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Witch Hunt
A brilliant thriller from the No.1 bestselling author of A SONG FOR THE DARK TIMES'No one in Britain writes better crime novels today' Evening StandardInterpol have tried and failed to find the terrorist, Witch. Now the combined forces of Scotland Yard and MI5 must try the impossible to prevent a major international incident. Dominic Elder carries her autograph wherever he goes. Witch is his passion, his obsession. And being retired is no bar to his willingness to restart the hunt. MI5 know that the man who wrote the Witch file is the key to catching their quarry. But the truth isn't easy to spot. And it is only when an MI5 novice and his French counterpart piece together the smallest of clues, that Witch suddenly looks vulnerable...
453 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1993
281 people are currently reading
1542 people want to read
About the author
Jack Harvey
34 books50 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
A pseudonym used by Ian Rankin.
A pseudonym used by Ian Rankin.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 250 reviews
July 23, 2023
An excellent read. Not a Rebus in sight but the character of Dominick Elder could be seen as an early glimpse. Not a hard smoker or heavy drinker but a man who never gives up. Hunting for the illusive female assassin code named the Witch.
Book moves along at pace. Good story and characters you can relate to. It would be nice to see if any follow ups written before Rebus became the writers focus.
Book moves along at pace. Good story and characters you can relate to. It would be nice to see if any follow ups written before Rebus became the writers focus.
April 2, 2020
OK crime fiction drama with French and UK security services and the Special Branch all hunting the super terrorist 'the witch'… a gripping tale. 5 out of 12.
Interesting that it is listed on Goodreads as a Kindle only book, when my records state clearly that I read a hard-copy Orion books paperback.. if I cared more, I'd Google it, but unfortunately I don't.
Interesting that it is listed on Goodreads as a Kindle only book, when my records state clearly that I read a hard-copy Orion books paperback.. if I cared more, I'd Google it, but unfortunately I don't.
September 10, 2018
Started this book thinking it probably wouldn’t be as good as the Rebus books and now I stand corrected! It was excellent! Really gripping and interesting, full of tense plot twists that had me gasping out loud.
April 10, 2014
This was a disappointment. Witch Hunt is a stand-alone book seperate from Ian Rankin's Inspector Rebus series, and it just doesn't satisfy. It struck me as being very overwritten, i.e., where a few lines or paragraphs would have sufficed, thousands of words and a great many chapters are thrown at us. Remember those old sci-fi pulps where the writers were paid a penny a word? Yeah, like that.
October 31, 2015
Another very good Ian Rankin novel! This one is not about John Rebus or Edinburgh. It focuses on a young woman assassin (code name Witch), a retired London detective (Dominic Elder) who's been after her for years, and some younger police in London Criminal Investigation Division. CID is competing with Special Branch and some detective work gets done in spite of the politics. Elder is a Rebus-like loner, obsessed with Witch, who might be responsible, a decade or more past, for killing his only daughter and many others in a Paris bombing. She also deeply wounded Elder in a previous meeting, and caused him to retire. Elder is called back to service because he knows Witch better than anyone. He and his small cadre try piecing together all of Witch's devious clues in time to stop her assumed assassination attempt during a summit of world leaders in London. Witch is brilliant, of course, and a chameleon, with lightning reflexes, a macabre sense of humor, and she's always at least one step ahead of Elder and the CID. Great story, good characters, who are deep and complex and troubled. Well worth a read!
April 27, 2013
This was a fast paced read, enjoyable but becoming a little dated as the case might have been solved a lot quicker with the help of mobile phones and the internet! It was written by a young Rankin who clearly thought anyone over 50 was OLD, I wonder what he would think rereading it in his 50's.
March 22, 2025
Good not-so-clean fun
December 20, 2013
Although a very old book, I first got my hands on this book at a bookstall while waiting for a flight from Amsterdam in 2002. I had not finished reading it and due to the arrival and customs, I misplaced and lost it for good. Although, I searched fervently, I could not get a copy of the book again. Recently, though I finally completed my quest.
