The Cuckoo’s Calling [Hardcover]

Robert Galbraith (Author), J.K. Rowling (Author)

This book was never on my radar until I saw it featured on the news recently, as they were exposing best selling author J.K Rowling as being the real author. She had initially published the book under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. As a fan of her Harry Potter series of books I was curious to see how well she could handle the mystery crime fiction genre so I grabbed the book on Amazon.

Surprisingly I really enjoyed The Cuckoo’s Calling. I was able to read through it in one afternoon. It is really difficult to pinpoint what makes this such a terrific book, however I did read the Casual Vacancy last year and I enjoyed this one a lot more. Maybe it is because both the characters and the plot are more complex.
The story is set in London, where we meet Cormoran Strike, who after being wounded in Afghanistan and losing his leg sets up a new Private Investigation agency in the city. The only problem is that he does not have any real paying clients. He is obviously broke, as he has turned his office into his bedroom too. Strike hires a lady to help him as a secretary, her name is Robin Ellacott. We later find out she secretly wants to be a detective too.

Detective Cormoran Strike is then asked to investigate the suicide of Lula Landry a supermodel. They call her Cuckoo and she is the sister of a man named John Bristow, who hires the detective. He is not happy with the ruling by the police that his sister’s fall from her snowy balcony was indeed a suicide. The siblings were both adopted by a wealthy family so they are not blood relatives. The investigation of the crime takes Strike into the world of the rich and famous and their many different lifestyles. As you can see, the plot is very simple but amazingly it works very well.

I really enjoyed how J.K Rowling was able to keep the story realistic. She masterfully makes London a character within the book, as she describes the scenery as Strike walks within the streets. The different characters within the book are developed satisfactorily and as a first time mystery writer she does a great job with that too. Frankly, I would rather not have her trademark long winded sentences they can sometimes become annoying.

If you are one of those that enjoy a lot of action, you will be disappointed. You will not find any car chases, no gun fights or even fight scenes. This book is all about the good old school detective work that mainly involves conversations with witnesses and studying the crime scenes. Usually the detective ends up sleeping with main female lead in one of the scenes, but that is not the case with this book. That was a refreshingly new twist, especially if you have read many other books in this genre.

The Cuckoo’s Calling is a very well written book. The story is good with the perfect setting and great dialogue between the characters. It is also engaging and although richer, it reads just as well as many classic novels. The book pulled me in right from the start, which explains why it only took one afternoon to read through it. You have a smooth flowing pace as well as colorful and believable characters. It remains to be seen whether, they will turn this into a series. If you think you know detectives, you probably have not met Strike yet.Read More Reviews Here…