Witch Hunt by Ian Rankin

I picked up Witch Hunt by Ian Rankin for free in a little community library. It’s not a Rebus novel and was originally published under the pen name of Jack Harvey. I’m not sure why Ian Rankin initially decided to use a different name. I suppose it gave him the freedom to write about something different – unlike the Rebus novels, this is mainly set in England and goes nowhere near Edinburgh!

First published in 1993, Witch Hunt is the story of a female assassin and terrorist, with the code name Witch. Very few people know of her existence and she has the ability to come and go unseen, blending in with her surroundings. An unusual boat accident is a red flag and it appears that Witch could be in Britain.

Witch gave me very strong Vilanelle/ Killing Eve vibes. I really think Vilanelle could have been based on Witch, there were so many similarities.

Various people – from the security service and the police – then set about trying to track her down and work out her motives before she can do more damage. With a big summit of world leaders heading for London, there is a long list of potential high profile victims and targets. The trail runs the length and breadth of Britain and into France and Germany.

It took me a while to get the hang of who was who, as it felt like there was a lot of characters and I couldn’t remember who worked for which service, but I don’t suppose that really matters! It did take me a while to get into it for that reason, but once I was into it, I couldn’t stop reading. Witch Hunt is a proper thriller, whereas the Rebus books are detective novels. The action in Witch Hunt is more dramatic and on a bigger scale.

Reading it 30 years after publication, some things do seem out of date. Computers exist, but they are slow and can’t do a lot. People stay in touch with each other by calling landlines at home, work or even the pub.

For me Witch Hunt wasn’t as good as a Rebus novel, but it was still pretty good. If you enjoy thrillers and you don’t mind things being a bit old fashioned, Witch Hunt is worth a read, especially if you can get it for free like I did!