SPOILER ALERT Hallmarked Man (Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott)

[Civilservant]

Spoiler thread for posters who have read or listened to The Hallmarked Man by Robert Galbraith (J K Rowling) and would like to discuss it!

I know. I'm being overly mindful.
I audibly squeaked at that point. I know she wasn't going to throw herself into his arms and she's been through it in this one. Poor Robin. Her doubts are/were justifiable earlier in the book, but there's also been resolution.
I enjoyed Rokeby - as so many women have.

Spoiler wise, I also suspected a Robin pregnancy, but not so early and not to such a devastating degree, and Ryan starting to drink again, but I suspected as a reaction to the pregnancy, not work pressures and I wasn't as generous as Robin, she should have LTB'd - he's manipulative, controlling and annoying (in that he's not Strike) everyone is complex and layered in this book - no-one is perfect, but the central characters arent caricatures (a lot of the minor characters are, but I like the shorthand - a man bun, meeting in a wetherspoons gives me everything I need to know)
The point that Robin sees a lot of bad men in her line of work, but there are good men too - her dad and brothers (but Martin, give your head a wobble)
A Tory MP with deliberately messy hair who does pane shows? Who on earth could that possibly be based on?l

I thought Kim was beautifully drawn. I worked for someone just like her (shudder).

All the reviews do bang on about the accents. You can tell the reviewers aren’t that well read - writing accents was very common until quite recently in literature. And she does it very well. I know just what Johnny Rokeby sounds like. Wasn’t he an unexpected treat?

Robin’s dealing with both PTSD from Chapman Farm and the effects of her rape suddenly surging back at her though - plus suicidal exes cropping up all over the place.

Also on some level she’s aware of what she’s doing to herself by giving in to Murphy, but hasn’t been letting herself think about it, and you really can’t blame her for being livid at Strike’s timing, regardless of his reasons.

I also think that from JKR’s viewpoint, it’s going to make a much better ongoing plot if they don’t get together properly until the final book. If they get engaged in Book 9 then there will almost have to be some kind of crisis that temporarily breaks them up again.

The best thing Robin could do for herself might be to go off somewhere warm & sunny for a few days, leave her phone switched off & give herself time to think about what she really wants.

Sadly I suspect Robin will be with Murphy at the start of book 9, engaged or not. In TRG Wardle mentioned to Strike that Murphy was a nasty drunk, but it was late in THM that Wardle also mentions he becomes a shagger while drunk as well. I suspect Robin will put up with it all, with Strike standing the rota so they don’t see much of each other, and Robin will eventually discover he’s boffing the pretty redhead. All in, I’m resigning myself to them not actually getting it on until book 10.

”Easily remedied”…

A few days in the sun, while potentially relaxing isn't going to get to the nub of it - the underlying everything will still be there, just with a change in location and her brain will whirl. I don't think she can get to where she needs to be without some really deep work - so I cannot WAIT for Robins sweary plain talking therapist.

'lets examine why why you let these men treat you like a fucking wet wipe Robin.'

Poor Robin! She won't leave Ryan. She's going off to the Ritz, she'll just half heartedly agree to marry him because she thinks she loves him - & JK won't start the next one with the Ritz, she'll drag it out - Robin returning to work on the Monday morning, hiding her ring in her purse, forgetting to put it on when she gets home, Ryan noticing...

Spoilers are fine on this thread! Those of us still reading/listening know there will be spoilers here.

I will be annoyed if the will-they-won’t-they is further dragged out for the whole of book 9 or beyond. Would be much better to have a messy break up soon, Ryan getting nasty, Robin and Cormoran having to address various issues between them etc.

Good writers should be able to write compelling, dramatic stuff about relationships well beyond the sexual tension and the main couple getting together. Haven’t seen that yet in this series, with any of the romantic relationships portrayed.

I mainly disliked the novel Wellbeing, but liked that it went deep on ups, downs and issues with a couple in a very long term relationship.

I've finished and I have some thoughts, don't want to put in any massive spoilers so I'll just say.

I gasped when I got to chapter 3 - similar had been predicted but it was still a surprise!

There were so many characters, I was really struggling to get to grips with the Decima Mullins/ Rupert Fleetwood family tree.

What I was convinced was an unnecessary side mission turned out to be completely pivotal!

