Mazankov, Krupov, and Polworth; an Unlikely Trio and the start of Troubled Blood

     Hello, Everyone! I will be starting our re-read of Troubled Blood for this and Thursday’s post. I have to say Troubled Blood has to be one of my favorites. It has everything you can want in a detective novel with the additional look at the trauma and healing moments that come from lives well lived without it feeling over the top. It is also a nice treat to have all of the epigraphs come from one place, Edmund Spencer’s “The Faire Queen.”

Chapter 1

This book begins in Cornwall on David Polworth’s 39th birthday and Strike is bored, maybe even slightly annoyed. Chum just can’t let go of the idea that the mostly peripatetic Strike would dare identify as anything other than Cornish. Strike notes two women by the bar and attempts to act distracted on his phone so as to avoid conversations about his Aunt Joan.  Funny enough it is Polworth's use of the nickname Diddy that softens Strikes’ mood towards him and honestly makes me a bit fond of him. He is, if nothing, a walking contradiction. He demands that Strike is Cornish by birth but says that “It’s identity- what you feel here” (4). He says Strike is Cornish but Diddy is from Didicoy, a Cornish word for gypsy. This brings about one of the few memories of Strike’s early childhood. He recalls meeting Dave who is described as being a “fighter whose viciousness was inversely proportional to his height” (6), and yet again he is fighting to defend the young boy with the funny name and accent. We are told that even though Joan is very ill, she insisted that Strike get a pint with Little Davey. And then comes one of my favorite lines by Polworth “Joanie reckons you’re gonna end up with your business partner. That Robin girl.” Strike attempts to  brush him off but apparently it is not just Joanie. Ted and Lucy also think Robin would be perfect for Strike. (Not to mention a very significant chunk of the readers of this series). Polworth tries to argue that Robin will leave eventually because she is a woman and so will want children and then gives a charming story about how a drunk man in a bar used Anna Karenina’s characters Mazankov, and Krupov to convince Polworth to ask Penny to marry him. In the charming fashion that is Dave Polworth he simply sums it up for Strike this way; “If you get married you can get regular blow jobs and sex without the hassle of trying to convince a girl to do you.” What a charmer! 

Chapter 2

Strike leaves the Victory, and we find out that Luke is an asshole. Like a major asshole. If I were Lucy he would have been grounded for breaking Strike’s headphones and would be made to buy a new pair and don’t even get me on stealing his prosthetic. Sorry… anyway we get some big dad energy in how Strike handles Luke and an adorable moment where he, with no examination, recognizes that when he is alone, bored, or low spirited he wants nothing more than to hear Robin’s voice. (someone get me smelling salts I may swoon). But before he can play, if I text her about this minor business detail, maybe she will call me game. He is interrupted by a woman we come to know as Anna Phipps.  Anna was told she would get a lead on her mother’s disappearance and when she saw Strike she couldn’t resist. Here is where we get the bare minimum of the case. Margot Bamborough left her medical practice in 1974 to visit a friend at a pub and was never seen again. Strike agrees to meet with them even though he feels like he shouldn’t  and does a brief google search. It seems Margot disappeared around the same time as serial killer Dennis Creed was murdering women and the DI who originally handled the case thought she was killed by him. 

The Grand Finale: Lethal White Read-along (Part 8 of 8)

Our heroes are now in the home stretch.  I’m glad to see them enjoy an afternoon at the races, even if Strike is being mean and refusing to tell Robin his theory, since they’ve got a tough road ahead. Brown Panther comes in second, and Strike wins money they can spend at the food tents, almost like a first date. Unlike the races with Charlotte, where he makes one small gamble that doesn’t pay off, this time he wins, even if it isn’t the grand prize (Robin) yet. 

With the abuse Strike gives his leg, first at the dell, then fighting off dogs, then walking Kinvara to the barn, I’m surprised he didn’t bugger his leg completely and wind up having to stay off it for a week. He recovered awfully quick, to be able to accompany Wardle to the barge to rescue Robin, including breaking through a door and helping to subdue Raff. 

Here’s another hint that Kinvara was envisioning inheriting the necklace, not getting it in the divorce. 

“Yes, he wanted to stop me doing a flit with the necklace, which, by the way, I’m perfectly entitled to do. It’s mine under the terms of the will. Jasper should have been a bit more bloody careful writing it if he didn’t want me to have it, shouldn’t he?”

Did you ever wonder how Raff explained moving the painting to Kinvara? Did he convince her that the trespassers trekking their way through the muddy woods were art thieves?

In any case, I love the suspense in these first few chapters, both in the uncovering and opening of the pink blanket and Robin’s trip upstairs to investigate the footsteps, and discover the hidden Mare Mourning. It’s also great to see Strike acknowledging his problems with his leg, admitting that digging might have been a mistake and asking for, not just grudgingly accepting, Robin’s help. 

We start wrapping the mystery up once our heroes are summoned to assist Scotland Yard Hopefully Roy Carver has retired, or he would be bursting a blood vessel over this. Even on my first reading, I thought there was something fishy about Kinvara giving to the homeless; she doesn’t seem like a very charitable person. There’s a lot of misdirection to make us think that Kinvara’s accomplice is Jimmy, including the appearance of Flick. But the best part, for me, is seeing Robin take pride in her contributions to the case. 

She is equally awesome when she has her strictly professional conversation with Sarah Shadlock; I only wish she had told Sarah that she was welcome to the Flobberworm. And please note that Strike and Robin stand shoulder-to-shoulder and jointly read an article that calls Strike “the illegitimate son of Jonny Rokeby.” Ergo she had no reason, in TB, to panic about suddenly giving away to Strike that she knew who his father was. 

Finally, we get to one of Robin's best scenes ever, on the barge, where she manages to keep her cool and keep Raff talking long enough for Strike and the police to come to her aid. Many readers have said that one thing they appreciated about COE was that Robin did not have to depend on someone else to rescue her from the Ripper; she rescued herself. The barge scene, given that we know she has been fighting panic attacks for the entire book, is a different type of heroism, as she carefully (and helpfully) reviews the case with Raff, For once, Robin gives us the final explanation, not Strike. In this case, Strike and Robin both emerge as heroes. 

