Scottsdale Public Library

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2013

Call Number:	MYSTERY GALBRAI R
Format:	Book
Author:	Galbraith, Robert.
Title:	The cuckoo's calling / Robert Galbraith.
Edition:	1st North American ed.
Publisher, Date:	New York, NY : Mulholland Books, 2013.
Description:	455 pages ; 25 cm.
Summary:	"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, and creditors are calling. He has also just broken up with his longtime girlfriend and is living in his office. Then John Bristow walks through his door with an amazing 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."--Dust jacket.
Series:	[Cormoran Strike novel] Galbraith, Robert. Cormoran Strike novel ; 1. Library Staff Review_Mystery.
Subjects:	Detective and mystery stories. Private investigators -- England -- London -- Fiction. Afghan War, 2001- -- Veterans -- Fiction. Murder -- Investigation -- Fiction.
Notes:	$26.00. Some cases just can't be ignored. Doesn't matter if you just broke up with a girlfriend of 16 years, need to hire a replacement temp but have no money, need to find a new place to live, and have a prosthesis that is aching something fierce. Instead, Cormoran Strike takes on a case because the brother of the victim insists his sister wouldn't commit suicide. So, spending money he shouldn't sleeping in his office, hiring a temp, and neglecting his knee, Strike takes on the case of Lula Landry, a model worth 10 million pounds. If he can solve the case with the help of his new temp, Robin, and not step on the toes of Detectives Wardle and Carver, life will be better. Just if.... -- Library Staff Review (Dana S.) If you like a good P.I. mystery or characters that are well written and interesting, then I highly recommend the debut novel, The Cuckoo's Calling. Ex-military police special investigator, love-child of a super groupie and a music legend, Cormoran Strike has plenty of backstory to make this a worthy read. Hired to investigate a suspicious suicide, Strike has to navigate the world of celebrities and their sordid entourage of lawyers, paparazzi, and never-do-wells. -- Library Staff Review (Amy O.) Accelerated Reader AR UG 6.7 24 160427.
LCCN:	2013933193
ISBN:	9780316206846 9780316206846
Copies Owned:	4
Copies Available:	3
Current Holds:	0

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Characters
	Cormoran Strike (Male), Private investigator, British, Afghan conflict veteran, Lost his leg in a land mine in Afghanistan; wears a prosthetic leg; broke up with his longtime girlfriend; lives in his office; struggling financially; investigating a supermodel's suicide
	Robin Ellacott (Female), Secretary, British, Cormoran's new secretary
Genre
	Fiction
	Mystery
	Suspense
	Crime
Topics
	Private investigators
	Models
	Suicide
	Suspicious deaths
	Millionaires
	Wealthy lifestyles
	Relationships
	Lies
	Deception
Setting
	London, England - Europe
	England - Europe
Time Period
	2010 -- 21st century

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Library Journal Review

Lula Landry, a celebrity model rumored to have a drug problem, falls to her death one snowy night. Even though the police rule it a suicide, Lula's brother asks struggling London PI Cormoran Strike to investigate. Cormoran knows what he's up against: the rich are famously good at blockading information sharing. Nonetheless, he and his new assistant, Robin, forge an effective partnership as they interview fashion insiders, jealous boyfriends, and dysfunctional family members. The results are devastating. Cormoran's own celebrity roots and status as a wounded veteran (he lost his leg in Afghanistan) color a fascinating tale that explores the lifestyles of the rich and the unhappy. VERDICT Laden with plenty of twists and distractions, this debut ensures that readers will be puzzled and totally engrossed for quite a spell. Galbraith's take on contemporary celebrity obsession makes for a grand beach read. It's like a mash-up of Charles Dickens and Penny Vincenzi. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

In a rare feat, the pseudonymous Galbraith combines a complex and compelling sleuth and an equally well-formed and unlikely assistant with a baffling crime in his stellar debut. When office temp Robin Ellacott reports for work, she's unprepared for the shabby office or the rude greeting she receives from London PI Cormoran Strike. Soon after, John Bristow arrives and asks Strike to look into the putative suicide of his adopted, mixed-race sister, supermodel Lula Landry. Strike reluctantly agrees, even though the police have concluded a high-profile investigation. A decorated Afghan vet with an artificial lower leg, Strike begins a meticulous reinvestigation that leads him into a world of celebrities and wannabes, as well as deep into Landry's sad rollercoaster life. The methodical Strike and the curious Ellacott work their way through a host of vividly drawn suspects and witnesses toward an elegant solution. Readers will hope to see a lot more of this memorable sleuthing team. Agent: Zoe King, the Blair Partnership (U.K.) (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

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 ), the first novel in the brilliant series that inspired the acclaimed HBO Max series C.B. Strike . 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.

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