Mystery/Thriller Reading Friends discussion

This is a repeat of what I said in my monthly reads post but the folder won't show without a post so here you are.
Lest the topic isn't obvious enough THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS. We shouldn't have to say this in posts in this folder, hence the topic title, but I thought for the first post I'd be extra careful--you know how I am about spoilers!
I was glad to begin this series that has been highly recommended. John Rebus is in a tough place in his life... wife has left him, he drinks too much, is a bit of an outsider in his precinct (do they call them precincts in Scotland?) but he wasn't so pitiful that I didn't want to follow him through the book. It was a surprise to see how down and out he was -- I'm used to reading about MC detectives who are more or less in control of their lives, but at the ned of the day he seems to be a good guy and I was rooting for him. The mystery plodded a bit until the last third, where it really picked up. I'm now reading #2 in the series, Hide and Seek. I think this series is a keeper, and happily I have a number of entries in the series to look forward to.

Thanks Carol!
NO SPOILERS BELOW!!
I was too tempted to not check out the new post on the spoiler folder, and then didn't have to read the spoiler part!
Carol wrote: "This is a repeat of what I said in my monthly reads post but the folder won't show without a post so here you are.
Lest the topic isn't obvious enough THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS. We shouldn't have to say this in posts in this folder, hence the topic title, but I thought for the first post I'd be extra careful--you know how I am about spoilers!"

I read this a number of years ago rated it only OK. The whole serial killer thing was a bit of a turnoff and it was just a bit to thrillerish for my tastes. I did like Rebus and the setting though so I am slowly working my way through the rest of the books in the series and have found them more to my liking.

Carol:
STILL NO SPOILERS, but related to John Rebus
I found an audio in the John Rebus series yesterday,
Set in Darkness An Inspector Rebus Novel. I am looking forward to listening to it next week! I am just not able to find audio books easily to listen to a series in order. I enjoyed Rankin's The Falls.

Carol/Bonadie wrote: " I'm now reading #2 in the series, Hide and Seek. I think this series is a keeper, and happily I have a number of entries in the series to look forward to.
"

Ann wrote: "Carol:
I found an audio in the John Rebus series yesterday,
Set in Darkness An Inspector Rebus Novel. I am looking forward to listening to it next week! I am just not able to find audio books easily to listen to a series in order. I enjoyed Rankin's The Falls. ..."

Ann, I confess to being a UOOOR* for a day when I read one of Rankin's more recent Rebus' last year. Someone had raved about it and I wanted to check it out. I then came to my senses and went back to start the series in order, however. ;-)

______
*Unrepentant Out of Order Reader, a term coined by Ann when she got sick of people like me insisting that Reading in Order was the only way to go, lol.

Carol: I am proud of you for admitting of being an UOOOR, even for just a day. :) ...and I am never intolerant of my RIO Book Pals Reading in Order. The UOOOR creed allows that reading in the order of your choice is the way to go!

Carol/Bonadie wrote: "*Unrepentant Out of Order Reader, a term coined by Ann when she got sick of people like me insisting that Reading in Order was the only way to go, lol. "

I would love to be a UOOOR since it's not easy to find every book in a series and I just may want to read a book without having read earlier ones, but the problem is the authors of mystery series don't like UOOORs because they have their characters' spouses, partners leave or die, or the characters get promoted or have life-changing events and us poor readers can get awfully confused when someone who is supposed to be dead shows up alive or vice-versa or not be able to follow whatever changes occur. For especially good writers like Ian Rankin who is in complete control of his character, I view all of the Rebus books as chapters in one long novel in which I can follow the character's changing life while enjoying the mysteries. John Rebus ages, grows up, changes, etc. That's part of the fun, learning about my fictional friends. The same can be said of Elizabeth George and her Inspector Lynley and Sgt. Havers or Val McDermid's Tony Hill -- to name only a few. Publishers are more willing to pay for the first in a planned series than a stand-alone since there's the promise of repeat business, so writers are taking them more seriously and putting more effort and talent into them -- and it shows. I never used to read series because I had to go in order. Now I find them so much better than stand alones. Today's series are far more sophisticated than the old series. I mean, Perry Mason never aged a day.