I would have sworn blind I'd read all of the Jackson Brodie books but Goodreads tells me different. Anyway, when I saw this ARC on Goodreads I jumped at the chance to read the latest instalment.

Jackson is a PI, his lucrative Russian clientele have fallen away and he is reduced to working for a rather unpleasant set of twins who claim their late mother's home help helped herself to paining which had sentimental value. Whilst Jackson can clearly see there is a place where a painting once hung, he is unconvinced by the frankly wooden explanations given by the pair and feels there must be more to the story. However, as he investigates he discovers that the home help used a burner phone, a fake reference, and a fake name. Could the painting be a lost master? Could it have been stolen during WW2, or was it seized by the Nazis (which of course is also stealing)? Jackson reaches out to an old friend and discovers that there may be some similarities with a theft two years ago of a Turner from Burton Makepeace, home to the Dowager Lady Milton and her family.

The Milton family have been selling off their valuables to keep the house afloat, the new Lord Milton has turned one wing into a hotel, repurposed some buildings as Airbnbs, and sold off others. His latest venture is to sell Murder Mystery weekends with a small acting troupe portraying an Agatha Christie-esque story for the guests to solve. However, with laughable consequences, it turns out that a real vicar, sleuth, thief, murderer, and army major also arrive at the house unexpectedly.

This is the second detective novel I have read in the last few days which has played with the detective genre (by which I mean played 52-card pickup with the foundation stones) and I loved it. I loved seeing Jackson Brodie again. I loved everything about this.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

Always lovely to read a story with Jackson Brodie and he is back on top form in this latest outing, all swallowed regrets and working on with nothing to prove.

Atkinson’s latest instalment is packed with characters old and new and towards the end the sheer number of them keeps your head spinning and your mind guessing as to who is who and what on earth is going on.

Really enjoyable, like popping back home for a comfy visit but with new things to learn too.

This was great fun and I had not read the previous books with this character so I will be searching them out. Would very much recommend! Many thanks

Such a great book and a very welcome return for Jackson Brodie. I read this after what felt like a long run of mediocre over-hyped books that didn’t deliver and it was therefore so refreshing to be able to get my teeth into a properly constructed and beautifully written narrative.

I love Kate Atkinson and I love Jackson Brodie so this was a fabulous read for me! Kate Atkinson spins a comedy murder set in a murder mystery with an over the top setting and larger than life cast of characters. It's a fun romp and I found it a little lighter than her usual offerings.

Recommended, as always! Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

Kate Atkinson is one of my favourite authors and she is back with Jackson Brodie. Combining a cast of new and familiar characters as well as art thefts this is an homage to Agatha Christie.
Well plotted, fun and with some laugh out loud moments I really enjoyed it!

So great to see Jackson Brodie back in action! Kate Atkinson weaves threads together like no other author. The premise of a murder mystery weekend whilst a real life escaped convict is on the run in the area is a perfect scenario. Jackson has grown older and his mindset has become more serious, but that lugubrious attitude has gone nowhere! I really enjoyed this and hope that there may bw another outing for this fabulous character. Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy

I liked this book. It’s a cleverly plotted mystery and has a good, character-driven story. Jackson Brodie is back. He’s stuck into a country house with a cast of suspects a la Agatha Christie in an atmospheric setting. It's a fun read that blends mystery, humour and drama.

Welcome to Rook Hall! Jackson Brodie meets Agatha Christie meets cozy murders....add in comedy dialogue, a fun cast of characters and youv'e got a sure fire winner. I'd forgotten just how much I liked the Jackson Brodie series, thank you to netgalley, author and publisher for reminding me.
5 stars from me.

This was so so so so fun! Colourful characters and and attention grabbing plot! You can always rely on Kate Atkinson to give you exactly what you need, highly recommend!

I had such a fun time reading this book. Kate Atkinson is one of the most entertaining and beautiful writers, this book is full of so many asides and quips that brought a huge smile to my face. I’ve read some of the author’s previous titles though none of the Jackson Brodie series, so will definitely be going back to discover what I’ve been missing! That being said I still had a great time following this plot line; I loved the murder mystery troupe and how they were interwoven with the story, as well as the Ben character, especially when he gets rather too into a role he plays- I’ll let you read and find out! A huge hit.

Jackson Brodie is back!

He is joined by some familiar friends while he investigates a case of art theft. Predictably lots of unpredictable events happens with interesting tangents which all eventually lead to ah moments of realisation.

