As a fan of all Kate Atkinson’s work I was excited to read a new novel and of course, was not disappointed. It is everything I hope for in a really good read, I was amused, concerned, confused and totally enthralled throughout. The plot is always complex, with lots of individual lives all intertwined and eventually all coming together in a crescendo of storytelling skill! What’s not to like? Some characters are familiar to me but I think that even if they weren’t I would understand their individual back stories and those new characters are not left behind, they all have succinct backstories, enough to become fully rounded players within the story.
Thank you Netgalley, publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book with its comical regular sarcastic comments occurring unexpectedly underlining excellent people observations!
The story starts with a theft and goes on to follow various leads progressing to the final chapter!
The characters develop as the story progresses and there is a light comic feel to the final chapters as the murder mystery event unfolds!
Recommended

I don't remember the other Jackson Brodie books by Kate Atkinson being that funny. "Death at the Sign of the Rook" is humorous, at times farcical and wouldn't be out of place in the world of "The Play that Goes Wrong" or Janice Hallett. I really enjoyed this book although I was slightly confused at times regarding the plot but never fear, when the Murder Mystery evening at Rook Hall kicks in all threads are tied up nicely along with lots of chaotic moments. A nice homage to Agatha Christie in a humorous manner.

Jackson Brodie is an ex policeman turned private investigator and this time he’s in a plot fit for Agatha Christie. A painting has been stolen frown the grand country house Burton Makepeace and the much loved housekeeper has disappeared at the same time. Does this have a link with the theft of another painting “The woman with the weasel” taken from an elderly woman’s house on the day she died. Jackson needs to solve the puzzle but not before the plot involves a convicted murderer on the run, a disillusioned vicar and a chaotic Murder Mystery night held at Burton Makepeace to try and stem the family’s diminishing finances.

All in all a fabulous, well plotted fun read!

Death at the sign of the rook" is a very British, Agatha Christie like mystery, a fun read with the chief protagonist Jackson Brodie, now a private investigatory, hunting down stolen paintings, one a Turner, which all seem to be tied together. A whole cast of characters create a complex, cosy mystery,  sometimes confusing me a little when I picked up the reading again, but all in a very  entertaining escapist read, solid Kate Atkinson writing.

Loved all the previous Jackson Brodie books and generally rate Kate Atkinson as an author. This did seem to drag though. Took ages to really get going then became rather silly. I get authors don't like to produce same old, same old but I don't really think this came off. I think his daughter was much cuter as a child too.
Sorry, good but didn't quite cut the (Colonel) Mustard

Another outing for Jackson Brodie, now in a quiet Yorkshire town, finding life a bit slow, and the only case he has is a missing painting. Nearby if a former stately home where the family have fallen on hard times and have opened a wing as a hotel, where they run murder mystery week-ends. Funnily enough, the one valuable painting they haven't sold goes missing just before one of these week-ends. A local murderer escapes from prison and is heading their way, snow starts to fall, the weather closes in and the stage is set for a country house murder mystery in which there is real life shooting bloodshed and violent action culminating in an almost farcical climax. Its fast and fun, and funny.

2.5 stars.
At the start of this book, you get the inkling that it’s going to be a tongue-in-cheek homage to Agatha Christie. But it seems to be trying to include as many Agatha Christie plot lines as possible, with a generous sprinkling of Cluedo and farce.
It started quite interestingly, setting the scene - old Manor House, a Cleudo-esque cast of characters- there’s surely about to be a body discovered any second now….then it jumps to Jackson Brodie, now a Private Investigator, being asked to track down a missing item for a brother and sister….then jumps to character after character, introduced and in some cases frequently revisited. They are meant to be quirky, possibly amusing; but were so very stereotyped.
And for more than half the book this goes on. And on. Mystery woman. Disillusioned vicar ( oh boy, did we hear a lot about him). A Dowager duchess who had been plucked straight from Downton Abbey. And so on. And for about 70% of the book nothing happens. I was sorely tempted to give up a couple of times.
There’s some decent banter between Brodie and Reggie, a young detective, and some fairly amusing descriptive writing but it just went on and on (bit like myself, I know! I’ll get to the point).
When things finally start to happen it descends completely into farce. Intentionally, but for me it was just too silly. And messy. But at least the pace picked up.

