The Hallmarked Man Real-Time Re-read Wrap-up: Was it better this time through? Yes, but it's still the worst in the series, and here's why.

A recent Reddit poll ranked The Hallmarked Man last of the eight Strike books, and, if I recall correctly, it wasn't a particularly close vote. A lot of THM fans insist, it's better when you re-read, and I think that is absolutely true. Then again, that's true of all of the Strike series, and RG/JKR's other works as well. Part of the huge success of the Harry Potter series can be attributed to the details uncovered as kids and adults read them again and again. One reason I think the Strike books will never hit that level of popularity is that they are marketed squarely in the mystery category. Many adults do not read whodunnits more than once, since the thrill for them is gone once you know whodunnit. 

I've read or listened to the earlier Strike books dozens of times. I've lost track of how many times I've re-read THM, but, given that I read each section at least 2-3 times when doing a detailed blog-through like the one I have just completed, it must be six or seven by now. Did THM improve on re-reading?  Yes, absolutely. Did it, for me, lift itself out of last place? No, it didn't.  For this summary I have re-read not the book but all of my detailed blog posts, from the Advent Adventure to the Real-time Re-read, for the purposes of summarizing what changed for me and what didn't. 

The Hallmarked Man Real-time Re-read Finale, Chapters 126-127: A margarine tub and--- some broccoli?

The Hallmarked Man closed on April 7th, 2017. I am closing my in-depth re-read exactly nine years later. It's been a great ride and I am thankful to all who have followed since the start of The Hallmarked Man Advent Adventure back in early December. 

My plan is to review the last two chapters here. Then, later in the week, I'll post a round-up on how my impressions changed with the re-read, and where I think The Hallmarked Man stacks up in relationship to the rest of the series 

“In a way," said Decima Mullins, "I feel as though he did die.”

Thus begins Chapter 126, possibly the saddest closing wrap-up in the series. We already know the sad endings to two of the Wright candidates, with Semple's suicide and Powell's brutal murder. We see Decima here, wishing she'd never have found out the truth about her son't parentage and still clearly having strong feelings and desire for the man that she can never have. The best they can hope for is a platonic relationship as they strive to raise their child together and debate for the next dozen years or so whether it would be better or worse for him to know the truth about his parentage. The only comfort Strike can give her is the knowledge that her persistence in pursuing the case revealed the truth about both Semple and Powell, and, perhaps more importantly, rescued Sapphire Neagle from a terrible fate. Strike and Robin, naturally, promise never to reveal the secret about the incest and fortunately, mouthy subcontractors like KFC never found out. 

The Hallmarked Man Real-Time Re-read, Chapters 124-125: From burial to bougainvillea.

"Engraved with the regimen's winged dagger badge"

I must say, I really love Chapter 124, the first in the Epilogue. Eleven days have passed since the way-overblown confrontation with the sliced-off ear and the bottle of whiskey. Not only do we see Strike actually behaving sensibly here, but we get perhaps the best glimpse so far in the series as to what he must have been like as a soldier. 

Eleven days after Ian Griffiths and friends had been taken into custody, and Strike and Sapphire Neagle had been driven by ambulance to the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, Strike donned his only black suit in his attic flat, and drove, again, to Hereford.

We learn that Strike had correctly deduced that Niall Semple had committed suicide by jumping off the Regents' Park Bridge, with a weighted-down briefcase shackled to his wrist. His widow, Jade, has invited Strike to attend the funeral, and Strike feels he should do this, rather than accompany Robin on her trip to "tidy away the last fragment of the silver vault case." 

Strike and Robin Timelines updated after the re-read of The Hallmarked Man

 

Last January, I did a quick update of the Strike and Robin Pre- and Inter-book Timelines I have maintained for several years. Now that I am nearly done with The Hallmarked Man Real-time re-read, I have again updated both documents. 

The new Strike timeline is available here. 

The new Robin timeline is available here. 

Along with those I have a new timeline of Charlotte Campbell's life pre-Cuckoo's Calling. set up as a blog post.