Ian Rankin might have taken a year off from writing novels, but this second offering (following his collection of Rebus stories) offers a new insight into his talent, being his first stage play, cowritten with the Artistic Director of Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum, Mark Thomson. Involving a soon to retire female Chief Superintendent who resurrects a cold case into the savage murder of four young women, the plot offers rewarding twists, turns and red herrings and unveils corruption, deceit and a cauldron of human emotions. Reading scripts on the page can sometimes be a frustrating endeavour, with a lack of necessary visual pointers, but in Rankin's capable hands it flows like a novel.
First performed at Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum Theatre, the first stage play from the SUNDAY TIMES No.1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES
It's been 25 years since Alfred Chalmers was convicted of the gruesome murder of four young women in Edinburgh. Isobel McArthur, Scotland's first Chief Constable, was the woman responsible for putting him behind bars, but the case has haunted her ever since.
Now, with her retirement approaching, McArthur decides the time has come for answers. To uncover the truth, she revisits the case and interviews Chalmers for the first time in decades. But her decision rips opens old wounds and McArthur is soon caught up in a web of corruption, psychological mind-games and deceit that threatens not only her own life, but those of her fellow officers and even her own daughter.
Tense, gritty and hard-hitting, DARK ROAD is the first ever stage play from bestselling crime writer Ian Rankin, co-written by the Royal Lyceum's Artistic Director Mark Thomson.
