Mystery Monday! The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith (J. K. Rowling)

Title: The Silkworm
Author: J. K. Rowling as Robert Galbraith
Page Count: 455
Rating: B
Keywords: London, Writers, Murder, Sadism
Genre: Mystery
Younger Readers: This is not Harry Potter. Sex, murder, drugs, alcohol, and other inappropriate content is pervasive. 

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Private investigator Cormoran Strike returns in a new mystery from Robert Galbraith, author of the #1 international bestseller The Cuckoo's Calling.

When novelist Owen Quine goes missing, his wife calls in private detective Cormoran Strike. At first, Mrs. Quine just thinks her husband has gone off by himself for a few days—as he has done before—and she wants Strike to find him and bring him home.

But as Strike investigates, it becomes clear that there is more to Quine's disappearance than his wife realizes. The novelist has just completed a manuscript featuring poisonous pen-portraits of almost everyone he knows. If the novel were to be published, it would ruin lives—meaning that there are a lot of people who might want him silenced.

When Quine is found brutally murdered under bizarre circumstances, it becomes a race against time to understand the motivation of a ruthless killer, a killer unlike any Strike has encountered before...

My Review:

I will fully admit to being obsessed with The Cuckoo's Calling a few years ago. That was an amazing start to a new series and restored my faith in J. K. Rowling's ability to write engaging fiction for adults. I had previously attempted to read her novel A Casual Vacancy. That attempt was several years ago and my bookmark is still sitting at the halfway point.

When I picked up this sequel I had high hopes and this may have been why I did not rate The Silkworm as highly as its predecessor. The mystery was twisted and creepy, a trait that I adore in my mysteries. Cormoran kept the story alive and continued to fill his role well. The real change for my reading experience was his assistant, Robin. Not only does she feel more present throughout, but her growing interactions and relationship with Strike added interest to the story and quickly made her my new favorite character.

For what I did not like, this mystery was just so drawn out. I was engaged and desperately wanted to know who the murderer was and how it had even occurred that I sped through the chapters. However, I began to notice that there certainly were not enough pages left to wrap it up satisfyingly. And sure enough the ending left something to be desired. All questions were answered too quickly. It was just plopped in front of the reader, wrapped in a pretty bow. I wanted more investigation, more of a slow reveal. This was my main complaint.

If you have read The Cuckoo's Calling and enjoyed it, then by all means pick up this sequel. It is satisfying enough and great fun to read that it is unlikely you'll regret the journey. If you have not read The Cuckoo's Calling get to reading! It is truly an amazing mystery series and fully illustrates Rowling's world building capabilities and skill with character development.

Check back next Monday for my review of Career of Evil, book three in Rowling's Cormoran Strike series. Hint: it was amazing.