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Big Sky (Jackson Brodie): A Novel (Jackson Brodie) (Jackson Brodie, 5) Hardcover – June 25, 2019
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Iconoclastic detective Jackson Brodie returns in a triumphant new novel about secrets, sex, and lies.
Jackson Brodie has relocated to a quiet seaside village, in the occasional company of his recalcitrant teenage son and an aging Labrador, both at the discretion of his ex-partner Julia. It's picturesque, but there's something darker lurking behind the scenes.
Jackson's current job, gathering proof of an unfaithful husband for his suspicious wife, is fairly standard-issue, but a chance encounter with a desperate man on a crumbling cliff leads him into a sinister network -- and back across the path of his old friend Reggie. Old secrets and new lies intersect in this breathtaking novel by one of the most dazzling and surprising writers at work today.
"Thank goodness the long Jackson Brodie hiatus is over." --Janet Maslin, New York Times
- Print length400 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherLittle, Brown and Company
- Publication dateJune 25, 2019
- Dimensions6.6 x 1.55 x 9.65 inches
- ISBN-100316523097
- ISBN-13978-0316523097
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Atkinson opens "Big Sky" with one perfect page. It's a bit of a red herring, but it couldn't do a better job of throwing the reader off base and commanding instant interest. It's a short chapter called "Eloping," and if you have a way of looking at it, do. It's a prime example of how Atkinson tells a great story, toys with expectations, deceives by omission, blows smoke and also writes like she's your favorite friend. Thank goodness the long Jackson Brodie hiatus is over."―Janet Maslin, New York Times
"The novel is brimming with the wit and let-justice-triumph tenacity that led the series to print bestsellerdom and a popular BBC-TV series... There isn't a character here - major or minor - who doesn't sashay resplendently off the page. With Atkinson it's Raymond Chandler meets Jane Austen, and amazingly she makes it all work."―The Washington Post's Best Summer Thrillers
"The bestselling British writer returns to Brodie's world for a fifth time in Big Sky, which finds the hero ensconced in a quaint northern English seaside town, making a living as a private investigator. As is often the case in Atkinson's genre-defying fiction, assignments to track lost cats and unfaithful husbands are never quite what they seem."―TIME, 32 Books You Need to Read this Summer
"The plot of Big Sky is something of a ramshackle affair, but it hardly matters. Kate Atkinson is a wayward writer, her books are, in the end, uncategorizable. Her Jackson Brodie novels are both more than crime novels - and less. They are sui generis and they, like this one, are enormously enjoyable."―Katherine A. Powers, Newsday
"The handsome investigator that Kate Atkinson introduced in 2004's Case Histories, played by Jason Isaacs on the BBC series, hasn't appeared in a new book since 2011. If you haven't met him yet, this is a fine place to start... Atkinson is so skilled at getting inside people's heads that when she introduces a new character, it's almost impossible to not feel at least a little sympathy for the person... The gangbuster ending flings a pile of spinning plates in the air. They could be picked up in a swath of new directions, including Jackson or not. But I hope he comes back. He's still the empathetic, flawed, country-music-listening detective we first fell for."―Carolyn Kellogg, The Washington Post
"The great Atkinson has returned to crime fiction and her well-beloved detective, Jackson Brodie...Atkinson masterfully juggles Brodie's consciousness with that of numerous other characters...You flit in and out of their various viewpoints, but Brodie's - warmhearted, weary, haunted by loss - always feels like coming home... I read this book in a delicious late-night rush; I suspect many of you will too."
―Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times
"Atkinson's funny, poignant gem will make you forgive the wait"―People Magazine
"Kate Atkinson is one of those very rare writers who's a master at absolutely every aspect of the novel-character and plot and voice and language and themes and humor and dialogue and on and on. I love everything about BIG SKY, a giant mosaic of people and stories that fit perfectly together in a complex, beautiful pattern, offering tremendous reading pleasure on every single page."―Chris Pavone, bestselling author of The Expats
"As always in a Kate Atkinson book... the pleasures derive from her mastery as a storyteller, her skillful character development and the beauty of her quirky and poetic prose."―Associated Press
"'A coincidence is just an explanation waiting to happen' is one of Jackson's maxims; it could also serve as an ironic epigram for Atkinson's approach to the mystery genre. A small cast of characters collides and careens in a manner that straddles Greek tragedy and screwball comedy. The humor is sly rather than slapstick, and Atkinson is keenly interested in inner lives and motivations...The deaths and disappearances that Jackson investigates change with every book, but the human heart remains the central mystery. The welcome return of an existential detective. "―Kirkus, starred review
"We marvel at Atkinson's rare ability to create in a relatively few but stunningly deft brushstrokes at least a half-dozen characters with the depth and complexity to own their own novel. Another dazzler from a writer whose talents know no bounds."
