"The Ink Black Heart" by Robert Galbraith

Publisher: Mulholland Books
ISBN: 9780316413039
Copyright: 2022

This novel is the sixth book in the Cormoran Strike detective series by Robert Galbraith, and once again the author provides the reader with a well crafted story that keeps you glued to the page throughout the entire novel, all 1012 pages.

The Cormoran Strike series is one in which the characters develop over time, and it therefore necessitates being read in the correct order (primarily to avoid confusion regarding the underlying plots). In this instalment, the duo of Strike & Ellacot are on the trail of a what at first seems to be a random act of violence against the developer of an animated show, but this soon turns out to only be the beginning.

The plot is intricately woven, and character-driven which lends authenticity to the events portrayed. The real world details of London where this story is primarily set (as are the others) adds to the story even more. Both the lead characters have their flaws, but this makes them seem so real that you'd almost expect to see them doing their jobs if you visited London.

A fantastic mystery, that is the work of a master storyteller.

"The Map of Chaos" by Felix J. Palma

 

Publisher: Atria Books
Copyright: 2016
ISBN: 9781451688184

This novel is like the first two in the series is also very detailed, and meticulously plotted. In combination with the first two this series this is one that should be in any science fiction or fantasy readers collection. There are even more plot twists than before, to once again make it a good combination of mystery and science fiction.

The third book in the series wraps things up quite nicely and brings everything to a good conclusion and in it the reader meets the Invisible Man, Charles Babbage, Alice Little, and a few more rather famous people.

It is true these novels are quite long, and as mentioned above the plotting is very detailed, so you will have to pay attention to what's going on in order to grasp what Mr. Palma is telling you about, but it is well worth the read.

Very highly recommended.

"The Map of the Sky" by Felix J. Palma

 

Publisher: Atria Books
Copyright: 2012
ISBN: 9781451660319

This novel is like the first in the series very detailed, and meticulously plotted, with a very interesting premise that definitely makes it worth adding onto any science fiction or fantasy readers list. There are even more plot twists than before, to once again make it a good combination of mystery and science fiction.

The second book is "Map of the Sky" and a number of the same characters reappear (sometimes quite literally in this one, but we also journey to Antarctica, and meet some new characters such as Arthur Conan Doyle and a few others, however they are rather busy combatting an invasion of planet Earth.

This novel is long, but the reader will quickly lose themselves in the story so that time will pass quite quickly. Mr. Palma does force you to pay attention to what's going on in order to grasp what he is telling you about, but it is well worth the read.

Very highly recommended.

"The Map of Time" by Felix J. Palma

Publisher: Atria Books
Copyright: 2008
ISBN: 9781439167397 (Time)

This novel is a very detailed, and meticulously plotted time travel story, with a very interesting premise that definitely makes it worth adding onto any science fiction or fantasy readers list. There are lots of plot twists, some very interesting red herrings both of which make this a good combination of mystery and science fiction.

The first book in the series is "Map of Time" and in this book you will meet a number of different historical characters such as H. G. Wells, Bram Stoker, Jack "the Ripper", Marie Kelly and number of others. Some of these people play large roles, while others are minor but all of them do their job in advancing the plot very well.

This novel is long when compared to most on the market today, however the story is so well written that you don't really notice it. Mind you you will have to pay attention to what Mr. Palma is saying to grasp the concept, but that shouldn't be too hard a thing to do when the story is as well written as this one.

Very highly recommended.

"Troubled Blood" by Robert Galbraith

 

Publisher: Little, Brown & Company

Copyright: 2020

ISBN: 9780316498937

This is the fifth book in the Cormoran Strike series, and they keep getting better each time. It is very easy to get carried away reading this book, and allow the time to pass until you almost miss your bus stop, or realise it's getting pretty late and you'd better get some sleep before work in the morning.

Galbraith's characters are so well  conceived that they just jump right off the page. In addition the plotting is very intricate, but in such a way that if you want to try and figure out the puzzle before the detective you'll definitely have to pay attention.

The story itself revolves around a cold case from forty years earlier, and a young lady who wants to find out what really happened to her mother, a doctor, when she disappeared after leaving the clinic she worked at on a rainy night. This story also treats us to the developing relationship between Cormoran Strike & Robin Eldacott who are partners in the detective firm, along with the various other who work with them.

Excellent story. But for best enjoyment read the series in order, as the characters do change over the course of the novels. Looking forward to the next instalment.

"Mark One: The Dummy" by John Ball (1911-1988)

 

Publisher: Little, Brown and Company

Copyright: 1974

ISBN: 0316079502

This is the second book of Mr. Ball's that I read, and it was just as enjoyable as the first one. In fact is now so good that I have to go and actually buy a copy because I know I'll want to read it again.

The story revolves around a very successful espionage writer who's writing is so authentic and true to life that he is mistaken for one of his characters, Mark Day, whom because of the detail everyone believes is actually patterned after his own life because they think he is in fact a secret agent for some division of the American government.

He doesn't really help his case in denying this, because he does somewhat resemble his lead character, and having lived with the character for so long he has the ability to slip into his mindset and perform just as if he was the agent. When A woman shows up claiming to be his agents love interest, things get very interesting in that he knows very well that she's a fictional character, but she too acts just like the character he designed.