As for the book, I would like to give it a 3.5 or so. When it was written, it was more of a newer concept. A female assassin. Especially one with a track record of never missing. An assassin who was an enigma to the point where, people made case studies of her. I realize that each case will be an investigation but investigations reveal tangible/substantial facts. But what was amazing in the case of "Witch" was the lack of substance in the proof. The quest for her capture was purely luck. No hard concrete evidence, just theories and more theories. The theories were nonetheless accurate ( otherwise, there wouldn't be much of a story, I suppose).
The book was well written, and introduced characters and settings in line with the story. What blew me off was the ending. Her final kill was personal and messy. In theory, an assassin makes personal kills earlier in their careers as they don't want the threat ie- people identifying them...However, it can be attributed to the fact that she didn't know of her origin. But, if she was as good as the book claimed, she would have known earlier. Moreover, she should/ would have killed off (she attempts to- but that is half-hearten) the detective who had a whole file on her "the witch file". A few kinks in the story but one's that you can always lay fault at "human" nature. Witch is still very much a "human" and what makes her more of an enigma is her humanity...whether be it her odd sense of humor or her childlike need for comfort.
This book makes introductions of an array of characters and at some point, the reader is made aware of a clash in personalities and a likely subplot developing. But, there is not clash and the story moves from beginning to end answering all questions that can be raised. Character development has been Rankin's greatest talent and he does so flawlessly here. He introduces characters with personalities similar to what we expect to see or see in real life. The depth and personality that Rankin introduces to his readers always leaves me in awe.
This book first introduced me to Rankin and later onto Rebus novels. If you read closely enough, you can find the similarities in the manner which characters are revealed to the reader in the rebus series. A must read in my humble opinion.
As for the book, I would like to give it a 3.5 or so. When it was written, it was more of a newer concept. A female assassin. Especially one with a track record of never missing. An assassin who was an enigma to the point where, people made case studies of her. I realize that each case will be an investigation but investigations reveal tangible/substantial facts. But what was amazing in the case of "Witch" was the lack of substance in the proof. The quest for her capture was purely luck. No hard concrete evidence, just theories and more theories. The theories were nonetheless accurate ( otherwise, there wouldn't be much of a story, I suppose).
The book was well written, and introduced characters and settings in line with the story. What blew me off was the ending. Her final kill was personal and messy. In theory, an assassin makes personal kills earlier in their careers as they don't want the threat ie- people identifying them...However, it can be attributed to the fact that she didn't know of her origin. But, if she was as good as the book claimed, she would have known earlier. Moreover, she should/ would have killed off (she attempts to- but that is half-hearten) the detective who had a whole file on her "the witch file". A few kinks in the story but one's that you can always lay fault at "human" nature. Witch is still very much a "human" and what makes her more of an enigma is her humanity...whether be it her odd sense of humor or her childlike need for comfort.
This book makes introductions of an array of characters and at some point, the reader is made aware of a clash in personalities and a likely subplot developing. But, there is not clash and the story moves from beginning to end answering all questions that can be raised. Character development has been Rankin's greatest talent and he does so flawlessly here. He introduces characters with personalities similar to what we expect to see or see in real life. The depth and personality that Rankin introduces to his readers always leaves me in awe.
This book first introduced me to Rankin and later onto Rebus novels. If you read closely enough, you can find the similarities in the manner which characters are revealed to the reader in the rebus series. A must read in my humble opinion.
February 28, 2013
A decent enough spy thriller that becomes better once the individual spy hunters start developing separate personalities, but nothing out of this world fantastic. Witch--an elusive terrorist who is linked to a string of bombings and assassinations by the barest of hints--is an engaging, enigmatic character that eventually falls flat due to the discovery of her ultimate motive. The team tasked with hunting her down are typical archetypes (the new guy looking to prove himself, the smartass, the veterans looking for closure in the case, etc), but are handled decently enough.