―Booklist, starred review
"Atkinson is one of the best writers working today, and her crime fiction, including novels featuring the now-retired Scottish inspector Jackson Brodie, rank among the finest. What takes Big Sky up a notch is its urgent, relevant subject matter: pedophilia rings and how they damage survivors for the rest of their lives."―Bethanne Patrick, The Washington Post
"I simply did not realize how much I missed Jackson Brodie. Turning the pages of Big Sky felt like spending time with a good friend you haven't seen for a long time."―Chicago Tribune
"Raymond Chandler once wrote that the best mysteries are those you'd read even if the last chapter were torn out - because the writing and the characters are so compelling. Big Sky is one of those."―Tampa Bay Times
"As in the other Brodie novels, several stories are woven into a seamless plot, with the help of credible-seeming twists of fate. And there is just enough unfinished business to leave readers impatient for his next outing."―The Economist
"Big Sky is full of raucous scenes, laugh-out-loud moments and dark humor."―St. Louis Post Dispatch
"Brodie is back, with panache."―Shelf Awareness
About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Little, Brown and Company; First Edition (June 25, 2019)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 400 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0316523097
- ISBN-13 : 978-0316523097
- Item Weight : 1.43 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.6 x 1.55 x 9.65 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #457,515 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,415 in Private Investigator Mysteries (Books)
- #4,417 in Historical Thrillers (Books)
- #25,900 in Suspense Thrillers
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Kate Atkinson is an international bestselling novelist, as well as playwright and short story writer. She is the author of Life After Life; Transcription; Behind the Scenes at the Museum, a Whitbread Book of the Year winner; the story collection Not the End of the World; and five novels in the Jackson Brodie crime series, which was adapted into the BBC TV show Case Histories.
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I had a very hard time putting this one down! I practically read it in one sitting. It's fast-paced and I love Atkinson's characters - both the returning series characters and the newly introduced ones. The plot isn't as twisty or as shocking here, (and of course there are still a few things left hanging) but I thoroughly enjoyed it! I most sincerely hope, too, that the wait isn't as long for a sixth addition to the series!
I had a very hard time putting this one down! I practically read it in one sitting. It's fast-paced and I love Atkinson's characters - both the returning series characters and the newly introduced ones. The plot isn't as twisty or as shocking here, (and of course there are still a few things left hanging) but I thoroughly enjoyed it! I most sincerely hope, too, that the wait isn't as long for a sixth addition to the series!
Even though the subject matter of the book is horrifying, Atkinson moves past that hurdle by injecting dashes of humor and suspense in the text which is brimming with witty remarks, advanced vocabulary, and exemplary descriptions of the main characters, in short the trademark characteristics of the English author's prose. Atkinson augments the multiple perspective narrative as the story unravels through the eyes of several characters who are all equally important to the plot. There were times, especially in the beginning of the novel, that I felt confused by the sheer number of players in this story and I felt that I had to keep notes in order to keep up with the narrative. Nevertheless, the author's experience shines as the plot moves forward and each character is strategically placed in their respective roles, all putting their little stone in the evolution and climax of the story. Thus, Jackson's point of view occupies as much space as Harry's, Crystal's, Vince's and so on.
The final result is a multifaceted novel that encapsulates several distinct narrative voices and harmonically attune them, creating a sparkling assemblage very much reminiscent of the work by certain Scandinavian crime writers who too often choose to employ the multiple POV in their books. The story picks up pace after the first third of the novel and until then the reader struggles to discern which is the main storyline as there seems to be a lack of centralized narrative feeling like that the tale lacks focus. However, it is right in that point where everything becomes clearer and events that change the course of the story towards a more mysterious and suspenseful road are introduced. There is a murder, a woman who is stalked by a silver car, a group of friends who earn money through the exploitation of naïve young women, and in the middle of it Jackson Brodie, an ex-policeman and current private investigator who becomes entangled in the cases through various means.