Based solely on the title I assume that Mr. Ball was planning on writing more in this series, unfortunately he never did.

This is a very interesting and fun to read book. I think it would make a very good movie, as long as Hollywood didn't present it as a "James Bondish" style of movie.

"Lethal White" by Robert Galbraith

 

Publisher: Mulholland Books

Copyright: 2018

ISBN: 9780316422734

Lethal white is the fourth installment in the Cormoran Strike detective series by Robert Galbraith the synonym for JK Rowling. As with the other three books this one is excellent. The development of the two main characters of Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott continues, with new challenges for the two of them both professionally and privately. Robin is now a partner is the detective agency, and proves invaluable to Strike, but her fiancee still is not happy that she works there, which causes some tension to say the least.

This instalment takes place a short time following the third novel "Career of Evil" which details the investigation of the Shacklewell Ripper. Robin is recovering from the wounds she received during the investigation, but is still experiencing PTSD from the attack, and Strike wants her back with him at the agency but finds it difficult to ask her to return.

Their new case begins with an extremely distressed and mentally ill young man visiting Strike and describing a murder he witnessed as a young boy. This one thing leads Cormoran and Robin into a maze of intrigue with twists and turns that involve government officials and their families, and over twenty years of history to be searched to find out the truth, a truth that nobody wants anyone to find out about.

An excellent addition to the series, looking forward to reading number five.

"Piranesi" by Susanna Clarke

 

Publisher: Bloomsbury

Copyright: 2021

ISBN: 9781635575637

This was a rather different book than I typically read. It is classified as "fantasy" however it is not like any other fantasy novel I've read, so I believe it would have been more accurate to list it as something like a psychological mystery, but that is my opinion.

"Piranesi" is the name given to a young man, who is the protagonist of the story, by the only other human he knows of, and whom he refers to as "The Other". 

Piranesi lives in what turns out to be a labyrinth, and with the exceptions of the semi-regular visits by "The Other" is by himself. He is surrounded in the hundreds of rooms that make up the labyrinth by thousands of statues of various sizes and themes that all represent at least to him scenes from the world he lives in.

Piranesi has lived in this labyrinth for many years, And has documented his life in a series of journals. The book is formatted as if you're reading his journals, and this makes it a rather unique read.

It was definitely an interesting story, but not one that I would normally have read. I cannot remember how I heard about the story, but I'm quite glad I read it.

I hope you enjoy it.

"The 99% Invisible City: A Field Guide to the Hidden World of Everyday Design" by Roman Mars and Kurt Kohlstedt

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Copyright: 2020
ISBN: 9780358126607

    This is an extremely interesting book that examines the hidden stories behind some rather common things that are found in your typical city. The format of the book divides the topic into six areas focusing on inconspicuous, conspicuous, infrastructure, architecture, geography and urbanism. Within each of the larger topics there are discussion on a number of different subjects. Some of these are utility codes, wireless towers, love locks, civic monuments, traffic lights, inflatable figures, roadways, technology, modern elevators, door locks, the layout of streets and roads, street trees, and grassroots gardening to name but a few of the over 125 topics.
 

   I picked this book up after watching Mars' TED Talk primarily out of curiosity, but found it to be a very interesting read. The majority of his examples come from the United States, but he does look at things in other countries as well. For people who like trivia, or compete in quiz tournaments this could be an interesting book to read. As a writer, I found it quite interesting, and think it would make wonderful source material especially for those who write mysteries and need a source of information they can use for obscure clues.

   Roman Mars is the host of 99% Invisible a popular podcast that explores these same types of things. While Kurt Kohlstedt is the digital director of the podcast and an architect.
   

 An excellent book.

"The Cat Who Walks Through Walls" by Robert A.Heinlein (1907-1988)

Publisher: New York: Berkley Books
Copyright: 1986
ISBN: 0425093328

"The Cat Who Walks Through Walls” (whose name happens to be Pixel) is the fifth book in the World as Myth series by Heinlein. It starts out as a mystery with a murder, but gets quite involved from that point on.

The murder itself take place in a restaurant, across the table from Dr. Richard Ames, who was waiting for his wife to come back to the table. The soon-to-corpse had sat down at the table uninvited to ask Ames if he would murder somebody for him. What follows is a chase that essentially takes up 2/3 of the book, as everybody it seems wants to kill Ames, but nobody knows why-especially Ames. Ames also doesn’t know why the man was killed at his table, why the body was disposed of so quickly, and a host of other questions.

While Ames and his wife are busy trying to escape a few more attempts are made on their lives, and this deepens the mystery even more, to make an interesting tale that will easily entertain.

As was the case in “The Number of the Beast" we are introduced to the world of as myth scenario approximately 2/3 to 3/4 of the way through the book, and this is where things get slightly confusing as the whole storyline behind the world is myth system is the time travel works, and you can visit alternate universes at the same time. This is something that those of you who read “The Number of the Beast” would have been introduced to.

