Would I have read this if it wasn't by J.K. Rowling? The odds are not. Mysteries aren't always my thing. Would I have read it if I hadn't lucked into downloading it practically the minute it was available for ebook download from the library? Also, probably not. Am I glad the odds were favor of me reading this book? I also feel I need to make it clear that I have not yet read the Casual Vacancy. I keep meaning to, but I also keep hearing it called a modern-day Dickens. I just have to be in the right mood for Dickens. So, this is my first post-Harry Potter Rowling excursion. 
 The mystery was intriguing. I don't know that I was really invested in the wrap-up of the mystery. I was invested in Rowling's characters. Cormoran Strike. I like you. You are flawed. You are moody. You get drunk in a pub because you are having a ridiculously bad day, and the next day you are worried that you embarrassed yourself. You can just walk into a University rec center, scowl a bit, and no one questions your use of the showers. Robin was endearing in the second-hand thrills she got from helping work the case, the sense of purpose it offered her beyond her like as a temp. I loved that I was not concerned with whether these characters would hook up or not. In fact, in a scene where Robin goes to search out a heartbroken Cormoran at a nearby pub, a scene in which many novels may feature a hook-up, I found myself worrying this would happen instead of rooting for it. I didn't want the delicate work relationship established between the two broken. Rowling managed to build something stronger here. 
 Additionally, Rowling's prose did not disappoint. It's rich and full. Her voice overcomes a lot of the barriers of that the quickly consumable mystery holds. There's a depth to the language of The Cuckoo's Calling that other mysteries I've read can lack. 
 In terms of the mystery itself, I did find myself calling some of it at the end. However, this was as much about creating the world around the mystery as solving the murder. The fact that there were stakes for Cormoran in the solving of the mystery was a detail that can sometime get overlooked. The characters and suspects introduced because of Lulu's murder were all extremely unique and interesting, and all seemed to offer commentary on many facets of society. There's some staying power in the world and character building that help the book linger past the big reveal. 
 This is listed as the first in a series, and I truly hope that's the case. I would love to see Cormoran again.