The story begins with Jackson being on an outing with his son and we get a first glimpse of the many malfunctions in their relationship. Nathan's mother, Julia, is working as an actress in a popular crime television show and her voice is repeatedly summoned in Jackson's mind as Julia's acerbic observations and critique on his way of life has been deeply embedded in his soul. In the professional front, Jackson leads a mundane existence as the most fascinating cases that he investigates have to do with cheating husbands and suspicious wives who assign the protagonist with the task of documenting the adultery. Things will begin to change after a chance encounter with a man who is about to jump from a cliff to his own death. Jackson will convince the man, whose name is Vince and his role in the story is critical, to change his mind and after that, Jackson will delve into the murky waters of sex trafficking conducted by some of the most prominent members of his community.
As I mentioned above, Brodie is just one cog in the vast machine of the novel's plot. He doesn't investigate in the classic sense of the word, Big Sky bears no resemblance to the typical police procedural where a detective along with his team meticulously collect evidence and use deductive reasoning in order to solve a crime. Jackson just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and this prove to be enough for him to become interested in the cases(s) and the people that he meets. Atkinson's emphasis is put on the people, much more than the plot, and she is interested in portraying her characters in a deeply humane manner that makes them feel all too real and identifiable to the reader. The motives, the impact of the past mistakes, the complex familial relationships that feature prominently in this novel, and the cost of loss are all human orientated aspects and the author uses her unique insight into other people's thinking to draw accurate portraits of each character. For example, Harry and Vince are complete characters ,even if their sub-stories initially seem far away from the center of the plot, because the author devotes many pages to the vivid description of their reality through their own personal perspective.
It is the singular characterization that mainly sets Big Sky apart from other crime novels and renders it a novel not to miss even if you are not big on crime fiction in general. I believe that fans of high-quality literary fiction will much appreciate Atkinson's idiosyncratic way of writing and will find her storytelling to be equally compelling to the biggest names in their favorite genre. By the above, I don't mean that crime fiction aficionados will reject the book, I just want to stress once again the fact that its merits revolve around aspects other than the plot's intricacy or story twists. I have to admit that I've only read one book by Kate Atkinson, the delightful Transcription, a spy thriller set in the decades of 1940s and 1950s. I massively enjoyed this title and from then on I swore always to be on the lookout for new releases by the author. Since I'm not familiar with the previous volumes in the series, I'm not in a position to inform you if it would be better to read the books in order. Big Sky features a self-contained story, but perhaps knowing things about the characters' background would enrichen the experience. Perhaps I will go back and read one of the early novels in the series as I got totally hooked by Jackson Brodie's adventures.
I did enjoy some of the story that involved the main protagonist, Jackson Brodie, who was involved in so many aspects of these myriad characters that it was a little far-fetched. I stayed with the story only because I wanted to know what happened to the women who were trafficked and the perpetrators who were responsible for this heinous crime. It was a depressing subject to read about - the abuse of women.
This was the 5th book in this series. I don’t plan to purchase any more of this series or anything else from this author. It was disappointing to me. I did rate it higher than I should have only because I liked the ending.
Top reviews from other countries
She’s a wonderful writer.
The book was much too long and not focused enough. I think that the author herself often lost her way in her own story: too many characters, places, and actions, too complicated – but also unbelievably simple and coincidental – relations between them.
There is so much, too much, that Atkinson wanted to write about: Terrible crimes against children and women by arrogant male sociopaths. The only good people left being dragqueens, motherless boys, attractive women with a history of abuse and neglect, dumped husbands, petite female POs whom nobody takes seriously. Difficult and different relationsships (marriages) between women and men. Familylife. Political correctness. Drugs and prostitution. Rich and upperclass criminals. Northsea resorts and their downfall. Dogs.
I stayed with the book because I am a loyal person and like Kate Atkinson's writing, her wittyness, her humour, her laconic summaries of events. But I did not really like this book.