The Epilogue, perhaps better than any in the series, ties the narrative up in a nice tidy bow. While hearing Izzy tell the full story in the restaurant certainly made for more enjoyable reading than Strike making a quick call to the hospital, it does seem that poor Billy was kept in suspense longer than necessary. I hope Strike at least got a message to him assuring him he did see something and he wasn't crazy. As for the tales of both Raff and Spotty, it's almost enough to convince you the world would have been a better place if someone had smothered Baby Freddie Chiswell in his crib. 

After the cliffhanger ending of COE, I appreciated the more definitive one here. We know Robin is safe in Nick and Ilsa's spare room (I guess Strike couldn't hide out there when the Chiswell story broke) and is going to be living in a much better place than her box room would have been. Their friendship is back on track, and they are checking up on each other's health concerns. They're even getting together for a takeaway curry meal at Nick and Ilsa's. The coziest book of the Strike series comes to a warm and fuzzy ending. 

Next week, Stacy will start us on Troubled Blood.  

Was Izzy Raped? and, at Long Last, the Verge Scene: Lethal White Read-along, Chapters 56-63. Part 7 of 8

 

This section opens with the scene of Strike interviewing Billy Knight in the psychiatric hospital. I love how the compassion Strike has for Billy comes through here, just as it did for Orlando and Jack. This scene makes me think that Strike, his declarations to the contrary, would actually make a great dad. 

We get some important information about Billy being the carver of the White Horse on the bathroom door, and that he routinely did this sort of craftwork to sell to tourists. We also hear at the end that there was something he "hated putting the horse on. "

We see a great piece of narrative misdirection in this scene, too:

“Heard Jimmy talking about him," said Billy, gnawing at his nail again. "Jimmy said Winn was going to help find out all about the kid who was killed."

‘Winn was going to help find out about the child who was strangled?”

“Yeah," said Billy, nervously.

Only later will we learn that "kid who was killed" was Samual Murape, not the child from Billy's memory. 

In Robin's interview with Raphael, she makes the potentially deadly mistake of revealing private information to the suspect, enough that it allows Raff to successfully impersonate Matthew by book's end. We also learn in this interview of Jimmy Knight's sexual encounter with Izzy at Freddie's 18th.  This disturbed me on this re-read, because I, for the first time, considered Izzy's age at the time.  

Freddie, we are told, was the eldest.  I have always assumed Izzy was around Strike and Charlotte's age, given that she was described as an old school friend of Charlotte's. But, at Chiswell House, Fizzy is described as “older, heavily freckled and weather-beaten, her blonde hair streaked with silver, making her the middle sister. But, by mid-thirties, if Fizzy is going to appear visibly older that Izzy, there must be a reasonably long age gap between them, at least three years. Assuming that Freddie is, at most, a year older than Fizzy, Izzy would have been, at most, fourteen at the time of her "deflowering" and possibly several years younger. I don't know what UK laws are for underage sex, but, if Jimmy was substantially older than her (and he seemed to be at least 16), then Rhiannon Winn was not the only case of sexual assault at this party. Unless some sort of "Romeo and Juliet" clause was in effect because of Jimmy being under 18, it appears he could have been charged with statutory rape. 

Think about this: they let a very young girl get drunk at this party, and she was taken advantage of, sexually, by an older boy. Jasper Chiswell was aware of what happened to her, but apparently never took any legal action, presumably because the reputation of his family mattered more than justice for his youngest daughter. If true, then Jasper Chiswell also had potentially damaging information about Jimmy Knight, but declined to use it. Strike had done some digging for any underage girls Jimmy might have slept with; but there may have been one right under his nose. 

Moving on to my absolute favorite scene of the book, and possibly the series, the second drive to Oxfordshire, the breakdown on the verge, Strike's response, then their follow-up conversation at the racetrack. Finally, the relationship is back on track. I love how Strike responds the exact opposite way that Robin expects. Instead of declaring her unfit for work, he offers her comfort, praises her abilities and shares not only some of his own vulnerability (his past PTSD symptoms) but even some of his fallibility (his utterly off-base suspicion that Robin is pregnant). It's delightful to see both the elation he feels at Robin's split from Matthew and his need to (mostly) hide it. He is remarkably insightful; during the broken engagement in COE, he was careful not to disparage Matthew, suspecting the split might not be permanent. This time, he buys her a mini-bottle of overpriced champagne to toast his departure.  And Robin saves the cork.

The chat at the racetrack about the future of the agency echoes the Burger King chat from The Silkworm, but is a huge improvement. The concern there was Matthew impeding Robin's work; now Robin is free of Matthew and Strike is 100% sure she can do the job if she addresses the panic attacks. We've gone from "Shut the fuck up and eat your burger" to "Bear in mind that we want exactly the same thing while I'm saying the next bit, all right?"

I can't leave this conversation without sharing two moments that always make me laugh. 

“I don’t need Winn to tell me I’m basically a pair of walking tits, a stupid, deluded girl who doesn’t realise that’s my only useful attribute.”

“Matthew’s been telling you that, has he?" thought Strike, imagining a few corrective measures from which he thought Matthew might benefit.

and

"I'm not Sarah Shadlock."

“Obviously not. If you were that bloody annoying I wouldn’t be working for you.”

“Maybe you could put that on the next employee satisfaction review. “'Not as bloody annoying as the woman who shagged my husband.' I’ll have it framed.”

Teagan's interruption was timely, as she interrupts Strike's initial explanation of his new theory. I realized this go-around that it was likely the mention of the necklace that made Kinvara and Raff the key suspects, once Strike concluded that two people must have collaborated. If Kinvara called Drummond about getting a valuation on the necklace on the night of the Paralympic Ball, she must have known Jasper was dead or would be soon. Surely she would not expect to get the heirloom as part of a divorce settlement. The fact that she nearly brained her husband with a hammer would certainly have been used against her in any sort of financial settlement. I suppose she could claim Jasper gave it to her, but there is a lot of family to testify that "letting all the wives wear it" was not the same as gifting. And Strike always found Raff's story implausible. 

