Jackson Brodie
One Good Turn
The second novel featuring Jackson Brodie
It is summer, it is the Edinburgh Festival. People queuing for a lunchtime show witness a road-rage incident – a near-homicidal attack which changes the lives of everyone involved.
Jackson Brodie, ex-army, ex-police, ex-private detective, is also an innocent bystander – until he becomes a murder suspect.
As the body count mounts, each member of the teeming Dickensian cast’s story contains a kernel of the next, like a set of nesting Russian dolls. They are all looking for love or money or redemption or escape: but what each actually discovers is their own true self.
“Love was the hardest thing. Don’t let anyone ever tell you different.”
Reviews
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An absolute joy to read…the pleasure of One Good Turn lies in the ride, in Atkinson’s wry, unvanquished characters, her swooping, savvy, sarcastic prose and authorial joie de vivre.
Guardian
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Atkinson is frequently very funny…while the tone stays light, the plot continues to darken….manages to be that rarest of things – a good literary novel and a cracking holiday read.
Observer
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Atkinson, while having fun with the murder-mystery genre, slyly slips us a muted tragedy.
Sunday Telegraph
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High suspense and rattling pace…charged with adrenalin and a spry humour.
Financial Times
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Thrillingly addictive…In One Good Turn Atkinson proves quite unique in her ability to fuse emotional drama and thriller…Imagine a Richard Curtis film scripted by Raymond Chandler, both a little enlivened by the collaboration…The mix is embodied by Brodie. Like all good detectives, he is a hero for men and women alike.
The Times
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An entertaining read, brimming with wry humour.
Mail on Sunday
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Delivers everything a good book should have. It’s a fantastic detective story and a wonderful piece of writing…has taken the crime genre to another level.
Daily Express
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This is a detective novel packed with more wit, insight and subtlety than an entire shelf-full of literary fiction. The plot is an incidental pleasure in a book crammed with quirky humour and cogent reflections on contemporary life. Highly recommended.
Marie Claire
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While Kate Atkinson could give a masterclass on creating believable and intriguing characters, she also knows more than a thing or two about plotting…another class act.
Mirror
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One story nests within another, like the set of Russian dolls that Martin owns…Kate Atkinson has that priceless Ancient Mariner ability that keeps the reader turning the pages.
Spectator
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Whatever she does is done to the highest of literary standards. She has produced an engrossing, enjoyable, complex novel packed with intriguing characters, vividly imagined scenes and a compelling plot.
Times Literary Supplement
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An extraordinary tapestry that is both hilarious, poignant and unexpected…Atkinson at her peak: full of wit, surprises and humanity. Not to be missed.
Sunday Express