Kate Atkinson's Case Histories

 

I have reserved 'Life After Life' by Kate Atkinson, which is currently on hold at the library, so in case I don't get a chance to read it before the Women's Prize for Fiction event at the Southbank Centre in June, I thought I'd read the first of the Jackson Brodie novels, 'Case Histories,' to get a feel for Atkinson's writing. Jackson Brodie, a former police inspector turned private investigator, is working on three seemingly unrelated cold cases in the Cambridge area: the disappearance of a three-year-old girl in the 1970s, the murder of a solicitor's daughter, and another murder following a domestic incident between husband and wife. These crimes are all linked in some way, but how?

Atkinson excels at suspense, especially when it is later revealed that Jackson has a few dark family secrets of his own, which adds to the story's intrigue. I also enjoyed her character observations and Atkinson's dry humor. Although 'Case Histories' is a crime novel, the relationships at the heart of it remain central, and the story is driven primarily by the characters rather than intricate plot details.

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In general, I thought this was a good thing, but more emphasis on plot might have strengthened the book as a whole, as I felt Case No. 3 was underutilized. Overall, Atkinson weaves the various stories together so well that the switching between cases doesn't feel awkward. However, I was expecting a stronger link between the three crimes than there was in the end, which was a little disappointing.

'Case Histories' is a good read if you want a novel that is neither too difficult nor too light and fluffy. In terms of literary style, I wasn't particularly taken with Atkinson's writing, but I did enjoy 'Case Histories' and look forward to reading 'Life After Life' when it becomes available.









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