Once Teagan spills the beans about the designer British gallows business, a big piece of the puzzle is filled in. Does anyone know if exporting gallows is legal again, after Brexit?

We'll finish the book up on Thursday!

Strike versus Aamir, Bobbi Cunliffe's Debut and Robin's Liberation: Lethal White Read-along, Ch.. 46-55 (Part 6 of 8)

As is typical of Strike books, the pace picks up as we approach the end.  I am going to make only a few brief comments on the key points, before I get to my favorite chapter of the section, 55, where Robin finally walks out on the Flobberworm. 

Like Strike, I cringe a bit when he gets rough with Aamir, but the revelation of yet another white horse certainly is a relevant clue. I love the Bobbi Cunliffe persona, and she obviously did a great job at winning Flick's trust, and Jimmy's, who called her "the real deal." Come to think of it, Barclay has done a fine undercover job here, too, seemingly becoming Jimmy's right-hand man (or at least the one he trusts to help him search Flick's apartment) in a relatively short time. Either this is evidence of how great Robin and Barclay are at their jobs, or Jimmy's pretty gullible for a radical leftie activist. 

I love when Strike dances around a major insight during the Chinese food debriefing with Robin.  

Disliked by his soldiers, revered by his father: could Freddie be the thing that Strike sought, the element that tied everything together, that connected two blackmailers and the story of a strangled child? But the notion seemed to dissolve as he examined it, and the diverse strands of the investigation fell apart once more, stubbornly unconnected.

Freddie is, of course, the White Horse that haunts the story, both the source of Billy's trauma and the reason for Geraint's grudge against the Chiswells. 

I must admit, I get less sympathetic with Lorelei with every re-read. As I said last post, she forgot the rule about ultimatums; you have to be prepared to accept either choice. She asked Strike whether he wanted the relationship enough to "try another way," provided him with a 3000-word list of things he would have to change and then acted surprised when he said, "no." We see another great example of Robin's discretion when she sees the "restaurants and brothels" line and doesn't say anything about it. 

Strike's visit to Drummond's Gallery packs a double-whammy, not only giving him important background on the Chiswells but connecting him with Charlotte again.  This is, I think, her single longest scene in the series to date, and one that truly shows her as the conniving liar that she is. It's also the source of the oft-repeated error that Robin bought Strike his collapsible stick. 

The description of Flick's party reminded me just how much I hated those types of parties as a college student, the few times I attended. I thought this time around how the upper class kids might sneer at the squalor associated with them: overcrowded dance floors, quick sex in the bathroom, non-functioing plumbing that forces people to do their business outside, people vomiting in the alley. But, when you think about it, far worse went on at the rich kids' parties: the abuse of Rhiannon Winn, the drugging of little Billy, the strangling of Raphael. And Raff enjoyed a couple of quickies in the loo himself, and while on the job.

I wondered on this re-read when exactly the gallows were sold. We are told Chiswell received payment for them "last year" but selling them would have been made illegal 6 years ago. It is implied that they were in storage for some time after Jack O'Kent died, which we were told was "years ago."  Unless the Zimbabwe government was really slow in paying up, it appears Chiswell did indeed sell them after the EU ban was in place. Ergo, his many claims of "I broke no law" were lies. 

I felt even worse for Aamir after Della's revelations. I wonder if she will be able to salvage her political career after all this. 

Onto Chapter 55:  Many years ago, right after the publication of LW, I was on a podcast and had a great conversation wit Beatrice Groves about how similar Robin's departure from Matthew was to the climax of another Ibsen work: A Doll's House.  This is probably the most famous "leave your lover" scene in theatre:

Helmer. Then there is only one possible explanation.

Nora. What is that?

Helmer. You do not love me any more.

Nora. No, that is just it.

Helmer. Nora!—and you can say that?

Nora. It gives me great pain, Torvald, for you have always been so kind to me, but I cannot help it. I do not love you any more.

See how similar it is to Robin's speech to the Flobberworm:

“Robin," he said, suddenly earnest, "we can get through this. If we love each other, we can.”

“Well, the problem with that, Matt," said Robin, "is that I don’t love you any more.”

I remember both cheering and sighing with relief as Robin drove away in her cab. She's got a long road ahead of her, and two years until she's officially divorced, but the liberation has begun.  

The White Horse Infestation Starts: Lethal White Read-along, Ch 36-45 (Part 5 of 8)

With apologies to Minister Chiswell, I always get quite happy upon reading of his demise, because I love the second half of Lethal White. This time I loved it even more, having just returned from a UK trip where I had the opportunity to visit both the White Horse of Uffington and the eponymous pub.

“I don’t want you wasting time chasing shadows through the undergrowth in Oxfordshire. My problems are in London.”

Sorry, Minister, but your problem is in fact in Oxfordshire. Once Robin and Strike make the Land Rover journey to that area, the book starts to take on the tone of a cozy mystery, complete with country manor house, and a bickering upper class family. 

Of course, there are a few details before we get to Woolstone. I love the overnight trip Strike makes to Lucy's to watch the Olympic Opening Ceremonies with Jack. This is certainly the most pleasant time Strike has had with Lucy's family in the series so far. We learn about the super-injunction from Ilsa, and details of the case from Oliver. They are really lucky to have so many friends in the right places. 

Then, we get to the first of two Land Rover trips to Woolstone. Interestingly, both car rides feature nasty communications from Geraint Winn: the first the condolence letter-cum-threat that Strike reads out to Robin, the second the phone call that triggers her panic attack. We also see the first indicator that the Flobberworm is cheating on Robin, with his text message. 

I must admit some curiosity about where exactly Strike and Robin stopped to get the amazing view of the horse, because in my experience there is really no good place to see the whole thing. This is the best view I got. 

