Case Histories

Case Histories

Kate Atkinson

Genre: Mystery

Summary (from Goodreads): Case one: A little girl goes missing in the night.

Case two: A beautiful young office worker falls victim to a maniac's apparently random attack.

Case three: A new mother finds herself trapped in a hell of her own making - with a very needy baby and a very demanding husband - until a fit of rage creates a grisly, bloody escape.

Thirty years after the first incident, as private investigator Jackson Brodie begins investigating all three cases, startling connections and discoveries emerge . . .
 
Review: I picked this book up from Savers based on the recommendation of a complete stranger who told me that she had a literary degree and lived in Seattle.  She said she absolutely loved it.  She also recommended a few other books that looked a little heavier and more depressing than books I typically enjoy reading, so I wasn't quite sure what I would think of this book.

While Case Histories is dark and tragic, and many of the characters are depressing, I ended up really enjoying the book.  I guess I'd classify it as a mystery, since a retired police detective ends up investigating three cold cases, but it really is more of a human interest story or a drama.  I was invested in the characters, while feeling alternately amused and appalled by them.  The ending wasn't entirely satisfying, but enough was revealed that I could live with it.

Rating: 4 stars