The real problem I had with the narrative is that so much of it hinges on the fact that Witch is a woman who is so mysterious!and elusive! due to her ability to (gasp!) adopt a range of disguises and change her appearance and posture at a whim so that no one is ever entirely sure whether or not they are looking at her. Because--obviously--no man could ever change the way he looks with wigs or clothing or different postures. Ever. It's just not possible. At least not in Rankin's world.
I would have liked it much more had the stakes been higher at the ending instead of Witch trying to resolve her Mommy and Daddy issues, and had Witch and Elder had more interactions together, or at least more of a pursuit at the end. The conclusion was just too much of a letdown on too many levels for me to rate this any more than 2 stars.
The real problem I had with the narrative is that so much of it hinges on the fact that Witch is a woman who is so mysterious!and elusive! due to her ability to (gasp!) adopt a range of disguises and change her appearance and posture at a whim so that no one is ever entirely sure whether or not they are looking at her. Because--obviously--no man could ever change the way he looks with wigs or clothing or different postures. Ever. It's just not possible. At least not in Rankin's world.
I would have liked it much more had the stakes been higher at the ending instead of Witch trying to resolve her Mommy and Daddy issues, and had Witch and Elder had more interactions together, or at least more of a pursuit at the end. The conclusion was just too much of a letdown on too many levels for me to rate this any more than 2 stars.
November 7, 2018
Not a bad spy novel- but the character development was a distraction so the novels first half feels clunky.
Finally after a satisfying ending I don't see the same of characters in the following Jack Harvey novels - it is literary abuse for a writer to lure readers into investing their empathy and their enthusiasm into a cast characters that are never used again!
Finally after a satisfying ending I don't see the same of characters in the following Jack Harvey novels - it is literary abuse for a writer to lure readers into investing their empathy and their enthusiasm into a cast characters that are never used again!
April 21, 2014
Journey better than the ending. Clunky at times it feels like an earlier novel. Aimed at a teenage boy market, well men never grow up!
March 10, 2018
Witch Hunt by 'Jack Harvey' (Ian Rankin) is a standalone thriller (no connection to the Rebus series) set in 1993 London. "Witch" is a clever female assassin who is expert at disguise; successful and elusive for many years, she kept intelligence agencies guessing with her widespread choice of targets.
Dominic Elder, a retired MI5 agent, is obsessed with catching Witch. He's the most knowledgeable of all her past crimes, so despite inter-agency politics, British intelligence requests his help.
Jack Conant, a young CID agent without field experience, gets his big chance for excitement. Eager to learn from Dominic, he takes whatever risk is necessary to pursue his quarry.
Dominique is a young French agent, with a little more experience than Jack (but not much). She and Jack team up to pursue Witch, with Dominic's guidance. Their mission: to find Witch before she can assassinate a world leader at the upcoming summit in London. Of course, that is not exactly what Witch has in mind. A suspenseful and enjoyable read, although the technology is out-of-date.
Dominic Elder, a retired MI5 agent, is obsessed with catching Witch. He's the most knowledgeable of all her past crimes, so despite inter-agency politics, British intelligence requests his help.
Jack Conant, a young CID agent without field experience, gets his big chance for excitement. Eager to learn from Dominic, he takes whatever risk is necessary to pursue his quarry.
Dominique is a young French agent, with a little more experience than Jack (but not much). She and Jack team up to pursue Witch, with Dominic's guidance. Their mission: to find Witch before she can assassinate a world leader at the upcoming summit in London. Of course, that is not exactly what Witch has in mind. A suspenseful and enjoyable read, although the technology is out-of-date.
May 23, 2018
An absolutely fantastic read. 'oly Smokes, really good writing too. When I read "The Fifth Profession", there was much to be desired in the writing. Here, the writing is definitely a notch or two up. Small nuances, minor characters, that is described with just a few words or two, would come back later in the novel. The writing is also full of detailed descriptions. It takes its time detailing the character, the weekend traveling arrangements of Idres Khan, even though, in the overall scope of the novel, he is of a somewhat limited importance. Same goes for George Crane.