We did the hike up to the chalk figure, while I imagined Little Raff and Billy being toted up on piggyback.  It's a steep climb to carry two little kids. The figure itself was roped off, so I couldn't actually stand in the eye and make a wish, and parts of it, particularly around the head, were pretty thin, almost overgrown with grass. Apparently, the annual re-chalkings were cancelled for a couple of years because of the pandemic.  Never fear, the National Trust has a day set up for weeding this July and for re-chalking in August.  I'm sure it will be looking its best soon.

The eye was smaller than I thought, about the size of a manhole cover. The most visible part was the ear. 

If you walk to the top of nearby Dragon Hill, you can get a decent view of the hindquarters. 

Speaking of horse's asses, let's get back to the family interview at the Chiswell estate, the worst family fracas until we meet the Phipps in Troubled Blood. Torquil ranks right up there with Tempest and Yasmin for annoying characters. But here is where the theme of the White Horses starts repeating itself. We have the horse itself lending credence to Billy's story, the white foal of the painting that first draws our attention to that important element, and finally the pub. Also, we have the first appearance of Rattenbury the Wonder Dog. 

After Strike and Robin visit the Knight's old cottage, and Robin finds the mysterious wooden cross in the dell, they head for the White Horse Pub, which is described perfectly:

The country inn they reached five minutes later was the very image of picture-postcard England, a white, timbered building with leaded bay windows, moss-covered slates on the roof and climbing red roses around the door. A beer garden with parasols completed the picture.

It was a pretty hot day, so we ate inside, and had easily the best pub food of the trip. I didn't see blue cheese burgers or chili on the menu, but I will be trying to find a recipe to duplicate the wonderful lamb pot pie I had. 

Like Strike and Robin, I found it a perfect end to a long day. 

Strike lit another cigarette and as the nicotine hit his brain, felt a wave of something close to euphoria. A pint, a hot day in August, a well-paid job, food on the way and Robin, sitting across from him, their friendship restored, if not entirely to what it had been before her honeymoon, then perhaps as close as was possible, now that she was married. Right now, in this sunny beer garden, and in spite of the pain in his leg, his tiredness and the unresolved mess that was his relationship with Lorelei, life felt simple and hopeful.

My only disappointment was that there was no handy souvenir shop to purchase a hand-carved wooden horse pendant. 

This section closes with a relatively normal paperwork day for Strike, punctuated in the end by Lorelei's lengthy email detailing his faults and her ultimatum. As we shall see, she forgot the first rule of ultimatums: you have to be willing to accept either choice graciously. 

Uncle Cormoran and the Hospital Reconciliation; Overly-Entitled Employers, Then Oops, the Client is Dead. Lethal White Read-Along, Chapters 26-35. Part 4 of 8.

 

July 6th was an eventful day for both our heroes. Strike is trying to get readjusted to his apartment on crutches, preoccupied both with Lorelei's declaration of love and the increasing pressure of the Chiswell case. Then he gets the call that makes all of that seem unimportant, and rushes off to the hospital to be with his critically ill nephew, Jack. 

Robin, knowing nothing of this, makes her risky call where she all-but-impersonates Della Winn and gets the needed information of Sir Kevin, which neutralizes the blackmail threat from Geraint Winn and puts cranky old Minister Chiswell in the only cheerful mood we see him in the entire book. I guess it's good to see the old fart smile once, considering he has less than a week to live. 

I must say, the entire hospital chapter (26)  is probably my second favorite in the book, and possibly in the series, second only to the breakdown on the verge that will be coming up later. First. we see Strike, for the first time, prioritize his blood family over anything. I love the way he steps in, stays by Jack's bedside while trying to update and reassure his parents long-distance, and, as he notes Jack's resemblance to Leda, feels genuine remorse that he has not forged a closer relationship. After spending the last few days resentful of his married employees who must schedule work around family obligations, suddenly Strike has one himself. This entire incident makes him appreciate not only Jack, but Lucy and even her husband, whose voice Strike is actually happy to hear on the phone. 

Then, Robin turns up exactly when he needs her. Not only does she provide him comfort and companionship during the long wait, she had conveniently gotten Chiswell the bargaining chip he needed, handling the agency work quite nicely during Strike's unplanned and unannounced absence. They are back on friendly terms and it is clear that they are each other's "best mates," even if it will take them another two years to acknowledge that. 

“It was a glorious thing, to be given hope, when all had seemed lost”  Is there a better chapter ending in the entire series?

Unfortunately, things take a swift downward turn for Robin when she returns to the Flobberworm, I think it is interesting that she finds him fully dressed and "snoring drunkenly" on the sofa the next morning. If he was that drunk, I wonder how he got home. I wonder if Sarah Shadlock volunteered to see him home safely, and engaged in a little make-out session in the cab?

This is the near-final row for the couple:

"Whereas my achievements...."

“Sorry, remind me what they are again?’ Matthew said, a low blow he had never thrown at her before. ‘Or are we counting his achievements as yours?”

Tired, angry, guilty and miserable, Robin felt as though she were waiting for something definitive to happen, something that would release them both with honour, without more filthy rows, with reasonableness.

The "definitive" thing that will happen, of course, is Matthew resuming his affair with Sarah, which could possibly have happened on the night of the cricket match.  Part of me wishes Robin had not waited for that, that the realization that she did not love him and regretted marrying him would have been enough to get her to pull the plug. 

Robin's days in the House of Commons seem to be numbered after she is accosted by Mitch Patterson and after her near-miss in retrieving the final listening device. Chiswell is back to his miserable self. And, I am always a bit surprised that Barclay and Robin are meeting for the first time here. Barclay's been working for the agency for a month and he and Robin are on the same case. It is also strange to me that the evidence of Della and Aamir having an affair isn't communicated to Chiswell; it seems that would be something Geraint would want kept out of the papers. as well. 

