Author:Robert Galbraith
This is now the eighth volume in this long running series, which as I’m sure everyone knows by now is authored by JK Rowling. Although it’s by no means the longest book in the series, it still clocks in at a hefty 900 pages, but despite its length, the reading time seems to pass remarkably quickly as one is quickly caught up in the events of the unfolding narrative. A man is found dead, his corpse dismembered, in the vault of a silver shop which is located next to a Freemason’s Hall and which specialises in Masonic silverware. The police are convinced they know the deceased’s identity, but out of the blue a woman who is convinced the body is that of her missing partner contacts Strike. As investigations progress, it soon becomes apparent that there are other missing people who would also fit the bill, and before long four potential murders are being investigated. As the labyrinthine case evolves, circumstances become more dangerous for Strike and his partner, Robin Ellacott, and alongside this he must also confront his unspoken feelings for her as she becomes increasingly committed to her own boyfriend. This is another excellent read in which the author successfully manages to keep the plates of the four convoluted plots spinning simultaneously, and overall it’s easily up to the standard of the previous novels. I’d certainly recommend it for Strike fans – you definitely won’t be disappointed.
Length of Read:Epic
Might appeal to people who enjoyed…
Thrillers, previous Strike novels or even the TV adaptations.
One thing you’ve learned
Although this can be read as a standalone novel, it’s best enjoyed, I feel, if you’ve already worked your way through the earlier stories to follow the principal characters developing relationship.
An excellent book in an excellent series. These are must read/listens for me – the audiobook with Robert Glenister narrating brilliantly are wonderful and, despite being 25 – 30 hours long, end all too quickly.
Glenister is great but that one that had all the social media chat transcripts didn’t work and i had to give up…
That’s not Glenister’s fault, obvs. I find it hard to commit to the more recent strike novels becuase they’re just so big but i can work with them as audiobooks becuase i get an hour a day in just coming and going. Not so with the Ink black Heart
Thats a fair comment. I managed but it was a little too endless at times. Not so much the text more the stating the user name, time and date each time. Would have been much easier to ignore the repetition I would think in print. But, that aside, it was one of the best stories I think.
GLW listened to the audiobook fairly obsessively – she loved it.
Robert Glenister is superb.
I was listening to the new Slow Horses (Clown Town) and Sean Barrett is also superb. The choice of narrator is so important. I like Wil Wheaton for Scalzi, but wouldn’t think him right for either of these 2.
So, now to swap audiobooks.
(Boy child has the new Scalzi…)