If you are looking for an almost wayward and unconventional work, then you've come to the right place.

It has been said that this is a homage to Agatha Christie, I'm afraid that I can neither confirm nor deny as I haven't read any of her novels. (Yes, I know, shock horror!) I haven't read any of the previous five Jackson Brodie books either (gasp!) however, I have seen the TV series and the author explains enough to answer any questions I might have had.

I enjoyed the eccentricity within these pages, particularly the characters of Lady Milton and Simon Cate, the mute vicar, and I laughed out loud at many parts. At one point, I did feel a wee bit overwhelmed by the amount of characters on the page, however, the majority of these were not fleshed out and, therefore, forgettable.

The storyline was great for a 'shut your brain off and relax' work. The writing was expressive and comedic. Very enjoyable. A beautiful - but rapidly decaying - country house, holding a Murder Mystery to die for. This has it all for the reader - a plethora of eccentrics, greed, money (or lack of), lost artworks, silliness, mysterious unsolved crimes, missing persons and, finally, a whole book of fun. Enjoy!

I chose an ARC of this work, which I voluntarily and honestly read and reviewed. All opinions are my own. My thanks to the author, the publishers, and NetGalley.

I so wanted to enjoy this book having been a big fan of the earlier books.

Firstly, the first half overwhelmed me with characters and nothing was really happening.

Secondly, there were huge tranches of the book that were simply overwritten. I resorted to just reading first line of many paragraphs. It’s not often I read a book and wonder why the editing wasn’t stronger.

Thirdly, too many characters, and complicated with more fictitious characters from the murder mystery game. Did we really need the vicar and his flashbacks to pilgrimage walks of yesteryear?

The bits I enjoyed most (including the detail) were when Brodie was involved. But perhaps Brodie needs to retire from his career and let’s focus on Reggie?

Gifted. Publishing on 24 August, I read a Digital advance copy from Penguin Random House.

I read this voraciously as I discovered increasing numbers of characters I had met in earlier novels. Wonderful. Then I sat down and read it again more slowly.

What an amzing writer Kate Atkinson is. Story, plotting, characterisation, pathos and wonderful black humour.

Never before had I realised how many jokes and lines there are around legs in the English language. Particularly when one of the main characters has lost a leg,

You could read this as a standalone novel. That is a testament to the plotting and the way the story is constructed, but, if you have read 'One Good Turn' you have an extra layer of delight.

I will be recommending this to everyone as one of the must read novels of the year.

I will also buy copies of it when it is published for people I really like.

A fabulous read from the very fabulous Kate Atkinson. Death at the Sign of the Rook ticked every box for me. Wonderful characters, with - at times - an oldy worldy Agatha Christie feel to it. Then the much missed Jackson Brodie thrown int the mix, what's not to love.
I devoured this book.
Highly recommend.

Thanks NetGalley and publishers for the arc and chance to read Death at the sign of the rook by Kate Atkinson! I’m wondering how on earth I have missed this author and her books! I was drawn in and blew through the pages. Jackson Brodie, remind me of a cranky aging man, loved his character. I will be going to find the other books on the series!

Another triumph for Kate Atkinson. I loved Shrines of Gaiety, so the opportunity to read another slice of Jackson Brodie was most welcome. So well written, totally engaging, an absolute joy. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review of the book.

I loved Shrines of Gaiety and jumped at the opportunity to take an early look at another Jackson Brodie story. It’s like stepping into a real life game of Cluedo with a smattering of Whitehall farce. Brodie is a the centre of it all, observing what’s going on and acting as a lynchpin for a disparate range of characters away together on a murder mystery weekend in a country house. It’s a clever construction; a story within a story and it allows Kate Atkinson to showcase her talent for developing characters. They’re a mixed bunch, each with a backstory and they’re propelled along by murderous events. The setting is the vehicle for a complex plot which rattles along, sliding occasionally into the almost absurd, but entertaining nevertheless. As expected, this is Atkinson at her best again; you know the story is going to take you to unexpected places and the dialogue is acutely observed. A great take on the locked room mystery at the snowbound manor house.

Although at times I found it hard to keep track of all of the characters I think that this was probably my own fault for being late to the world of Jackson Brodie! Really enjoyed this!