To be honest, I though both Chiswell and Strike act a bit like over-entitled jerks in the day leading up to the Paralympic Ball. First, Strike is a real ass to Hutchins. If you are going to have an employee with MS, you have to create an environment where they can be open about flare-ups; Hutchins was up-front when hired that his disease was unpredictable. Strike calls Hutchins a "stupid fucker" when he has an attack of paralysis and asks "Why didn't you tell me you were ill?"  Uh, maybe because you've been guilt-tripping him about taking time off for injuries to family members and vacations he had presumably cleared with you well in advance?  He expressed doubt about tailing Knight and you reacted angrily; are you then surprised he was reluctant to explain?  I sometimes think Strike is expecting too much devotion from employees who have, essentially, no job security and can be sacked (excuse me, "contract non-renewed" without notice or reason. Has Strike forgotten that he himself recently collapsed in the street and was out of commission for a week, then walked away and did not respond to messages for a full day when Jack was in the hospital?

Second, what type of services does Minister Chiswell think he's paying for?  It was the detectives' job to dig up counter-blackmail material on Winn and Knight. They did that for one and were diligently working on the other. Chiswell seems to think Strike is some sort of private security thug, whose job it is to actually stop Knight from communicating Chiswell's secret to the public. You could argue it was Strike's job to warn the minister once he found out what Knight's plans were, and he did. Actually disrupting the protest to prevent the display of the placard is, it seems to me, an act above and beyond the call of duty of a private detective. Chiswell ought to be grateful Strike limited the damage; instead he threatens to fire them!

A few interesting bits from the Paralympic Ball: 1) The Green Dress, of course. I am so glad she wore it and that Strike noted how stunning she looked. 2) Robin alone appears to catch on to the abject hatred Chiswell is feeling towards Kinvara and 3) the long-awaited return of Charlotte, pregnant with twins, no less. It is amusing to see how aware of each other Charlotte and Robin are, considering they never formally meet. Personally, I am glad the call from Billy Knight disrupts the exit and Strike took his leave from her quickly.

The first half of the book----  and possibly the first half of the series, given the orphan "Part Two*" that opens Chapter 36, draws to a close the next morning, when Robin discovers Chiswell's body.  Good-bye, blackmail, hello murder investigation. We will pick up with Part Two next week. 

*as John Granger pointed out at the time of publication, there is no "Part One" at the start of LW 

Singapore noodles at Wong Kei. London Travelogue, Day 2.

On the second day of our UK vacation (the first having been spent on a walking tour of as many Strike sites as I could manage) we took a hop-on, hop-off bus tour of London, which was a great way to get our bearings. The only real Strike site on that was Tower Bridge, which, happily, had no despondent bankers contemplating jumping.  Having revisited that area later to see the Tower of London, what surprised me was not that Robin and Barclay managed to intervene with SB, but that they managed to elbow their way through all the tourists to get to him.  

We also made it to King's Cross for a selfie at Platform 9 3/4. 

After morning, afternoon and evening bus rides, we were both pretty hungry and ready for dinner. Having been for pub-style food for lunch, we were ready for something ethnic, and, since China Town was within walking distance, we headed back there. When I checked the Wong Kei menu and saw they had Singapore noodles (something I don't remember ever seeing in a US Chinese restaurant), we decided that was the place to go. 

It was a busy but not overly packed place and one of the few we saw that was cash-only; card-only vendors were much more common. There were both Asian- and non-Asian diners, with a large number appearing student-aged. No sign of Spanner or Lula Landry's hot pink laptop. 

Naturally I got the Singapore noodles. It was good, with small rice noodle, pork, mini-shrimp and egg. The closest thing I have had in the US to it was egg foo young, but this was decidedly spicier. Very filling, I can see why Strike likes it. 

A great way to end the day, and one of the more economical meals we had in London. 

A Glimpse Into the Norfolk Commune and What Catullus Really Said: Lethal White Read-along, Chapters 14-25. Part 3 of 8

This section starts off with Strike's trek to see Dawn Clancy, Jimmy Knight's ex. We are treated to a bit more reflection on Strike's childhood, including Strike explicitly comparing Robin and Lucy's responses to trauma. In the lead-up to The Running Grave, this section is of particular interest because it gives us the most troubling bit of information about the Norfolk commune to date:  the fact that Strike witnessed a teenager being whipped there. No wonder Strike mused in TIBH that he sincerely hoped the place no longer exists. Even if it doesn't, a lot of fans are betting that some of the abusive people do, and that Strike will, on some level, come to terms with them in the next volume.

Robin's trip to see Chiswell seems to serve no purpose whatsoever, as he spends only a few seconds with her and asks her only a few quick questions, all of which Izzy could have easily communicated by phone or text. other than to introduce Della Winn and the idea that she holds a grudge against one of Chiswell's godchildren, who has a name that can be confused with "Venetia."

We get a nice bit of ring-echoing in the interview with Dawn Clancy, with her quoting "Least said, soonest mended" just as Teagan Butcher does later. They are both somewhat dazzled by Strike's celebrity, both express doubts about whether they should be talking to Strike and both smoke with him while being interviewed on a break from work. One interesting bit was Dawn's description of Jack O'Kent as a "joiner" rather than a standard odd-jobs man:  the first hint that his wood-working is relevant to the story. 

Robin has another encounter with Geraint Winn, where he confirms that his wife mixed "Venetia" up with someone else, "Verity." We get an indicator of his intrusiveness when he touches Robin's scar---  an echo of his tendency to trigger panic attacks in Robin, which he does twice in the book. In Chapter 18, we get another echo: Strike expecting and dreading a call from Lucy and getting Barclay instead. As we'll see later, Strike will be talking with Barclay when Lucy calls him about Jack's hospitalization. Strike also makes a serious error when he dismisses the fencing team connection as a reason behind Geraint's grudge against the Chiswells. We also get another glimpse at the tension between Matthew and Robin, and sigh with relief as Robin gets an night to herself in the guest room. 