Interestingly, the character that the least fleshed out is Witch herself, perhaps deliberately. Although her name, some of her childhood background and her real target is revealed, much of her character, her motivations remain something of a mystery. Far more attention is given to her main pursuers - Elder, Barcley, Dominique, Doyle and Greenleaf and to a large extent, these characters themselves evolve over the 2 and half week pursuit of Witch.
I have to say that even before I finished this book, I picked up another Ian Rankin book. I hope to continue reading more from him.
Interestingly, the character that the least fleshed out is Witch herself, perhaps deliberately. Although her name, some of her childhood background and her real target is revealed, much of her character, her motivations remain something of a mystery. Far more attention is given to her main pursuers - Elder, Barcley, Dominique, Doyle and Greenleaf and to a large extent, these characters themselves evolve over the 2 and half week pursuit of Witch.
I have to say that even before I finished this book, I picked up another Ian Rankin book. I hope to continue reading more from him.
January 8, 2013
Rankin is my favourite crime writer and having read all the Rebus (and lately Fox) novels set in Edinburgh I'm filling in some of the gaps in my reading of the back catalogue. Rankin wrote what he calls "Airport Thrillers" to keep the money rolling in whilst working on the Rebus series. This stopped when Rebus took off.
Witch Hunt was written under the pen name of Jack Harvey and published in '93. Whilst there are some differences in style there are plenty of the usual qualities of Rankin here.
The story is about the hunt for a terrorist with an unlikely bunch of police and agents on the hunt both across Europe and England. The central hunter is Dominic Elder, brought out of retirement and not entirely playing everything by the book.
Great characters and a twisting plot that keeps you going make it a good read. The lack of the backdrop of Edinburgh and Fife means it lacks a little as Rankin doesn't portray London and Paris with the same grit.
Witch Hunt was written under the pen name of Jack Harvey and published in '93. Whilst there are some differences in style there are plenty of the usual qualities of Rankin here.
The story is about the hunt for a terrorist with an unlikely bunch of police and agents on the hunt both across Europe and England. The central hunter is Dominic Elder, brought out of retirement and not entirely playing everything by the book.
Great characters and a twisting plot that keeps you going make it a good read. The lack of the backdrop of Edinburgh and Fife means it lacks a little as Rankin doesn't portray London and Paris with the same grit.
July 14, 2016
A passable thriller. It pushes along at a reasonable rate, and interplays between the three main characters - two young, and one brought back from retirement, and none feeling particularly original. The plotting is fine enough, but the 'twist' and motivation at the end feels flat and a bit implausible - although a terrorist book with that plot feels bizarrely mundane compared to the real life cases now. It's not bad, but with the London and southern England setting, it still feels perfunctory, rather than the deep, layered and vital Edinburgh he describes in later books.
As an early novel, it's fine - I can see why people score it higher. But compared to most (nearly all) of his Rebus novels, it's just not in the same game. I'm glad he realised this!
As an early novel, it's fine - I can see why people score it higher. But compared to most (nearly all) of his Rebus novels, it's just not in the same game. I'm glad he realised this!
July 15, 2019
Loved this book. Had the edginess of Watchman with the writing rounded out into a more fluid style, plus a bevy of interesting characters thrown into the mix. Offbeat ending, although slightly less substantive than I would have preferred. Nonetheless, this was a great read, for those who want Ian Rankin without the ubiquitous Rebus (or even Fox). Topnotch.
August 27, 2009
It started in the Video section of the Library ..how could I resist a film called Rebus ...I love puzzles ... Enjoyed the episodes - different than our American detective shows .. then reading 44 Scotland Street, McCall referenced an author - Ian Rankin hummm familiar sounding name. Ah yes the videos I had watched now I am a fan ...apparently a lot of other people are also as I am on a wait list for the Rebus series ...
January 4, 2011
finished it in one night(cause the book was due the next day,and till the previous day,could not find myself to read it).But the book started out really well, but slowly started losing its grip, till at the end, the whole plot seems too improbable.on the whole,a boring book.
