Case Histories - Kate Atkinson

One summer evening, 3 year old Olivia Land sleeps in a tent in her back garden with one of her sisters and the family dog. In the morning, Olivia has disappeared, never to be seen again. Some thirty five years later and Jackson Brodie, an ex-army ex-cop turned private investigator, is handed her favourite blue rabbit toy, found by one of the Land sisters who discovered it in her Father's locked desk draw after his death. The sisters want an answer, they want to know what happened to Olivia that dreadful summer's night. Jackson Brodie may on face value seem like the standard type of man you might meet in these thriller type books. Sure he's been in the ...  Read the complete review

One hot summer night 3 year old Olivia Land mysteriously disappears from a tent in the garden where she was camping with her sister, never to be seen again. Thirty-five years later, her sisters discover her favourite toy, blue rabbit, locked in their father's study desk after his death forces them to have a clean out. Wondering if their father knew more about their sister's disappearance than he was letting on, the sisters hire a private detective, Jackson Brodie, to investigate. Jackson has a lot on his plate - recently divorced, he has a strained relationship with his ex-wife and is trying hard to maintain a close bond with his eight year old daughter, ...  Read the complete review

"Case Histories" by Kate Atkinson was one of the novels on my book group selection list for 2009. I selected it as it sounded interesting but unfortunately not many others did, as it didn't make our reading list. Nonetheless I was intrigued by the story and wanted to read it anyway so was delighted when I came across it in a charity shop recently. Jackson Brodie is ex-army and ex-police, and has set up a private investigation business. He is recently divorced and is still bitter towards his ex-wife and her new partner who are living together along with his eight-year-old daughter Marlee. Jackson has found himself investigating three old ...  Read the complete review

Private Investigator Jackson Brodie finds himself immersed in mysterious three cases which lead to him endangering his own life along the way. The first case he encounters is that of the missing Land girl, who mysteriously went missing one summer night from a tent in the garden whilst her sister slept. A despairing father contacts Jackson to find the killer of his 18 year old daughter. And in amongst this Jackson takes on the case of a woman looking for her neice, the child of her older sister who was convicted of murdering her husband. Jackson struggles with his own past and present whilst working on these cases. Trying to forget ...  Read the complete review

This is the story of Jackson Brodie(ex army, ex police, ex husband) who has now set up a private investigation business. He sets out to solve three cases, that have remained unsolved in Cambridge's history. One is a little girl who went missing from a tent in her garden and was never seeen again. Another is to try and find the person who murdered an 18 year old girl in her father's office and finally one woman wants to find her niece, who was the child of her sister who was convicted of murdering her husband when she was 18. Jackson trails through the murky past of his clients, usually with his daughter in tow....and of course when the mysteries are finally ...  Read the complete review