Review | Big Sky - Kate Atkinson

Blurb

Jackson Brodie has relocated to a quiet seaside village in North Yorkshire, in the occasional company of his recalcitrant teenage son Nathan and ageing Labrador Dido, both at the discretion of his former partner Julia. It’s a picturesque setting, but there’s something darker lurking behind the scenes.

Jackson’s current job, gathering proof of an unfaithful husband for his suspicious wife, seems straightforward, but a chance encounter with a desperate man on a crumbling cliff leads him into a sinister network—and back into the path of someone from his past. Old secrets and new lies intersect in this breathtaking new literary crime novel, both sharply funny and achingly sad, by one of the most dazzling and surprising writers at work today.

Review

This novel is a slow burner and definitely takes its time to get going but it is worth sticking with the scene-setting and character building. The characterization is brilliant, I particularly enjoyed Crystal's character first portrayed as an airhead trophy wife Atkinson shows us she has real depth, compassion, and strength as she is tested throughout the story. 

The very dark subject matter is entwined & balanced with humour, the witty, sarcastic kind. It beautifully observes humanity and reveals the more annoying personality traits in a funny relatable way. 

The various plotlines are all played out perfectly (maybe a little too perfect but hey it is fiction after all). It was great to finally catch up with Brodie and few other old faces again, fear not if you haven't read the rest of the series you don't need to Big Sky can be read as a standalone - though it's not his best book and you would be missing out! 

Thanks to Tandem Collective & Penguin Books UK for a copy in exchange for an open & honest review.⠀

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