Brian Plunkett reviewed Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson
Death at the Sign of the Rook - 4 Stars
4 stars
Excellent writing, of course, plus biting humor and a fun story (it's especially enjoyable having Jason Isaacs narrate the audiobook). There are so many great touches beyond the art theft/murder mystery plot itself, like the women's voices that Jackson has internalized; when that "Court of Women" cocked its collective eyebrow at one of his questionable notions, causing him to pause and reframe his thinking, I laughed out loud. I was very fond of some of the other characters, too, including Ben (Kindness to others, his greatest failing in his own eyes, forced him to put on a brave face) and also Simon the vicar, who is made fun of (paddling in the intellectual shallows) but also portrayed quite sympathetically - I really enjoyed his memory of trying to go on a pilgrimage and ending up with a group of Texas students who knew the Scriptures better than he …
Excellent writing, of course, plus biting humor and a fun story (it's especially enjoyable having Jason Isaacs narrate the audiobook). There are so many great touches beyond the art theft/murder mystery plot itself, like the women's voices that Jackson has internalized; when that "Court of Women" cocked its collective eyebrow at one of his questionable notions, causing him to pause and reframe his thinking, I laughed out loud. I was very fond of some of the other characters, too, including Ben (Kindness to others, his greatest failing in his own eyes, forced him to put on a brave face) and also Simon the vicar, who is made fun of (paddling in the intellectual shallows) but also portrayed quite sympathetically - I really enjoyed his memory of trying to go on a pilgrimage and ending up with a group of Texas students who knew the Scriptures better than he did (don't miss Jason Isaacs doing the Texas accent!).