The premise of his case is that the relatives of a recently deceased woman believe that her carer stole a picture. Although apparently only having sentimental valve the offspring are very keen to recover it so they can fight about who will inherit it.

The book is set mainly in Yorkshire and in places I know. There's are a cast of additional characters adding to the story and enjoyment of the book. They are all very believable and show their human foibles. Kate Atkinson has got a gift for observing people and behaviours and making them come to life on the page.

Much as I enjoyed reading the book I prefer to listen to the Jackson Brodie books as the usual narrator is a perfect fit and I could imagine him saying some of the lines.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House UK, Transworld for the DRC.

I love Jackson Brody so was keen to read his latest adventures!
I wasn’t as keen on Big Sky but loved this - the humour, the depth of backstory and brilliant characters- Brody’s back!

Excited for a new Jackson Brodie after all these years, I enjoyed this light read but I felt it was missing the series' normal edge.
As Jackson is now in his sixties, retired but doing some gentle investigating of art theft on the side, there is little action and, although Atkinson says there is nothing "cosy" about crime, this is a cosy crime novel..
Atkinson writes like a female Alan Bennett, with lots of sharp and witty asides throughout the book, which is what makes it for me.
Fiction blurs with fiction in this novel, as Nancy Styles crime novels are left at the grand houses and plots are borrowed from them for a farcical Murder Mystery Evening with characters reminiscent of The Play That Goes Wrong.
An enjoyable, whimsical novel that encorporates all the tropes from classic crime, presented in Atkinson's unique voice.

Atkinson's renowned dectective Jackson Brodie is pulled away from Edinburgh to Yorkshire in what at first feels like a classic Agatha Christie country house mystery, but the author brings her expected warmth, plot twists and emotional depths to superb this new installment in the Jackson Brodie cannon.

You can visualise Jason Isaacs prowling the halls and corridors as the story builds around the cast of traditional characters that the genre demands, but this isn't a predictable who done it? Atkinson twists expectations to make you smile and race to solve the mystery alongside Brodie.

Highly recommended.

Jackson Brodie meets Cosy Crime! The characters were reminiscent of those straight from an Agatha Christie novel.
When Brodie is hired to investigate an art theft he is immediately suspicious but can't quite put his finger on why so he reaches out to Reggie Chase who, despite her better judgement, finds herself drawn in. As they begin their individual investigations, they find themselves snowed in at the manor house where the first in a series of crimes was committed.
As you would expect from Kate Atkinson, the characterisation is superb (though perhaps a few less characters would have helped!). Full of humour - all in all, a great read.

It has been a while since I have read a Jackson Brodie book, so I was looking forward to this novel. However, it left me in two minds. There are lots of humorous moments, but I did find that the book dragged on, especially at the start, so it took me a while to get into it. There were a lot of characters some of whom felt surplus to requirements, until the final section of the book. The ending was funny, felt very much like a farce.

It was very much a cozy mystery book, however, I have found that after reading the Thursday Murder Club series, which smashed this genre, this one just missed the mark for me.

Despite this, it is a good book and worth a read if you like this trope.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, for the opportunity to read this book.

Another blockbuster by Kate Atkinson.
I never know what quite to call her style. As Jackson Brodie is involved it fits easily into a murder mystery category.
But her work is never a who-dunnit as such, nor is it a psychological thriller per se.
Her novels are however always excellent stories that always contain something unusual and usually of course the odd murder/death here and there.
I love her style of writing, it makes for easy reading, and I never try and guess the ending any more, because in the past I have always been way off the mark.
My thanks to the author for the hours of enjoyment that the book has brought me, I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Great to have Jackson Brodie back again. This time he's investigating an art theft.
A good read as usual from Kate Atkinson, although I wasn't too keen on the murder mystery weekend aspect, hence four stars rather than five.

This is a bit of a weird book to me, I usually lap up Kate Atkinson books and Jackson Brodie titles. I am unsure if it was meant to be a homage, to Agatha Christie and felt in parts like it was a satire. It was great to see the return of Brodie, now ‘getting on’. However, for me the pacing off the book was rather stagnant and something was off - I struggled through this book. Was it enjoyable? Yes. Do I think it is Atkinson’s best novel? No.

I would recommend it to fans of Brodie novels, and Atkinsons fan, and a nice holiday mystery read.