June 27, 2023
Sie ist eine internationale Top-Terroristin, auf die Interpol seit Jahren vergeblich Jagd macht. Nach ihrem letzten Auftauchen machen sich auch der MI5 und Scotland Yard auf die Suche nach der Frau, die man nur unter dem Namen Witch kennt. Allen voran Dominic Elder, der auch nach seiner Pensionierung nicht von diesem Fall lassen kann.
Das eBook, das ich gelesen habe, stammt aus dem Jahr 2008 und ist unter dem Namen Ian Rankin veröffentlicht, aber eigentlich hat der Autor die Geschichte schon 1993 unter dem Pseudonym Jack Harvey veröffentlicht. Das Alter merkt man nur daran, dass bei den Ermittlungen viel mehr Handarbeit gefragt war als bei aktuellen Krimis. Wo heute die verschiedenen internationalen Behörden gut vernetzt sind und ein Blick ins Netz oder eine E-Mail reichen, müssen die Ermittler in Rankins Geschichte oft mühevoll recherchieren und Befragungen vor Ort vornehmen, was sie schon mal ins benachbarte Ausland schickt. Das alles entschleunigt die Handlung, macht sie aber nicht weniger spannend.
Anfangs ist Witch ihren Verfolgern immer mehrere Schritte voraus. Ihre Aktionen wirken raffiniert und gut durchdacht. Aber dann treten neue, junge Ermittler auf den Plan, die den Fall mit frischen Augen betrachten. Plötzlich wirkt sie unsicher und macht überraschende Fehler. Aber sobald Dominic Elder in ihre Nähe kommt, läuft sie wieder zu ihrer alten Form auf. Es entwickelt sich ein spannendes Katz-und-Maus-Spiel mit zahlreichen Wendungen. Die waren jetzt immer ein wenig vorhersehbar. Aber ich denke, dass das anders gewesen wäre, wenn ich den Krimi zu der Zeit gelesen hätte, als er erschienen ist. Vielleicht hätte mich dann auch das etwas zu dick aufgetragene französische Flair des Teils der Geschichte, der in Frankreich spielt, weniger gestört. Aber das ist nur ein kleiner Kritikpunkt.
Das Ende... auch nachdem nach der Lektüre einige Zeit vergangen ist, bin ich mir noch nicht sicher, was ich davon halten soll. Wahrscheinlich muss ich das Buch noch ein zweites Mal lesen, um mir darüber im Klaren zu sein.
Ich mag das Wortspiel im englischen Titel, denn auf deutsch kann man ihn verschieden auslegen und ich finde, alle Auslegungen passen gut zur Handlung.
Das eBook, das ich gelesen habe, stammt aus dem Jahr 2008 und ist unter dem Namen Ian Rankin veröffentlicht, aber eigentlich hat der Autor die Geschichte schon 1993 unter dem Pseudonym Jack Harvey veröffentlicht. Das Alter merkt man nur daran, dass bei den Ermittlungen viel mehr Handarbeit gefragt war als bei aktuellen Krimis. Wo heute die verschiedenen internationalen Behörden gut vernetzt sind und ein Blick ins Netz oder eine E-Mail reichen, müssen die Ermittler in Rankins Geschichte oft mühevoll recherchieren und Befragungen vor Ort vornehmen, was sie schon mal ins benachbarte Ausland schickt. Das alles entschleunigt die Handlung, macht sie aber nicht weniger spannend.
Anfangs ist Witch ihren Verfolgern immer mehrere Schritte voraus. Ihre Aktionen wirken raffiniert und gut durchdacht. Aber dann treten neue, junge Ermittler auf den Plan, die den Fall mit frischen Augen betrachten. Plötzlich wirkt sie unsicher und macht überraschende Fehler. Aber sobald Dominic Elder in ihre Nähe kommt, läuft sie wieder zu ihrer alten Form auf. Es entwickelt sich ein spannendes Katz-und-Maus-Spiel mit zahlreichen Wendungen. Die waren jetzt immer ein wenig vorhersehbar. Aber ich denke, dass das anders gewesen wäre, wenn ich den Krimi zu der Zeit gelesen hätte, als er erschienen ist. Vielleicht hätte mich dann auch das etwas zu dick aufgetragene französische Flair des Teils der Geschichte, der in Frankreich spielt, weniger gestört. Aber das ist nur ein kleiner Kritikpunkt.
