 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two years ago, a hostile Prime Minister launched the Monochrome inquiry, investigating "historical over-reaching" by the British Secret Service “to investigate historical over-reaching.” Monochrome’s mission was to ferret out any hint of misconduct by any MI5 officer—and allowed Griselda Fleet and Malcolm Kyle, the two civil servants seconded to the project, unfettered access to any and all confidential information in the Service archives in order to do so. But MI5’s formidable First Desk did not become Britain’s top spy by accident, and she has successfully thwarted the inquiry at every turn.
-
-
Just about perfect
- By June Lapidow on 09-28-23
By: Mick Herron
-
The Black Echo: Special Edition
- Harry Bosch, Book 1
- By: Michael Connelly
- Narrated by: Titus Welliver
- Length: 14 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For maverick LAPD homicide detective Harry Bosch, the body in the drainpipe at Mulholland Dam is more than another anonymous statistic. This one is personal...because the murdered man was a fellow Vietnam "tunnel rat" who had fought side by side with him in a hellish underground war. Now Bosch is about to relive the horror of Nam. From a dangerous maze of blind alleys to a daring criminal heist beneath the city, his survival instincts will once again be tested to their limit.
-
-
Titus Welliver has really stepped in it!
- By George Moneo on 04-08-20
By: Michael Connelly
-
The Crow Trap
- A Vera Stanhope Mystery
- By: Ann Cleeves
- Narrated by: Anne Dover
- Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three very different women come together to complete an environmental survey on the Northumberland countryside. Three women who, in some way or another, know the meaning of betrayal....For team leader Rachael Lambert the project is the perfect opportunity to rebuild her confidence after a double-betrayal by her lover and boss, Peter Kemp. Botanist Anne Preece, on the other hand, sees it as a chance to indulge in a little deception of her own. And then there is Grace Fulwell, a strange, uncommunicative young woman with plenty of her own secrets to hide.
-
-
Different but loved it
- By Audrey L Reader on 08-06-17
By: Ann Cleeves
-
The Cold, Cold Ground
- Detective Sean Duffy, Book 1
- By: Adrian McKinty
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Northern Ireland, spring 1981. Hunger strikes, riots, power cuts, a homophobic serial killer with a penchant for opera, and a young woman’s suicide that may yet turn out to be murder: on the surface, the events are unconnected, but then things—and people—aren’t always what they seem. Detective Sergeant Duffy is the man tasked with trying to get to the bottom of it all. It’s no easy job—especially when it turns out that one of the victims was involved in the IRA but was last seen discussing business with someone from the loyalist Ulster Volunteer Force.
-
-
Listen to this book. You won't be disappointed.
- By Christopher on 01-21-12
By: Adrian McKinty
-
The Blessing Way
- By: Tony Hillerman
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 6 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Homicide is always an abomination, but there is something exceptionally disturbing about the victim discovered in a high, lonely place: a corpse with a mouth full of sand, abandoned at a crime scene seemingly devoid of tracks or useful clues. Though it goes against his better judgment, Navajo tribal police lieutenant Joe Leaphorn cannot help but suspect the hand of a supernatural killer.
-
-
A 'Blessing' Indeed!
- By Carole T. on 03-15-16
By: Tony Hillerman
-
Grimm Up North
- A DCI Harry Grimm Crime Novel
- By: David J. Gatward
- Narrated by: Aubrey Parsons
- Length: 6 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Detective Chief Inspector Harry Grimm is forced to take leave from Bristol’s Major Investigations Team when his boss, tired of Harry chasing the ghost of his murderous father, sends him north on secondment. Used to city life and high stress, Harry fears his life will now be spent handing out speeding tickets, finding lost sheep, and directing tourists. But when a local teenager runs away, Harry finds himself pulled into an investigation much worse than anyone could have ever expected.
-
-
An enthralling and entertaining new mystery series
- By Diana in SC @AudiobookObsession on 03-15-21
By: David J. Gatward
-
Songbird
- Kings Lake Investigation Series, Book 1
- By: Peter Grainger
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 15 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Detective Sergeant Chris Waters got the call at 05.29 that July morning. This is it, said DCI Reeve, you'll be first there, it's all yours, you're the crime scene manager. Suddenly, after months of waiting and wondering, Waters finds himself in at the deep end, and alone at the scene of a puzzling murder. As the investigation proceeds, the detectives at Kings Lake Central find themselves visiting familiar places and talking to some familiar faces, while old enmities reappear in the incident room. Before this is over, Chris Waters will need to make a career-changing decision.
-
-
Loved it...
- By Kelly on 09-20-19
By: Peter Grainger
-
The Bonnie Dead
- DCI Lomond Crime Thrillers, Book 1
- By: Andrew Raymond
- Narrated by: Angus King
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Five years ago, DCI John Lomond led the search for notorious Glasgow child-killer ‘The Sandman', until personal tragedy forced him off the case. In Lomond's absence, the killer was never found. Now, with nothing but work left in his life, Lomond remains obsessed with the case–despite the nightmares it brings. When a child is abducted in similar Sandman fashion from an affluent Glasgow suburb, Lomond is brought in to find them before it's too late.
-
-
Spellbinding Book & Performance!
- By Kelly A on 06-06-23
By: Andrew Raymond
-
The Long Call
- A Detective Matthew Venn Novel
- By: Ann Cleeves
- Narrated by: Ben Aldridge
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In North Devon, where two rivers converge and run into the sea, Detective Matthew Venn stands outside the church as his estranged father’s funeral takes place. On the day Matthew left the strict evangelical community he grew up in, he lost his family, too. Now, as he turns and walks away again, he receives a call from one of his team. A body has been found on the beach nearby: a man with a tattoo of an albatross on his neck, stabbed to death. The case calls Matthew back to the people and places of his past, as deadly secrets hidden at their hearts are revealed.
-
-
Excellent story and narration
- By jeanne on 07-10-21
By: Ann Cleeves
What listeners say about A Song for the Dark Times
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kempthead
- 02-19-23
Mediocre story, horribly read
I wish I had never started this story. it's a mediocre yarn, with a vast cast of unlikeable characters playing out a convoluted, pointless plot.
the story is delivered in a brogue so thick, I had to roll it back several times to make out was set. Lots of dialog with speakers unidentified or alternately ID'd by surnames, nicknames, and given names. it's confusing and irritating.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Cynthia
- 02-18-22
Way too much family angst.
I usually enjoy this series very much. But I found this one tedious and simply not up Rankin's usual.
Rebus he is called by his daughter to request his help and then she treats him like garbage when he's trying to help her, she runs a litany of all his wrongs. And the then considerable family squabbling overtakes the mystery itself.
irritating at its best, and a lackluster story at its worst. The most authentic character is Rebus himself as he actually continues to be who he really is.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!