The next morning, she successfully uses her lost-bangle trick to plant the first listening device. She goes from that high to another low, as Raphael triggers her third panic attack in as many days. We get an insight into Izzy's contempt for both Tinkies I and II, ironic given that the family's finances may well get saved in the end by Tinky I's horsey painting. Raphael's remark "Izzy doesn't believe in mental illness" is also entertaining in retrospect, since Izzy herself will be willing to attribute Raff's murder of their father to mental illness at the end, 

I enjoyed Robin and Strike's meeting at the Two Chairmen, when Robin gets to show off the information she collected via the bug. Sad to see her rushing home to dinner with the Flobberworm, given how clear it is she would rather be with Strike. The next day a work, Raphael bungles Robin's first efforts at learning about the charity fraud, then we are treated to Aamir's and Chiswell's visit to the office. I was surprised about how aggravated Aamir made me, as he insisted on pressing Izzy to add the Level Playing Field trustees to the Paralympic Ball, despite her repeatedly telling him that was not her job. If anyone is curious about Chiswell's quotation, it is the first two lines of Catullus's 16, a poem so obscene that a full English translation was not published until the 20th century. The lines Chiswell recites can be translated "I will sodomize and face-f*ck you, bottom Aurelius and catamite* Furius" or as "F*ck you, boys, up the butt and in the mouth, you queer Aurelius and you fag Furius!"  I think it is interesting that, just as Catullus was speaking to two young men for whom he had contempt, so is Chiswell, given that, as we will later learn, his words are directed as much to Raff as to Aamir. 

Robin then gets the call from Strike needing her to do a last minute weekend job, which she has to decline because of her anniversary plans. I always find Chapters 22 and 23 difficult to read, as Robin's and Strike's relationship, which had been improving, deteriorates, for reasons that are not really either of their faults. We feel his physical pain as he trails Jimmy and Flick at the march, just as we feel Robin's emotional pain as she struggles through the Flobber-versary, and finally concludes she doesn't really love Matthew anymore. 

Chapter 24 is also grueling, as we see Strike return to his flat with the knowledge that he has messed up the relationship with Lorelei. Error alert: he comes in Friday morning saying he had spent 5 nights and 4 days with Lorelei, However, the march was Saturday, making it 6 nights as 5 days. I always breathe a little sigh of relief when I re-read the end of the chapter and see Strike rush off to the hospital to be with Jack, because I know both that we are about to see a better side of Strike and that his and Robin's relationship is going to get back on track.

Chapter 25 is another day for Robin to shine, as she gets the charity fraud information out of Sir Kevin, earning gratitude from Chiswell and restoring her confidence in herself, when Chiswell tells her Strike called her his best. She also snags an invite to the Paralympic Ball where she will finally have a chance to don the Green Dress. 

I'll be back on Thursday with Chapters 26-35. The hospital, the accidental kiss, the Ball, and Charlotte....

Chiswells and Why We Hate Them: Lethal White Read-along Part 2 of 8:

Greetings, readers and welcome back.  I am excited to re-join the real-along after two weeks of vacation exploring Strike Sites, and a few of those lesser UK attractions like Stonehenge, the Tower of London and Loch Ness.  I will have lots to blog about over the next few weeks, as I have posts planned about my visits to the White Horse of Uffington, Hampton Court Palace and my dining experiences at Bob Bob Ricard and Betty's tea house. I also plan at least one posts about some Harry Potter sights I took in

I want to give another big thanks to Stacy and Kurt for posting during my absence and to put out another call for guest posters in late July. I will be heading to Chandigarh, India, for my long-delayed service trip with the Global Autism Project. Currently, I am seeking someone to cover:

• July 20 (LW Ch. 45-54)
• July 24 (LW Ch. 55-62)
• July 27 (LW Ch. 63-end)
• July 31: (TB Ch 1-9)  

If you are interested, please send me an email message via the link in the right column. 

I am delighted to pick up with blogging again, because Lethal White is my favorite book of the series. I explained why several months ago on one of my last Hogwartsprofessor.com posts:

The favorite: 1. Lethal White. Its position as the midway story turn of our presumed seven series, Potter-parallel series gives this volume a place of its own.  After the high body count and gruesome killings and woman-directed violence of Career of Evil, Lethal White was a like a breath of fresh air. I also have a personal fondness for this book, having predicted years in advance that the London Olympics would form the background, and having speculated on the pre-book predictions podcast that Robin would get to don her Green Dress again for a Yule Ball type event. My chance googling of the name Rattenbury was one of the luckiest “strikes” I ever made in the world of literary sleuthing. And, this book, with its dozens of connections to Goblet of Fire, this book was proof positive of the parallels with Harry Potter.

Other high points: the addition of Barclay to the team, Robin’s undercover action as both Venetia Hall and Bobbi Cunliffe, Strike being there for his critically ill nephew Jack and Robin being there for him, the recurrent white horse motif, the connection to Ibsen’s Rosmersholm, Robin’s A Doll’s House-like dumping of the Flobberworm, and Strike first comforting her on the verge, then buying her a mini-champagne to toast her newfound freedom. Overall, this book was a ideal balance of mystery, action, romance and humor. (“Maybe you should put that on your next employee satisfaction review. ‘Not as f*cking annoying as the woman who shagged my husband.’ I’ll have it framed.”) I think it’s the audiobook  I’ve re-listened to more than any other.

Today's post will cover chapters 8-13, though I am going to focus on the first meeting with Minister Chiswell. This is timely, given a recent post on the new Substack version of Hogpro, where I made some brief comment, which inspired me to elaborate a bit more on the Chiswell family, particularly the male contingent, here.  The most recent post there goes through an exercise of connecting the Potter and Strike books to Christian virtues. I was struck by John Granger's connection of Lethal White to gluttony. 

Lethal White: Abstinence/Gluttony. I suspect that I cannot see this correspondence because ‘gluttony’ and ‘abstinence’ in my mind are categories of self-control chiefly with respect to food, drink, and sex. Strike does go on an overnight binge with a red-headed bimbo, a self-indulgent fall that means Robin was easily able to make-up with Matt in the Maldives, but that hardly is the tone or theme of the novel. What am I missing?