On the basis of their complete inability to communicate I think I've decided that Strike and Robin probably shouldn't actually ever get together 😂

She needs both a therapist and a holiday!

I worry that she's so mixed up that she'll end up saying yes to Murphy as a distraction from what just happened with Strike. It's Murphy's birthday, does she have it in her to turn down a proposal and split up with him on his birthday!!!

The Christmas Eve writing was phenomenal. Robin at in Masham and Strike at Lucy’s horrendous party. I loved the gift so much too.

Robin’s brother has clocked Murphy too

I loved Christmas Eve! From Robin finally being honest with her mother, Strike's Christmas present 😍, Fat Matthew, I was even grateful that she got to rub her handsome boyfriend in Sarah Shadlock's smug face.

The Christmas present! <3 the fact that she can't wear it because bloody Ryan!

Also enjoyed Fat Matthew, wasn't needed, enjoyed it anyway.

Yes a straight talking therapist and a holiday! Not mutually exclusive ;-)

Pit-pony, you fuckers!

Robin in the dress she wore to hide the marks on her neck 'you should see what's underneath it'
Strike: try me

indeed - have they never read Wuthering Heights?

I had no problem with any of the accents - and Yes to Rokeby! I sort of picture him now as an Ozzy Osborn type figure.

I did want to give her a shake - you really don't get engaged to an alcoholic with that little sobriety under their belt. She needs to get herself off to Al Anon pronto. She can't fix Ryan and it's unfair to him to keep him dangling.

I finished it in a day - mainly due to hearing that tossers online were posting spoilers deliberately - so now I know the plot I'm going to re read it and work out why I didn't spot it earlier. My guess was quite wrong. I thought the client was going to turn out to be right after everyone telling her she was delusional.

Just finished it! I enjoyed the different mystery strands this time though as usual guess wrong on the main killer. I was sad that Robin got to such a low that she really doubted her trust in Strike (thinking he could have abused Charlotte) but she’s been through a hell of a lot in the last 2 books - definitely needs that therapy (and to ditch Ryan).

My favourite bits were the chat with Rokeby who was a great character - not the villain expected and corrected a lot of Strike’s assumptions about his past. And Pat at the end giving Strike a gentle prod after his big declaration with her usual dead pan delivery “you need a new plan then, don’t you?”

What a cliffhanger to leave us on for another 12-18 months or so though! It’s the opposite of binge watching!

Rokeby was great! He had learned over time what did and didn’t impress Strike and he really came through for him. I loved that whole meeting. I hope he’s in the next book too in some form or fashion.

The chat with Rokeby was a beautiful moment. He didn't get much time to reflect on it in this book, but I hope knowing that Rokeby and Leda were more than just a one time fumble, and that Rokeby liked and knew her better than he thought she did makes him feel better about himself.

I just read it on a long haul flights and didn't take in all the plot details as was so riveted by Strike and Robin. This is the first book ha hasn't been with another woman. I liked how firmly he turned Kim down. I did think it was uncharacteristic that he kept thinking about a romantic venue to declare himself.

I'm so fucking depressed to have finished it.

now what do I do?? Or read??

Kim getting her comeuppance was extremely satisfying.

I Absolutely cannot bear it if she spins it out for another book. They NEED to get together.

ugh. Have been looking forward to this all year. Absolutely bereft to have finished it. Someone recommend me something 😭

Finished! Will need to reread almost immediately (always enjoy rereading them and picking up the really subtle bits I missed plus I read them too quickly to see what happens with Strike and Robin!).

Why can’t the next one be out now??

Only grumble (apart from wanting to knock heads together) is a couple of references to Strike not normally drinking alone. He’s always bloody drinking alone!

This jarred with me too - it even said earlier in the book that he was planning to go up to his flat, on his own, and drink a few beers whilst watching the football on his birthday!!

I'm not finished listening yet, but why has one of Robin's brothers been called John out of nowhere?? Somewhere around the 60s chapters i think (was driving so couldn't stop to double check). Is it an Isla/Ilsa narrator issue, or was it in the print copy too?

Finished! That was so good. I guessed whodunnit for a change, and some other bits.

The stairs were perfect. Please, please, please do not spin this out for a whole other book tho. Please.