Review: The Hallmarked Man by Robert Galbraith

This is one of my all-time favourite series of books. I love detective fiction anyway, but the Cormoran Strike novels have something special. The characters are so unique and strongly drawn. I love the realism, the will-they-won’t-they tension between Strike and Robin, and the way the personal subplots (if not the mysteries themselves) always feel grounded in real life rather than too neat or contrived.

Before I talk about the book itself, I do want to acknowledge the controversy around J.K. Rowling. Her views are completely at odds with my own, and I don’t agree with her on a lot of things. But I continue to read her Robert Galbraith books because I’ve grown attached to these characters and this world. It’s possible, for me at least, to love a story even when I don’t share the author’s worldview.

The Hallmarked Man begins with a pretty gruesome discovery. A dismembered body is found in the vault of a silver shop in London. A client hires Strike and Robin to find out the truth, and the investigation winds through the world of silversmiths, the Freemasons, and family secrets. As always, the case is layered and complex, but what I really love about these books is the partnership at the centre of them.

The last book in the series (The Running Grave) was honestly far too long. I enjoyed it, but it could have used a serious trim. This one, thankfully, was shorter, which I really appreciated. It felt tighter and more focused. That said, I do think The Hallmarked Man was my least favourite in terms of story. It started to feel a bit repetitive with lots of scenes of Strike and Robin having the same conversations, circling around their misunderstandings, getting frustrated, and pulling back again. I found myself wanting something new between them.

Still, I love these characters too much to ever stop reading. It’s hard to see exactly how Strike and Robin will ever work as a couple, but I can’t wait for J.K. Rowling to finally get us there.

3 stars: I enjoyed this one.

WWW Wednesday: 5 November 2025

WWW Wednesday is a meme that is hosted by Taking on a World of Words. It's a very simple premise of sharing with others The Three Ws:

What are you currently reading? 
What did you recently finish reading? 
What do you think you’ll read next?

What am I currently reading?

It's been awhile since I read any non-fiction and this featured in ABC Radio National's countdown of the Top 100 Books of the 21st Century. I really enjoyed Bill Bryson's A Short History of Nearly Everything and so this one appealed to me. It's a lot more serious, and sometimes that way he writes about Australia's First Nations peoples doesn't sit well with me, but so far its... good. I mean, I'm not getting all excited about it, but its ok. 

What did I finish reading?

Again inspired by ABC Radio National's countdown of the Top 100 Books of the 21st Century, I just finished Piranesi by Susanna Clark. I really really liked it - highly recommend it. It's very unique and emotional and suspenseful and so many things. I need more time to reflect on it before I can properly describe it. 

What is up next?

Normally I don't plan ahead but I need to get my book club urgently so next up its The Soul of Kindness by Elizabeth Taylor for my Literary Wives Book Club. I know nothing about this book whatsoever and it's nice to approach a book from a completely neutral beginning. 

Review: Maisie Dobbs by Jacqueline Winspear

This one was recommended to me by a colleague who knows my taste in books, and she was absolutely right. Maisie Dobbs really hit the mark. I love detective fiction of the Agatha Christie kind, those clever mysteries with a sharp, observant lead. But this one felt different. It isn’t as light or cosy as some detective stories. It’s got a quiet sadness to it that come from the shadow  of the war and never quite lifts.

The story begins in 1929, when Maisie opens her own private investigation business in London. Her first case seems simple enough: a man wants her to find out if his wife is having an affair. But the more Maisie digs, the more she uncovers a much bigger and sadder story. The book moves between the case and Maisie’s past, showing how she went from being a housemaid to a Cambridge student to a nurse on the front lines of the First World War to a female detective.

The war is right at the heart of this book. It's part of the setting and of the characters. Everyone is carrying some kind of loss or regret from it, and Maisie is no exception. The mystery turns out to be less about who did what and more about understanding how people live with the things that happened to them.

Maisie herself is wonderful. She’s strong and moral and incredibly thoughtful, but there’s also a real gentleness to her. She wants to do the right thing, even when it’s hard. Watching her put the pieces together, both in the case and in people’s lives, is so satisfying.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s detective fiction, but with more depth and emotion than I expected. I’ve already read the second book in the series, and I’ll definitely be reading them all.

4 stars: I loved it.