- Series: A Cormoran Strike Novel
- Listening Length: 17 hours and 22 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio (June 19, 2014)
- Source: Publisher
Known for frequently disappearing for days on end, this isn’t the first time author Owen Quine has gone missing. Knowing the police will do nothing to help her, Mrs. Quine calls on private detective Cormoran Strike to find her husband. As the days pass and still no clue as to Quine’s whereabouts, Strike is concerned there is more to his disappearance than Quine’s wife believes. Quine has recently submitted a manuscript for a novel that portrays many of his acquaintances in a less than desirable light. If this novel was to be published it would ruin lives and cause a public uproar. With this information, Strike believes there are more than a few people who would be interested in silencing Quine.
Stakes are immediately raised once Quine is found, brutally murdered. When the details of his murder replicate those of a murder within his manuscript, anyone who had access to the manuscript is at the top of Strike’s suspect list. Unfortunately, the local police are convinced his killer is closer to home and rejects any additional information Strike provides them. Strike methodically evaluates all the evidence he has obtained, slowly eliminating the suspect list until he’s left with one brutal killer.
I can’t rave enough about this series. By now, we all realize that Robert Galbraith is a pseudonym for J.K. Rowling. You know what? It doesn’t matter at all to me, for in no way does it influence my decision to devour this series or not. Frankly, there are hints or suggestions that the two individuals are one in the same so I actually pretend that they are, in fact, two separate people.
There are so many things to appreciate and enjoy about this series and this novel in particular. Cormoran Strike has quite a bit of history. Injured in battle, he now wears a prosthesis on one of his legs. He’s a rough, brusque kind of guy but his sensitivity does shine through on occasion. He is a renowned private investigator, thanks to his parentage and the case he solved in the first book in this series, A Cuckoo’s Calling.
His assistant, Robin, is another character I genuinely adore. Hired to do secretarial work, she now wants to assume more responsibilities and work alongside Strike on their investigations. She’s toughed up, ready to show Strike she can handle the additional stress (and danger) involved in working a case.
Typically, I tend to figure out a culprit early on in. In this case, however, I was genuinely surprised when the killer’s death was revealed. This is a sign of a well developed thriller!
I listened to the audio production of this title. The narrator,
While it isn’t necessary to read A Cuckoo’s Calling in order to appreciate The Silkworm, I do highly recommend starting from the beginning. A Cuckoo’s Calling provided quite a bit of history and development of Strike’s character. While there is a bit of back story provided in the early pages of The Silkworm, I don’t feel readers get a full, detailed representation of his character.
Ultimately, it’s quite easy for me to recommend this title to readers of all types, not just thrillers alone. I do highly recommend the audio if that is your kind of thing. It was honestly a delightful listen, an experience I genuinely savored. Highly, highly recommended.
One Response to Review: The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (Audiobook)