Das Ende... auch nachdem nach der Lektüre einige Zeit vergangen ist, bin ich mir noch nicht sicher, was ich davon halten soll. Wahrscheinlich muss ich das Buch noch ein zweites Mal lesen, um mir darüber im Klaren zu sein.
Ich mag das Wortspiel im englischen Titel, denn auf deutsch kann man ihn verschieden auslegen und ich finde, alle Auslegungen passen gut zur Handlung.
June 14, 2025
It seems to me that there is a bit of Rebus in every Rankin book. This was a fast paced, excellent read that took us from the UK to France and Germany. A lot of people from special branches involved with great skills to get there in the end. Who would have thought, the villain seemed too clever at the beginning, at times a little cocky.
April 12, 2017
A far fetched story but well written
December 10, 2024
Excellent character development and story. Loved it.
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August 23, 2020I always like this one. Lots of twists and turns, some fun characters, and a sort of ambiguous ending. Good tension, sustained throughout, and another hilariously terrifying driving/chase sequence.
April 12, 2019
Not John Rebus or Malcolm Fox. The book is in the same basic format with the days progressing. Because it’s from 1993, some of the references are old. Still, it’s a good story.
Witch is an assassin. Nobody really knows what she looks like. To many, she’s just a myth but to Dominic Elder she’s very real and she haunts him.
The story takes us all over England and Scotland with brief stops in Paris and Hamburg.
Who is the next target for Witch? Will the police hunting her find her before she completes her next assignment?
I like the way that Ian Rankin crafts his books
Witch is an assassin. Nobody really knows what she looks like. To many, she’s just a myth but to Dominic Elder she’s very real and she haunts him.
The story takes us all over England and Scotland with brief stops in Paris and Hamburg.
Who is the next target for Witch? Will the police hunting her find her before she completes her next assignment?
I like the way that Ian Rankin crafts his books
November 26, 2019
Seriously good Rankin title with the genre he has made his own. This book has been an amazing variation from the world of John Rebus serving up sea of mysterious characters that I hope to come across again. The mysterious antagonist holding her own against a raft of protagonists rallied against her is the only disappointment if only that I would have loved a greater journey into how she came to be and the many experiences along her way to her final moments of which we’re only permitted some fleeting insights.
March 12, 2018
An entertaining romp from Ian Rankin (albeit under his ‘Jack Harvey’ nom de plume)featuring the hunt for a skilled professional assassin who has evidently made a reappearance on British shores (the eponymous ‘Witch’) before she strikes again. The action fairly fizzes along at pace throughout and is enjoyable enough without scaling Rebus heights.
July 25, 2018
An action filled story about a female assassin called Witch, written by Ian Rankin in 1993 before the Inspector Rebus days. I would enjoy reading more about any of the characters from “Witch” as they were all interesting and likable but I believe Rebus and his fictional colleagues have now replaced them.
October 8, 2017
A decent thriller that Rankin (writing as Harvey) seemed to leave open-ended with room for a series that doesn't seem to have materialized, unfortunately. I would have liked to see his MI5/MI6 world crossover with his Rebus world at some point.
April 14, 2018
Besides the fact that I've been reading this book for a month, I find that I enjoyed it. I was curious as to who Witch really was. I prefer fantasy, but I can see myself looking for more Ian Rankin novels. 😊
January 13, 2019
This was a good, fast-paced mystery with a woman being the villain, as was the last book I read. It was first published in 1993, but the story makes it very current when we are in an age of fears of terrorism and how to deal with it. Characters are interesting and I didn’t guess the ending!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 250 reviews