Overview

Rabbits follows Tommo, a middle-class teenager sent to a prestigious Scottish boarding school in the early 1990s. He is drawn into the fading world of aristocratic privilege, parties, drugs and old houses. When his friend’s brother is found dead with a shotgun, he realises the secrets around him are darker than they first seemed.

Writing & Voice

We found the writing vivid and sharp, balancing dark humour with a sense of menace. Rifkind’s voice shifts deftly between irreverence and poignancy, making the strange world of wealth and decay feel alive and unsettling.

Content & Perspective

The narrative stays close to Tommo’s experience as he navigates boarding school life, elite friendship circles, and the fallout of tragedy. The book blends coming-of-age reflection with mystery, and often feels unnervingly funny as it reveals the contradictions of its setting.

Themes

Rabbits explores class, masculinity, privilege and loss. It looks at how young people are seduced by surface glamour and then confronted with deeper, darker realities beneath. The setting in 1990s Scotland heightens the sense of a world in decline and transition.

What Worked

• Strong sense of place in Scotland’s elite circles.
• Blends humour with serious themes in a way that feels fresh.
• Compelling mystery that drives the plot forward.

Minor Quibbles

• Some plot elements lean into stereotype.
• The blend of tones may not suit every reader.

Final Thoughts

We found Rabbits sharp and unsettling, where dark humour and adolescent confusion expose the rot beneath privilege, class performance, and inherited masculinity in 1990s Scotland.

Rating: ★★★★★ / 5