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

Beautiful English but TEDIOUS

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Move the story quicker, develop the characters deeper. Do not overdo one storyline.

What could Robert Galbraith have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Do multiple storylines to keep it interesting. For now there's too much detail and redundance around one timeline and one unendimg, grueling investigation.

Which scene was your favorite?

Comoron and Robin in the dress shop.

Did The Cuckoo's Calling inspire you to do anything?

To aim to write beautiful prose.

Any additional comments?

I gave 3 stars instead of 1 because the language is so beautiful. It is elegantly, artistically read by the narrator at Audible.com. Just when it seemed J.K. Rowling had created the new Sherlock Holmes and Watson, the story deteriorated into tedious detail no more exciting than watching grass grow. Yes, the mystery is important, but story movement and character development are far more important than finding only one new clue to the mystery every 50 pages or so. I hope the author reads this and brings the progagonist and his assistant back for another try in the sequel.

Outstanding narration

Narration outstanding. Able to convey the characters nuances. Rarely does narration add to an excellent book so well.

Exceptional Read

Quite entertaining with great character development. Suspense all the way to the end. Quite heavy on the "F" bomb and sexual encounters so not recommended for the younger reader.

A loong whodunit. Loved it!

By now I guess everybody knows that "Galbraith" is JK Rowling. I hesitated listening to a 16 hour P I mystery novel, written by someone mainly known for Harry Potter...

Glad I took a chance. A great read / listen. Believable characters and a great story.

Outstanding narration as well.

Great mystery

Book was unpredictable. The author uses new perspectives from which to weave a great mystery. It is a well thought out mystery that does not follow the cookie cutter theme of almost catch the bad guy-not yet-almost catch again.....

Highly recommended

Great story, wonderful characters and excellent reading. I've been getting a bit jaded with Scandinavian noir and this was a high quality change of pace.

Kinda Saw It Coming

Would you consider the audio edition of The Cuckoo's Calling to be better than the print version?

I have not read the print version of The Cuckoo's Calling, but I really enjoyed the performance.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Cuckoo's Calling?

Meeting the designer. His character came alive for me and I could just picture him sauntering around and complaining about Lulu's family.

What about Robert Glenister’s performance did you like?

How he changed the pace and tone of his voice to line up with the characters.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Not particularly. I would categorize this book as a light read.

Any additional comments?

I think the last paragraph of the epilogue was a message from J.K. Rowling to her readers. Such a mystery in itself.

'Well written' does not a good book make

(minor spoiler herein) Rowling/Galbraith can certainly write well, but I have not enjoyed any of her post-Hogwarts works. I find the characters mostly shallow and formulaic, not to mention seedy. But the unforgivable sin is presenting a mystery with clues and making it impossible for the reader to solve it based on those clues. Toward the end, all kinds of information comes out but is hidden behind a veil (he whispers "something" in Robin's ear) so that the conclusion is impossible to predict. I knew early on it was about the dead girl's will, but none of the really crucial clues are given. I'm fine with red herrings, but complete plot upheavals make me feel like the author just didn't have the talent for the conceal/reveal balance of the classic mystery writers. I don't enjoy wallowing in the lives of shallow, drug-addicted, morally bankrupt, fictional people, unless there is an intellectual challenge *for which one is rewarded*. So what is the point of reading such a book? None for me.

Better than I expected.

No, this is not about wizards. Still, the storytelling is rather good. I kept listening and was always amused.

Well-written detective story

This book is very well-written. Finely drawn characters and a flawed but decent hero. The plot is intriguing and there are a lot of colorful characters.