Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson

Death at the Sign of the Rook is the sixth Jackson Brodie novel by Kate Atkinson, which was published in August. Kate Atkinson is a must-read author for me. She wrote possibly my favourite book of all time – Life After Life. I had to wait until my birthday in September to get hold of a copy of Death at the Sign of the Rook.

Jackson Brodie is now a grandfather and in his early 60s. Still working as a private investigator, he has been enlisted by 70-something twins to track down a painting stolen from their mother on her deathbed. There are parallels with a case his former sidekick, Reggie (DC Regina Chase), dealt with of a painting stolen from a stately home.

That stately home, Burton Makepeace House, is falling down and its owners are struggling to pay the bills. Now part of it has been converted into a hotel hosting murder mystery weekends, much to the horror of the elderly Marchioness of Milton. The Marchioness isn’t keen on her children or her husband and she certainly doesn’t want murder mysteries hosted in her home. The only person she really relates to is Sophie, the housekeeper.

Death at the Sign of the Rook has a cast of characters worthy of an Agatha Christie – complete with a vicar and a major.  Each of the characters has some sort of relationship with Burton Makepeace House. And somehow they all end up there on a snowy night, with a murder mystery weekend taking place.

It all gets rather confusing for the guests – because it is getting increasingly difficult to tell what is part of the murder mystery and what is actually real…

Death at the Sign of the Rook is an entertaining and inventive read, with plenty for Jackson Brodie and Reggie to get their teach into. I absolutely devoured it.

Do you need to have read the other Jackson Brodie novels before Death at the Sign of the Rook? I don’t think so. It works very well as a stand-alone read, although I would definitely recommend the other Jackson Brodies (and the rest of Kate Atkinson’s books too).