My first thought was that what was missing was the classic line where Strike is explicitly called out on his gluttony:  Lorelei's texted message: “If you want a hot meal and a shag with no human emotions involved, there are restaurants and brothels.”  Then, on second thought, I thought that was a bit harsh on Strike. In re-reading Chapter 11, we see that Strike is intentionally limiting his consecutive nights with Lorelei, and therefore voluntarily moderating his intake of both her cooking and sex with her: so "gluttony" may be a bit strong. He only broke his "only one night" rule when he buggered his knee and honestly, what choice did he have?

My second thought for gluttons are the Chiswell, who seem to binge not on food, drink or sex, but their own power and prestige. The introduction of Jasper Chiswell in in chapters 8-10 certainly does not give a favorable impression. I was struck, when Strike meets him in Pratt's, how close his physical description matches that of the despicable Roy Carver: 

Chiswell did not smell very fresh...He didn’t seem happy at the moment. His ruddy skin had an odd, plaque-like appearance close up. Dandruff lay thick in the roots of his coarse hair and large patches of sweat spread around the underarms of his blue shirt.

And: 

To the hair was added a large red face, small eyes and a protuberant lower lip, which gave him the air of an overgrown baby perpetually on the verge of a tantrum.

This description plays out over the the course of the book, as we see Chiswell not only spit out his food at multiple points during the meal, but verbally berate his subordinates, hotel workers and even his own wife and daughter. 

Ultimately, the family patriarch epitomizes Raff's later description of the family attitude: 

Bullets would bounce off their self-regard. They think there’s a kind of natural law in operation, where Chiswells get what they want and lesser beings just fall into line.

Re-listening to Chapter 9 of LW this morning, I wondered how much it cost Jasper Chiswell to be part of Pratt's club, a place designed to impress people not with the quality of the food (simple "nursery style" roast beef and potatoes) but with its exclusivity. Jonah Agyeman, even with Lula's 10 million, would never be admitted.

The Chiswell family, as a whole, may be considered more gluttonous than greedy. What they are determined to hoard to is not so much wealth itself but their power and prestige as an "upper class" family.  In one sense, the familly is wealthy, owning both a London home and a country estate, albeit a diminished one, but most of their wealth is in the form of valuable but non-too-useful objects--horses, lacquer cabinets, diamond necklaces, 24-carat gold money clips--and much of that has been given to a 10-year-old grandson to protect against inheritance taxes. They have considerable cash-flow problems, and their actual living quarters are falling into disrepair, in part because their unwillingness to part with these family heirlooms. They'd rather live with a leaky roof and burnt out light bulbs that give up those status symbols. Rather than being greedy for cash, I would characterize them as gluttonous for power and prestige. We see this early on with Pratt's Club, and we'll see a lot more of it later. 

Given the example set by their father, it is little wonder both his despised bastard Raff and his favored but wastrel legitimate son Freddie (the true White Horse who haunts the series) turn out the way they do. 

Even though Jasper Chiswell comes across as a pretty loathesome character, we don't see much of an improvement in the appearances of Matthew (Chapter 12, still being an ass about her job with Strike) and in the introduction of Geraint Winn (Chapter 13) both of whom manage to exacerbate panic attacks in poor Robin. It is good to see her relationship with Strike starting to heal, because she needs one supportive man in her life. 

Back on Monday for Chapters 14-25. 

Borrowed Robes Chapters 1-7 of Lethal White

 Hey everyone, I am back for one last blog post before we go back to the fabulous Louise. I will be covering my thoughts on chapters 1-7 of Lethal White. 

When going through these chapters, I couldn’t help but think of the concept of “borrowed robes” from Macbeth. All of these chapters involve characters that seem to be in roles that they don’t fit easily. From Robin as the unhappy Bride, to the man we now know as Nutley being a subcontractor, Billy trying to be believed, and Sarah trying to be a fiance everyone seems to be in roles that they don’t really belong to.  

The book starts with a pair of misbehaving swans and a photographer looking for the perfect picture of the least perfect couple. The photographer thinks about how he has seen everything after 20 years and assumes Robin has a scar from trying to commit suicide. This offers the first glimpse of a role that doesn’t fit. She explains it as a result of an assault, and yea that is the truth but, like Michael’s toast with no mention of her accomplishments, If she said “oh yea, I got that while physically assaulting a serial killer who was out for me.” That is so much closer than the truth. Yes it is out of character for Robin to say something like that. Still, the uncomfortableness for me comes from her following societal norms and being dismissive of what makes her a powerhouse of a woman and character. Both Strike and Robin have the exact same thoughts about each other and how they want to communicate “ask her/him-beg her/him if necessary…” Which is adorable, but makes me want to give them the first of 3 books worth of  dork slaps for not talking to each other. A few other take-aways from the wedding Stephen seems to be described as being similar looking to Strike but has Robin’s eyes which is an interesting choice. And I love him. I enjoy Martin’s need to talk about Robin’s acts and her career, as he seems to be the most excited about her career, but Stephen is the big brother we all want. I also have a bit of hope about Linda. After all her first argument is “It broke her heart”. I have to like that Linda basically acknowledge that she heard her daughter cry late at night, a thing Robin admits to in her thoughts later. From Robin’s point of view everything went further downhill when she realized Matthew deleted Strikes calls and blocked his number. But Robin is going to be a good daughter so she goes down stairs for their first dance even though she takes off her wedding band. They dance to “Wherever you will go” And Strike for the first  but not the last time in this series thinks “fuck this” before walking away. Thankfully, Robin noticed and ran after him and then, well of all the hugs in all the world this hug left them all behind.

