by Dee Delaney

Created on: April 25, 2010   Last Updated: May 03, 2010

 'Case Histories' begins with three shocking crimes; a small girl disappears while sleeping in a tent in her back garden; a promising young student has her throat brutally slashed by a manic stranger; a stressed young mother is driven to sink an axe into her partner's head because her baby won't stop crying. All apparently unconnected crimes, set over a many decades, the stories start to intertwine when private detective Jackson Brodie starts to investigate. Seedy, sexy and cynical, Brodie is Atkinson's most inspired character yet; far from perfect, he staggers through life, divorce and a custody dispute with his natural empathy and ironic humour fascinating everybody who he meets.

He has three clients whose stories will lead him back to the crimes that were committed so many years ago - to the three case histories. Middle aged sisters, Julia and Amelia Land have hired Brodie to discover the truth behind the disappearance of their little sister Olivia, who disappeared 35 years ago; obese lawyer Theo Wyre wants Brodie to investigate the violent murder of his daughter Laura; and 25 years on, elegant doctor Shirley Morrison is trying to locate her sister, locked away for murdering the father of her child. As Brodie discovers clues and truths about these three cases, he also learns more and more about his clients; becoming their friends as well as their employee, and providing much more than mere detection. As he interviews more and more witnesses, he also builds up fascinating detail about the victims, and thus the reader becomes immersed in their lives and their tragedies. The strength of Brodie is that he is a good guy - he wants to help, he wants to heal, and his involvement goes much deeper than your average private eye.

I have rarely become so simultaneously involved with so many characters in one book. Kate Atkinson has an amazing ability to bring all of them to life through the small details of their existence, but never becomes boring or devotes too many pages to this. I found that I really cared about each and every one of them - and there are a huge number! Alongside the three main stories, the reader has to manage flashbacks, apparently unconnected narratives from complete strangers, random meetings - but at no time did I become confused or worried. I felt sure that all would eventually become clear ... and it did!

Atkinson also writes with real humour, albeit a very black humour - I loved the cynicism of some of the characters, while at the same time sharing their despair and sadness. The plot is incredibly convoluted, but the reader just has to relax and go with the flow as the stories wind in and out of each other. All in all I found this a pretty impressive read - a crime novel which keeps you guessing until the end, amazing characterisation and social observation, all with the kind of twisting, non-linear plotline that I find absolutely irresistible.

Case Histories was published by Black Swan in 2005
ISBN 0552772437, 399 pages.

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