The appearance of a new Jackson Brodie novel is always an event to celebrate and Death at the Sign of the Rook truly lives up to expectations, culminating in a classic country house murder with all the expected ingredients - a retired Major, a vicar, a dowager and, of course, in Brodie himself, the renowned amateur sleuth.

At the same time, it's none of those things. While the murder itself evolves as a kind of play within a play (literally - Burton Makepeace House, cut off by the blizzard, is hosting a murder mystery weekend and we're treated to scenes in which the band of itinerant performers, the literal murderer(s), and all the guests who have assembled for the event, get hilariously confused) it is also commenting on, and being shaped by, events of the early 21st century.

An aristocratic family on its uppers.

A soldier injured in Afghanistan and facing a bleak future.

A vicar who thinks he's gone down the wrong path.

A middle aged couple anxious to wring every last penny form their mum's estate.

And Brodie himself, surveying it all with a jaundiced eye.

As the husband of a priest, I was particularly taken with the Vicar, Simon, a man whose backstory included the same theological college my son is currently studying at. I was struck by his dilemma, his sense of futility, of a moment of revelation that maybe wasn't - but also by his history which blends an awkward suburban past, a career in the TV industry and that moment of revelation in a York church. I recently read Atkinson's Normal Rules Don't Apply, a book of loosely linked short stories, and recognised Simon as totally belonging in the collection of rackety, slightly loner-y figures encountered there. (I would point out, though, that true vicarly mastery isn't the ability to surreptitiously glance at a watch, as Atkinson suggests. That is too obvious. The thing is to place oneself in a room so that one can easily spot the clock face, a much less obvious action. At least, so my wife tells me, and I never doubt the word of the clergy).

The book struck other chords with me too. Like Ben, the ex-Major, I have a great-uncle who died at Monte Cassino. That probably goes to show more the scale of that battle than anything about Atkinson aiming her writing at me, but I found it a telling detail. I loved Ben, the kind of diffident character who suffers fools gracefully and downplays his problems. He's currently living with his sister and her wife, the former a vet who takes in waifs and strays and has "an abundance of Labradors" (how can you have too many?) Ben might be one of the strays himself, perhaps, but when he steps onto the stage as The major in the denouement he's far from a waif, and equally far from the doddering Major of the Golden Age detective mystery that Atkinson's subverting.

This kind of telling characterisation - knowing, subversive, but still affectionate - is a highlight of Atkinson's books. With Brodie at the centre of the story, it might be tempting to focus on him and have everyone else a supporting character but Atkinson gives plenty of time and space to the others, drawing out their stories and creating fully rounded figures who then behave in fanstastically complex ways. Any could easily carry a book of their own, and I rather hope some will. Which isn't to say that Bodie himself is neglected, quite the opposite. Entering the story via those avaricious siblings who report that their mum's priceless Renaissance painting ("Woman With Weasel") has gone missing, Brodie soon spots that a similar theft has taken place at Burton Makepeace, allowing him to involve a reluctant DC Reggie Chase (hooray!) and to explore the history of an aristocratic family fallen on hard times.

There is simply so much going on in this book, often not directly concerning crimes - while there is a blend of murder and art theft here, in many respects they're almost incidental - but rather, people. And yes, people do sometimes commit crimes, but there are much more interesting things to say about people, and in particular about this bunch of peculiar people who assemble one snowy night to enact a murder...

I'd strongly recommend Death at the Sign of the Rook. I knew I would!

Kate Atkinson has done it again. Such a brilliant story, excellent characters and masterful writing.

Having read a few of Kate Atkinson's books, I was looking forward to reading her latest 'Death at the Sign of the Rook'. However, I'm not sure what to make of it.

It felt more lightweight than some of her others and almost farcical, beginning with stolen art, moving into a murder mystery night and ending with an escaped killer on the loose, there was a lot going on. Maybe that was what the author was aiming for, pushing into the absurd, which makes it more lighthearted. I'm not sure, but either way, it wasn't a favourite.

I have loved many of Kate Atkinson’s books, like Transcription, Shrines of Gaiety and indeed the second Jackson Brodie book. But this one just didn’t do it for me; perhaps it was a step too far into the murder mystery genre for me, but it was just a bit too silly and farcical for me. It did have Atkinson’s usual interesting characters (I wanted to hear much more from the agnostic vicar!) but if you are not an Agatha Christie fan, it may not be for you.