Review: The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (ahem!)

Right, did anyone else not know that this ‘Robert Galbraith’ is JK Rowling? Okay, just me then.

Not sure of the reasons behind the pseudonym; I’m guessing that she wanted her new stuff to be viewed on its merits, without folk comparing it to her previous work which is, of course, en- tirely different. In that regard, I guess I’m pretty well-suited to examing The Cuckoo’s Calling as I didn’t read the Harry Potter series.

The_Cuckoo's_CallingSo, as a book that stands on its own, The Cuckoo’s Calling is head and shoulders above much of the crime fiction I’ve come across in recent years. It’s an old-school detective story that follows the work and personal life of the unlikely-named Cormoran Strike, an ex-military policeman turned private detective, fighting to stay afloat in civilian London while trying to solve the mystery behind the death of supermodel.

As I said, it’s a great book; the author doesn’t mess around with wafty ex- positions; not a word is wasted; she flits around the characters thoughts and feeling with Woolf- like abandon, keeping the reader engaged with an enormous number of the Capital’s most unlikeable characters. Comoran himself is not a bad bloke; he’s a capable detective, though not superhumanly so – and I think that’s what keeps the interest alive, and the whole book just this side of believable. For me, the real star of the book was his secretary (but I shouldn’t say any more).

If I were to make one complaint then it would be that some of the peripheral characters came across as remarkably clichéd: fat, incompetent policemen with body odour; rich widows dying in their beds; painfully camp fashion designers… but I guess stereotypes are stereotypes for a reason. Still, an immensly enjoyable read.

If you like outstanding crime fiction then The Cuckoo’s Calling comes highly recommended – by me anyway … 🙂