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4.48 AVERAGE
4.48 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Dementia, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Sexual harassment
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I don't seem to tire of Ms Rowling's writing even if she has for years been "the unmentionable" – like a character in her books. I'm down to only a small handful of crime-fiction writers that I still follow. When younger I read crime fiction by the dozens and I can thank all those for becoming much better and faster at reading in English. However, I find that the more I read, the more picky I get. This is good, I guess, since there are already far too many excellent books out there to read in a lifetime. Also, far too much crime fiction is more about gory sadistic murders (of women) and less about the intelligence and deduction skills that it takes to solve complicated crimes. I do prefer the latter.
This crime fiction series about the grumpy, one-legged ex-soldier Cormoran Strike and his business partner (still!!!!) the brilliant Robin Ellacott shows all of Rowling's skills as a writer (even though I do think the books are too long): She can really pace a story, she writes effortlessly and elegantly, she does very solid research, she never patronises her readers and she's really very funny, sometimes sarcastic even, especially when describing the very rich, but also when describing hypocrisy.
I liked this story about a "church" (=cult) and how difficult it is to take it down once it's being endorsed by the rich and famous. Her previous novel about online bullying and harassment was too close to home not to smack of something too personal.
This crime fiction series about the grumpy, one-legged ex-soldier Cormoran Strike and his business partner (still!!!!) the brilliant Robin Ellacott shows all of Rowling's skills as a writer (even though I do think the books are too long): She can really pace a story, she writes effortlessly and elegantly, she does very solid research, she never patronises her readers and she's really very funny, sometimes sarcastic even, especially when describing the very rich, but also when describing hypocrisy.
I liked this story about a "church" (=cult) and how difficult it is to take it down once it's being endorsed by the rich and famous. Her previous novel about online bullying and harassment was too close to home not to smack of something too personal.
The stalking subplot could have been shortened, and the remaining investigation subplots could have been eliminated (we can just assume they have other cases going on, but I guess those are how you include Shaw, Midge and Barkley), but the main storyline was well-paced. Though I did get a Scooby-Doo feel at the end, when Strike was laying out how it all happened to - it went on for several pages, which seems a lot of talking for someone who generally doesn't like doing it.
I also noticed numerous errors in this book, like a missing word here and there or words that should have been deleted but weren't (like when you rewrite a sentence and forget to delete one of the words from the original). It didn't detract from the book, but I've never noticed so many in them before.
I also noticed numerous errors in this book, like a missing word here and there or words that should have been deleted but weren't (like when you rewrite a sentence and forget to delete one of the words from the original). It didn't detract from the book, but I've never noticed so many in them before.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is probably the first Strike book that I felt truly needed every single one of the 900+ pages. I was hooked from the beginning and could not put this one down. I didn’t even mind that there was not a lot of relationship development throughout. Robin infiltrates a cult that the agency is investigating, and I was terrified for her for the majority of the book. In my opinion, this is the best book of the series. And that ending!! Absolutely cannot wait for the next installment.
3 ⭐️ This was marginally better than the previous book. However, it’s still wayyyy too long! There’s no reason this should have been over 400 pages let alone 900- get this woman a new editor that can pare her work down!!
UGHHH. That ending! -sigh-
I love this series, but this book might be the favorite. Cults are always interesting and as always, Robin is a badass.
I love this series, but this book might be the favorite. Cults are always interesting and as always, Robin is a badass.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
slow-paced