Yet after 20 years and 18 Rebus novels, Rankin and his hard-driving detective had become indelibly linked to Edinburgh.

CNN: Five trips for crime fiction lovers

Five years ago Ian Rankin retired his Edinburgh detective John Rebus when the fictional character reached mandatory retirement age for Scottish police.

CNN: Five trips for crime fiction lovers

Similarly, one of the U.K.'s most pre-eminent crime writers, whose Rebus character is a cynical, down-on-his-luck, semi-alcoholic detective, reveals a weakness for high-end Cartier watches.

WSJ: Where True Value Lies

"Rebus: Standing in Another Man's Grave, " a new Rebus novel, will be released in the United Kingdom in November and in the United States in January 2013.

CNN: Five trips for crime fiction lovers

Ian Rankin has his own interactive Rebus' Edinburgh map at his website, and he recently updated his Ian Rankin's Edinburgh app, available on iTunes and Google Play.

CNN: Five trips for crime fiction lovers

Since 2000, Rebustours has offered two-hour guided walking tours that start at Rebus' favorite pub, the Royal Oak, and incorporate readings from the Rebus novels plus mentions of other local writers, Arthur Conan Doyle and Robert Lewis Stevenson among them.

CNN: Five trips for crime fiction lovers