The Cuckoo's Calling

By: Robert Galbraith

Narrated by: Robert Glenister

Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Published under a pseudonym, J. K. Rowling’s brilliant debut mystery introduces Detective Cormoran Strike as he investigates a supermodel's suicide in “one of the best books of the year” (USA Today).

After losing his leg to a land mine in Afghanistan, Cormoran Strike is barely scraping by as a private investigator. Strike is down to one client, creditors are calling, and after a breakup with his longtime girlfriend, he’s living in his office.

Then John Bristow walks through his door with a shocking story: His sister, the legendary supermodel Lula Landry - known to her friends as the Cuckoo - famously fell to her death a few months earlier. The police ruled it a suicide, but John refuses to believe that. The case plunges Strike into the world of multimillionaire beauties, rock-star boyfriends, and desperate designers, and it introduces him to every variety of pleasure, enticement, seduction, and delusion known to man.

You may think you know detectives, but you've never met one quite like Strike. You may think you know about the wealthy and famous, but you've never seen them under an investigation like this.

Fast-paced and sharply drawn, this dazzling detective novel inspired Strike, the BBC crime drama series that has captivated millions of viewers worldwide.

©2013 Robert Galbraith (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Wow this was a convoluted Mystery. Good Narration.

Set in London. The mystery is twisty path ... Good character's . Give it a try , it. is a good book.

Very good

I just discovered The Strike Series and am happy I did. This first book of the series was well written and, for the most part, kept me interested. Instead of a formulaic detective story it handled transition between learning about the main characters and developing the story very well. I was surprised by the conclusion and will definitely read the next book in the series.

Really enjoyed this

I bought this primarily because I enjoyed the Harry Potter series so much - not just the storyline, but also the writing. Obviously by the time I made my purchase the secret of the author was out ! I never read Casual Vacancy but I do enjoy mysteries and I was curious to find out how the writing would translate in to a more mature theme. It did! I echo many others in hoping we hear more from Comoran Strike - if there were more titles available in the series I would download them today.
Robert Glenister's performance, together with a well constructed story made this a very enjoyable listen. It's been a while since a recording hooked me like this one.

Good performance, alright story

I wouldn't have picked this up if I didn't know this was JK Rowling's. After a couple years, I finally got around to getting through it.

Very overrated. Not bad, but not remotely special.

The voice acting was great.

Robert Glenister is the best narrator I've heard

I loved this story and the trilogy very much and I plan to read more by this author

One of the better private investigator tales

Would you listen to The Cuckoo's Calling again? Why?

It's a little slow in parts but the book is a good listen. I would listen to the sequel which I think is coming next year.

What other book might you compare The Cuckoo's Calling to and why?

If you like Ian Rankin's Rebus you would probably like Cormoran Strike in this book

Which character – as performed by Robert Glenister – was your favorite?

Performance of all characters was brilliant. They were well developed characters in the book but the voices were excellent

Any additional comments?

This is a good read but it is quite slow getting going. Characters are excellent.

Nice and tight.

JK Rowling writes a tight, not an extra word in it, story. Striker the lead character is a disabled vet who would rather do it the hard way than sacrifice his pride. In fact, I wasn't sure I liked him for the first 20 minutes. Striker is a P.I. who is on very hard times. His love is gone and he's on his last nickel. But don't count him out, he wasn't in special forces for nuthin'! Do give this story a try. Wish this was a series.

IF YOU PASS THIS ONE UP YOU'LL BE SORRY...........

SO..................SO WELL DONE! THE STORY, THE NARRATION, THE BELIVEABILITY WERE ALL OUTSTANDING. I'LL BE LOOKING FOR THE NEXT ONE.

I was dubious...

I wasn't sure about Rowling's second adult fiction outing because the last book really did not appeal to me. I took a chance on this one, and fell in love with the protagonists. Robin and Strike are a delightful detective team. The mystery itself is solid, with enough clues scattered around like breadcrumbs along the way for the reader to digest and draw conclusions alongside the characters. Twists and turn abound, but none "out of nowhere", as everything comes together in the end.

I now anxiously await more Strike mysteries from Galbraith, and look forward to what will become the rest of his story!

Excellent Whodunnit

This is the classic whodunnit. I don't know if a book can be "noir", but if it can, that's what this is. Classic "gumshoe" gets presented with a hopeless case to solve, and does it despite his shortcomings. I love it. I would not have guess that it was J.K. Rowling, because it has nothing in common with Harry Potter, but it's great stuff. I can't wait for her next one, which comes out soon.