Private detectives aren’t usually hired to find a dead man. But that’s just what Cormoran Strike and his partner Robin Ellacott are being asked to do, in Robert Galbraith’s new novel featuring the UK’s most famous private investigator duo.
Anyone who isn’t already aware that author Robert Galbraith is the pseudonym of best-selling juggernaut J.K. Rowling can likely be counted on one hand. Beginning with “The Cuckoo’s Calling” in 2013, the series initially garnered little fanfare until Rowling’s authorship was leaked a few months later. Since then, the series has grown to include multiple bestselling novels and a successful BBC/HBO television series.
“The Hallmarked Man” is now the eighth book Rowling has released under the Galbraith moniker. This book begins soon after the events of the last novel, “The Running Grave” (2023), in which the duo tried to rescue a young man from a dangerous cult.
Freemason Conspiracy?
Restaurant owner Decima Mullins has an accent that suggests she’s one of the beautiful elite, but she turns out to be anything but. Her once-elegant house is falling apart, much like Mullins herself, who is disheveled, near-destitute, and paranoid about people learning where she lives now.
She wants to hire Strike to identify a man whose naked, mutilated body was found in a silver dealer’s vault five months previously. The police have already done that, Strike says. They said the victim was a well-known criminal, likely part of a robbery gone sour.
Regardless, Mullins is adamant that the police have it wrong, the ID wasn’t definitive, and she knows who it really is: her missing boyfriend, Rupert Fleetwood. Strike wonders if the idea that Fleetwood is dead is more acceptable to Mullins than that he abandoned her.
For his part, Strike would prefer to have nothing to do with the case. Mullins might be off her rocker: Fleetwood’s family claims he’s actually abroad. Plus, Mullins’s and Fleetwood’s families are connected to Strike’s recently deceased ex-girlfriend, Charlotte, which is a can of worms in itself.
Ellacott missed the meeting with Mullins due to a sudden need for emergency surgery, a fact that she decides to keep from Strike. Things are complicated with her and Strike right now. He let her know that Charlotte’s suicide note, one that accused Strike of being in love with Ellacott, happens to be true. She’s currently dating a handsome policeman named Ryan Murphy, and the relationship has its own list of problems.
Comparing case notes, Strike and Ellacott find that many of Mullins’s claims check out, and the murder has some peculiar details that don’t add up. Social media is awash with rumors that the Freemasons were involved. Many of their artifacts were stolen during the robbery. What’s more, the man’s death resembled another legendary murder in Freemason lore. Coincidence? Or conspiracy?
Winning Streak
Most series that have gone on for eight books shouldn’t be this good, and “The Hallmarked Man” is excellent.
The Strike character is the cornerstone of Rowling’s success—a dedicated and brilliant investigator who’s also a damaged man, both physically and mentally. He’s full of bad habits like poor eating choices and an addiction to cigarettes, and he gets mired in frequent bouts of depression and self-loathing. Strike’s amputated leg, which he lost while serving with the UK military, is a constant hindrance and source of humiliation and pain.
Ellacott, too, is an honorable character who is vulnerable and, in many ways, stronger than Strike. Despite her troubled past, which includes abusive relationships and terrible violence, she does not bow to the temptation of victimhood, but continues fighting despite it.
Fully aware of their respective traumatic histories, they recognize a kindred spirit in each other. They also share a passion for their work and helping those who have been wronged. It helps cement a deep bond and shared trust.
Rowling has also created a rich and complex social community around her heroes. Friends, lovers, family, and acquaintances, both professional and personal, create a reservoir of developing stories that emerge in small moments, extending beyond the mysteries themselves. Most prominent among these side stories is, of course, the slow-burning romance between Ellacott and Strike, which develops gradually—sometimes maddeningly slow—throughout the books.
Each mystery, too, is intricately planned, with characters so varied and realistic that they practically jump off the page. The villains, especially when revealed, are fantastic studies in evil and malevolence.
Rowling is famous for diligently planning complex plot lines, character backgrounds, and the roadmaps of where she would like them to go in the future. She may be the hardest-working author alive today, which makes her wildly successful career even more inspiring to writers and readers alike.
Unlike “The Running Grave,” which dove right into the pressure cooker of a sinister cult, “The Hallmarked Man” is a return to the classic mystery format of investigating a murder. Rowling is on solid ground here, and the results do not disappoint.
As with the entire series, “The Hallmarked Man” is a top-tier mystery.
‘The Hallmarked Man’
By Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling)
Mulholland Books: Sept. 2, 2025
Hardcover, 912 pages
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