We then get into the novel proper and we have a gap year. One year later in June of 2012 Strike is famous enough to be a joke made on a quiz show, which must have made him so uncomfortable. That said, can we take a moment and just rub it in Laing's face that his plan backfired spectacularly. I can picture him in a room in his jail seeing that joke made about Strike on the game show and the fury… Sucks to suck Laing. Any who, Strike has lost some weight. There are signs of PTSD in Robin and some in Strike as well. And they no longer act as friends. We get the history of the two weeks after Robin’s wedding. Strike missed her voice and when he found out she was on her honeymoon got drunk and slept with Coco, a red headed burlesque dancer. Robin has the week off so Strike decides to hire a new contractor after firing Nutley. So we get the one, the only dope vaping Glaswegian Sam Barclay. A man who was never trained in investigative work but noticed his superiors stealing. This drives me nuts later on when Robin considers herself to not be nearly as experienced as everyone else. She has the same training if not more than Sam.  I just feel like that needs to be mentioned at some point. At the end of the chapter it dawns on him that maybe a clinic appointment is not therapy but before he finishes the thought Denise, parrot-like in her talking, calls Strike to tell him there is a disturbed man in his office. 

2.

Billy is, in fact, a mentally ill young man in his mid 20s and is only able to give some scant details. There was a little girl strangled by the white horse, and that he was told later that it was a little boy but he saw it buried in a pink blanket. Jimmy saw it, but denies it. While Billy is clearly upset he is still able to hear Denise calling the police and pushes his way out of the office before the police can arrive. 

3. 

Robin goes to her therapy appointment. She is paying out of pocket for therapy and has decided to no longer attend therapy as she feels like her therapist is pushing her. But the good news is CBT is working. This chapter reads so differently now that I have gone to therapy and also worked on CBT exercises. They are in fact incredibly helpful. She thinks back to her wedding and how everyone converged on their suite and their argument which led to her agreeing to go to the Honeymoon just to figure out where they stand. For some reason she gives into his need to constantly check her phone. I guess it is a good thing Strike didn’t have her number memorized. But Robin also needs to hear Strike’s voice and so she uses a landline to call the office knowing it would go to Strike. This leads me to some questions. Wouldn’t the number of the hotel be left on his phone? Would it have come up as an international number? Why didn’t Strike go back and check his phone??? Because if he had there would not be three more books of will they won’t they… but that is just from a writing point of view. Robin deserves a gold metal for her mental gymnastics to say that she is not in love with Strike. Those bends and stretches are so impressive.  In current time Robin continues to walk through a graveyard when Strike calls, interrupting her thoughts. It seems he no longer has an individual ringtone. Which is just sad, did she do that because of Twatthew as well? In telling about Billy, Strike is able to reconnect a bit with Robin. However, he did miss the fact that a year previous she would have said his girlfriend Lorelei’s name was a ludicrous moniker. He agrees they will both attend the house party and Robin passes a single swan on a pub sign. 

4. 

Not a lot happens in this chapter. Strike is watching Dodgy Doc. He has a partial address for Billy and the only other thing of note is “He liked to set limits on her rights to his time” (60). As he will never sleep two nights in a row at his Lorelei’s house. Ouch!

5.

For a man who says don’t go on hunches, Strike does it an awful lot and here he does it again. With 200 plus houses on the road he only goes up to select people, and houses, but when one looks run down he follows his gut instinct and it just so happens to be the house of Jimmy Knight, Billy’s brother. He follows a note posted on the door and sees that Billy’s brother is a socialist protesting the upcoming Olympics. He hears Flick Purdue attempt to fit in by changing her accent and speech patterns. He also sees an Asian man and an undercover cop. 

6. 

Strike follows the group to a pub. Flick wears her heart on her sleeve and can’t help but give away some serious clues here. When Strike approaches them the first thing she does is say “Chizzle sent him”. Strike makes another Batman allusion, which makes me a bit sad that he went with Darth Vader instead of the Dark Knight. He is again accused of being wealthy which just goes to show how much of a disconnect there is between people and the concept of fame and how  salaries work. He thinks that Flick would believe him about joining the army to kill children but it makes me wonder what the full thought process was when he decided to leave Oxford for the Army. While it is not quite the leap that Robin took in thinking she has just a crush, Did Strike always want to join the army? I guess if History was his course of study it isn't out there. But what did young Strike plan to be when he grew up?

7. 

The last chapter I will cover again shows Robin in a role that she doesn’t fit. She has moved into a rental house with Matthew and while everyone else is in bright jewel toned dresses Robin is in gray because Matthew “Likes her pale” (77). Everyone assumes that because they are renting it is a sign of their marriage being on the rocks, which I am not sure why. And Matthew thinks there is no reason not to still hang out with Sarah because she now has a large diamond on her left hand. Funny, with Strike, it is not the rock that really keeps him away, and with Matthew it is not the rock that keeps him away either but for very different reasons. Strike discovers that Robin is now friends with Vanessa, a woman Matthew doesn’t like because she is cold. Or is it that she left her fiance the first time she caught him cheating? Tom Turvey, Sarah’s fiance, tells Robin she should pay more attention at home because he is wearing a shirt Matthew also owns but somehow in the next book he had no clue that Sarah was cheating on him. Though honestly I would have dumped her after she spent the night of the party making fun of his hairline.  Robin continues to feel insignificant, especially after seeing Lorelei, who looks like a pin up with Veronica Lake hair (if you don’t get that reference she has Jessica Rabbit hair), hold Strike’s hand. The hand that bears a matching scar to Robins. Again bringing about that feeling of not belonging. Sarah announces that she and Tom got tickets to ping pong and Matthew mentions getting tickets to boxing. Funny Sara bounces between her fiance and Matthew like a ping pong ball and Matthew and Robin are going to spend the rest of this book fighting. Both couples are going to events that mimic their lives.  Strike also looks at Robin’s figure and the fact that she is drinking wine and goes through his own gymnastic routine, maybe she just started IVF… it feels like a bit of a weird thought going straight to IVF. Then again maybe there is a part of Strike, buried so far down it is even past the point where he recognizes his feelings for Robin, that causes his mind to go there because it could be a dig at Matthew??? Though now I may be doing my own routine. The chapter ends with my favorite three words of Vanessa Ekwensi “Blame sea-born bacteria” and Lorelei telling Strike “Your Robin has boring friends.” Even Lorelei knows Robin is his, now if only she could figure out that he is Robin’s.  Once again confirming that most of the significant characters in this book are wearing borrowed robes.