The ink black heart by Robert Galbraith

When first faced with the huge tome of 1012 pages, I put it aside, wondering if my arthritic hands would be able to hold it up to read, but once commenced, I had to use every spare moment I had to finish the book. The sixth novel in the Strike series kept me reading on two levels – what was going to happen with the Strike and Robin relationship, and just who is Anomie, the strange moderator of Drek’s Game.

When Edie Ledwell, the creator of a popular cartoon The Ink Black Heart, appears in the office desperate to find out the identity of Anomie who is persecuting her online Robin turns down the case because of too many work commitments. But when she discovers that Edie has been murdered in Highgate Cemetery, the setting for the cartoon she and Strike are drawn into a search for the identity of Anomie. This leads them into unknown and dangerous territory, as they try to work out who are the online players in Drek’s Game and on social media, and who has the most to gain from the death of Edie. Meanwhile, there is some movement in the relationship between Strike and Robin, as both come to a deeper understanding of their own emotions.

Not only is the novel very long, but it is also a challenge to read. The chat transcripts are often in two or 3 different columns on the page and can go over a few pages, and with a multiple of characters with difficult online names to remember, it can be a challenge to sort out what is happening. But of course, that is what makes this novel stand out – it is different, clever and every chat and tweet can be a potential red herring or real clue to bamboozle the reader.

With current themes of cyberbullying, politics, and social media drawn together with the tantalising relationship between Strike and Robin and a complex murder plot, The Ink Black Heart is sure to be enjoyed by fans of the Strike novels including Career of evil , Lethal White and Troubled blood.

Themes: Mystery, Crime, Thriller, Social media, Detectives.

Pat Pledger