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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Enjoyable, but the mystery is too complicated, and things that should have been more obvious simply weren't. The characters are still great and overall I liked the book, but it all didn't come together smoothly and it's a bit too long.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
In four books, how many pages of Strike's stump being sore have we read? Enough--so boring. And I do hope we are finished with Matthew because that's where Robin's boring exposition has been focused. Please just get on with the story.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It pains me to give this book such a low rating, particularly as I was so excited for so long, but it just wasn't for me.
This book starts promising, with a mentally unstable man visiting Strike and claiming he has witnessed the murder of a child. We follow Strike and Robin as they attempt to discover the truth, which leads them into a linked case relating to the blackmail of a reputable politician.
Unfortunately, after a few chapters, I felt the book fell flat. I was forcing myself through what felt like never ending pages of nothing actually happening, that is until around half way through, when the investigation is given a significant case. Whilst this should have given some excitement, instead I was frustrated as I felt the first 300 pages could probably have been summarised in a couple of chapters. I felt the book was completely divided and the second half was almost like a new story entirely, despite following the same characters.
This book follows some strong characters, with left activists and far-right politicians, and whilst I have huge respect for JK, and huge respect for her political opinions, I couldn't help feel that her opinions were heavily involved in the creation of her characters. Despite her claiming to leave all her political thoughts at the door when writing this book, I felt I could instantly read her underlying thoughts and whilst it will always be denied, I instantly drew parallels between some of the dislikable characters, and some real politicians.
I felt the story read more like a depiction of people, class divisions, and political agendas, with a crime thrown in to weave it together in a slow burning, boring, and lengthy manner. If this is your type then you might love it! Unfortunately I struggled with it, and the 'climatic' ending felt more forced and unlike any of the rest of the book.
Moving past the plot, it is clear to identify JK's talented style as she writes well-researched and very descriptive locations and characters. Unlike other crime books I have read (and similarly haven't enjoyed), she uses more of the senses and creates rich scenes and well visualised characters. Most of the characters created are well rounded, and with a unique style, true to JK's style (she really does create characters like no other), from their appearance to the manner in which they talk. I did feel this slipped occasionally - one of the characters is supposed to be of a higher class, and whose language reflects that to begin with, but as scenes progressed she began talking in a similar language to Robin, I kind of felt that JK slipped with this and it didn't always make sense.
One of my biggest pet peeves with this book was drawing and exaggerating on dislikable characteristics, to force us to dislike a character. I felt this was done with Robin's husband, Matthew. He was always dislikable, and I felt it is a little patronising to not allow the audience to create our own judgement on him and the breakdown of the marriage, instead he becomes emotionally abusive and manipulative toward Robin, and if we didn't hate him enough, it was topped with an affair. I just felt it was over the top and an unnecessary means for us to better support this never-ending build up between Strike and Robin (like seriously, why is this still going on?!)
I did appreciate the representation of mental health in this book. I thought that JK did a great job at depicting PTSD from the events in previous novels. I feel a lot of times books can ignore all the horrific things happening to characters. A picture was clearly painted in dealing with the physical difficulties, but also the effects it has on her relationships and the struggles she has in actually addressing the problem.
Overall I'm very glad this book is finally finished. I didn't enjoy the plot, I didn't enjoy what happened with a lot of the characters and I didn't enjoy the political aspects. Am I looking forward to the sequel? No. Will I buy it? Definitely. Am I still a JK superfan? Of course. JK definitely has her strengths and whilst this book clearly wasn't for me I'll always be waiting for the next one!
This book starts promising, with a mentally unstable man visiting Strike and claiming he has witnessed the murder of a child. We follow Strike and Robin as they attempt to discover the truth, which leads them into a linked case relating to the blackmail of a reputable politician.
Unfortunately, after a few chapters, I felt the book fell flat. I was forcing myself through what felt like never ending pages of nothing actually happening, that is until around half way through, when the investigation is given a significant case. Whilst this should have given some excitement, instead I was frustrated as I felt the first 300 pages could probably have been summarised in a couple of chapters. I felt the book was completely divided and the second half was almost like a new story entirely, despite following the same characters.
This book follows some strong characters, with left activists and far-right politicians, and whilst I have huge respect for JK, and huge respect for her political opinions, I couldn't help feel that her opinions were heavily involved in the creation of her characters. Despite her claiming to leave all her political thoughts at the door when writing this book, I felt I could instantly read her underlying thoughts and whilst it will always be denied, I instantly drew parallels between some of the dislikable characters, and some real politicians.
I felt the story read more like a depiction of people, class divisions, and political agendas, with a crime thrown in to weave it together in a slow burning, boring, and lengthy manner. If this is your type then you might love it! Unfortunately I struggled with it, and the 'climatic' ending felt more forced and unlike any of the rest of the book.
Moving past the plot, it is clear to identify JK's talented style as she writes well-researched and very descriptive locations and characters. Unlike other crime books I have read (and similarly haven't enjoyed), she uses more of the senses and creates rich scenes and well visualised characters. Most of the characters created are well rounded, and with a unique style, true to JK's style (she really does create characters like no other), from their appearance to the manner in which they talk. I did feel this slipped occasionally - one of the characters is supposed to be of a higher class, and whose language reflects that to begin with, but as scenes progressed she began talking in a similar language to Robin, I kind of felt that JK slipped with this and it didn't always make sense.
One of my biggest pet peeves with this book was drawing and exaggerating on dislikable characteristics, to force us to dislike a character. I felt this was done with Robin's husband, Matthew. He was always dislikable, and I felt it is a little patronising to not allow the audience to create our own judgement on him and the breakdown of the marriage, instead he becomes emotionally abusive and manipulative toward Robin, and if we didn't hate him enough, it was topped with an affair. I just felt it was over the top and an unnecessary means for us to better support this never-ending build up between Strike and Robin (like seriously, why is this still going on?!)
I did appreciate the representation of mental health in this book. I thought that JK did a great job at depicting PTSD from the events in previous novels. I feel a lot of times books can ignore all the horrific things happening to characters. A picture was clearly painted in dealing with the physical difficulties, but also the effects it has on her relationships and the struggles she has in actually addressing the problem.
Overall I'm very glad this book is finally finished. I didn't enjoy the plot, I didn't enjoy what happened with a lot of the characters and I didn't enjoy the political aspects. Am I looking forward to the sequel? No. Will I buy it? Definitely. Am I still a JK superfan? Of course. JK definitely has her strengths and whilst this book clearly wasn't for me I'll always be waiting for the next one!
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My favourite of the series so far.