When reading the series it is best to start with “Methuselah's Children" then go onto "Time Enough for Love", and finally “The Number of the Beast" before tackling this book or a lot of the references will not make any sense whatsoever as a lot of the characters in the other books appear in this novel, and they help to explain things. In addition scenarios that previously encountered in the other novels appear in this one as well to form part of the backstory.

Surprisingly though Pixel himself or herself (I don't believe it says) doesn’t play a big role in this novel, but still it’s a good linking feature.

"The House of Silk" by Anthony Horowitz

Publisher:New York : Mulholland Books, 2011.
Edition:First edition.
ISBN:9780316196994
Characteristics: 294 pages ;,25 cm

"The House of Silk" is a wonderful novel, that brings the world's most loved detective back to life. The author Anthony Horowitz is most famous for his Alex Rider series (which I have not read), but he easily manages to capture the style of writing of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle very well.

The story is set a few years before Holmes dies, and it is explained in the Preface that the story is so sensational that Dr. Watson was obliged to require his heirs not to publish the story until 100 years after his death. This in itself should intrigue any Holmes fan, and does indeed set the stage for a truly monstrous tale.

If found the novel to be very well written, and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

When I was done I was curious as to whether it was a one-off novel, or whether Mr. Horowitz had written any others about Holmes. I found that he did write another back in 2014 entitle "Moriarty" which I had read a few years ago before I started this blog in its current form. Unfortunately I was not impressed with this book due to the way the character of Moriarty was portrayed which I believed then (and still do today) makes him into a sadistic murdering psychopath rather than the criminal mastermind that he is portrayed as in all the other books.

I do however highly recommend House of Silk, and hope that Mr. Horowitz continues to write further Sherlock Holmes novels.

"Career of Evil" by Robert Galbraith

Publisher:New York : Mulholland Books, 2015.
Edition:First North American edition.
ISBN: 9780316349932
Characteristics: 497 pages.

Career of evil is the third book in the Cormoran Strike series. These books as I've said before are  reminiscent of the hard-boiled detective novels of the early 1900s, but with a flair for today, as is necessary. The stories take you right into the heat of the action, and lay bare what the life of a struggling private detective might really be like.

In this book Strike faces an unknown assailant who is out to get him and ruin his business by pretty much any means possible. This includes targeting his assistant Robin as one of his future victims. In addition to the main plot line, the author also looks briefly into various psychological phenomenon that are interesting, but could be quite disturbing to some at the same time.

During this whole time Robin and Matthew are planning their wedding which gives an interesting background flavour to the entire story. Their assailant, who could possibly any one of four or five different people continuously eludes them, until the very end.

This is a fantastic third novel, in a four volume series -- so far. I do hope the author plans on writing more in the series as I only have one left to read.

"The Silkworm" by Robert Galbraith

Publisher:  New York : Mulholland Books, 2014.
Edition:      First North American edition.
ISBN:        9780316351980

The Silkworm is the second book in the series by Robert Galbraith about the private detective Cormoran Strike. As pretty much everyone knows by now Robert Galbraith is a pseudonym for J. K. Rowling the author of the Harry Potter series, however unlike Harry Potter this series deals with reality not fantasy and is reminiscent of the gritty detective novels of the early 20th century.

The plot revolves around the mysterious disappearance of a relatively mediocre author, who supposedly headed to a writers retreat and is never seen again until he is discovered after more than a week grotesquely murdered. The blame for the murder could be placed on any number of people as his latest book was to be a tell-all about the British publishing scene - a book guaranteed to enflame an already bad situation.

The plotting of this novel is extremely intricate, and the characters are so well-developed that you would expect to see them walking down the street the next time you're out. Add to this the twists and turns of the story, and how Strike solves the murder with the help of his assistant Robin makes for an excellent read. Between this book and the first volume I can't think of another book that I haven't been able to stop reading. Even though it was 1 o'clock in the morning with work the next day.

Looking forward to #3.

"The Cuckoo's Calling" by Robert Galbraith

Publisher: Little, Brown and Co.

Copyright: 2013

ISBN: 9780316206846 

I found this book to be an absolutely fantastic mystery novel, that follows the investigation of the apparent suicide of a high fashion model. Her brother however doesn't believe it was a suicide and hires a private detective to investigate and find out what really happened.

The detective is one Cormoran Strike, a former member of the British Army who left the service after being severely wounded in Afghanistan. His assistant Robin Ellacott is a young lady from a Temp Agency, who essentially falls in love with the detective business, and helps Strike with the case, while at the same time looking for a permanent job and fending off her Temp Agency.

There is a whole boatload of red herrings (I couldn't resist the pun), that will keep the reader reading and intrigued and the final solution will likely surprise them.

This novel has all the key elements of a classic hard-boiled detective novel. The characters in this novel are a given to the reader in amazing detail, that makes you know them right away. This is evidence that the author has a great deal of experience in writing, character design, plotting and research. For those who are unaware Robert Galbraith is a pseudonym for J. K. Rowling, but this book is definitely not anything like the Harry Potter series, so you may be somewhat shocked by the language and certain scenes if that's what you were expecting.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book, and can't wait to read the second in the series.