It’s not yet clear when the book will be published but it’s expected to be on late 2023 (or early 2024). We can’t wait to see what J.K. Rowling has in store for us in this new installment of the Cormoran Strike series. Whatever the true meaning behind the title and clue may be, one thing is certain – fans of the Cormoran Strike series are eagerly anticipating the release of “ The Running Grave” and the new case that it will bring for the private detective to solve. It’s been brilliant to see the enormous success of the Robert Galbraith books over the past ten years and an honour to publish them. With over 11 million copies sold in the English language to date, the story of Strike and Robin has captured readers’ imaginations and, like so many others, I can’t wait to see what happens to them over the course of the final four books in the series.’ David Shelley, Group Chief Executive, Hachette UK Cormoran Strike, a private detective, was visiting his family in Cornwall when he was approached by a woman asking for help finding her mother who disappeared in 1974. Strike and his partner Robin Ellacott took on the case, even though solving a cold case forty years old seemed unlikely. As they investigated Margot’s disappearance, they uncovered a complex case with tarot cards, a serial killer, and unreliable witnesses. In the end, they realized that even cases decades old could be life threatening.

Strike Series Ends at 10: Tells Graham Norton Rowling Says Strike Series Ends at 10: Tells Graham Norton

It is a shame that Rowling is not more vigorously edited, with the result that books with so much to enjoy in them end up outstaying their welcome. It is difficult to tire of Strike and Robin, but tire I did by the end of the book, weighed down by the off-putting sense that plenty of other crime writers offer as much depth and incident as Rowling, in novels half the length. Rowling has been insisting the series is not seven but ten books long but not denying that it is a ring series and in parallel with the Hogwarts Saga. [Yes, I know no one has asked her about that, but still….] This works with Kathleen’s idea and Louise’s 5-6 Flip idea so long as we understand that stages 5, 6, and 7 in the alchemical sequence and echoing the Potter stages will each arrive as two parts, Strikes 6A, 6B, 7A, and 7B, which will add up to ten books but still be seven stages. I imagine 7B will be the original book 7 as plotted with Heart as 5 and Blood as 6, and that 6A, 6B, and 7A are the cases Rowling dreamed up during the writing of the first books that she wanted to include. She may be referencing these ‘extra’ cases as early as her interview with Val McDermid or even her first denials when she was outed as Galbraith that it was a seven book series. You may not be the only one to be considering this, Kathleen, but you are certainly the first to say it out loud, even if there will have to be one more book in this set to make ten, say a ‘7C.’ I love this idea and have three reasons for taking it seriously, even embracing it, which I share below the jump, sans spoilers! That being said the sonnet structure fails, or perhaps evolves beyond, Petrarchan structure as it does not follow the octave/sestet structure. Though, thinking generously one could argue that the prologue for IBH is the final line of TB rather than the beginning line of IBH. The series as structured thus far, as prevailing opinion here holds though Prof Freeman’s pentagram hypothesis demands serious consideration, is a seven book ring or asterisk. The public was told at one point that it was a seven book series.

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We will also have 3 more books to finish the story of Leda & Rokeby (I have no idea what she’ll do about Switch and all the siblings if she does finish with Strike and Robin after book 10). Cormoran Strike was approached by Billy, a young man with a troubled past. He claimed to have seen a crime as a child, and Strike and his partner Robin Ellacott decided to investigate. As they searched through bustling London and a sinister manor house, Strike’s newfound fame caused complications in his professional and personal life with Robin. In the end, the case’s resolution provided them with a greater understanding of the truth. I can’t be the only one considering whether IBH might be half of “book six” from an original plan for seven books. I propose JKR has decided to divide the sixth and seventh parts of Strike and Robin’s story into two books each, which will result in a total of 10 books. It’s worth noting that there is also a poem by Dylan Thomas titled “When Like a Running Grave” which could also be used as a reference for the title. Will Strike finally quit smoking and lose weight? It's hard to do either one, never mind both at the same time.

New Robert Galbraith book, The Running Grave - J.K. Rowling

It’s not as if Rowling-Galbraith does not have a model for this kind of stretching. Warner Brothers in a bit of shameless profit-taking for their biggest film franchise made two movies out of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, which resulted in two films making a kazillion dollars instead of just one. That was such a success that the Hunger Games and Twilight series finales were also made into two movies (which made sense for Twilight because that series ender was actually written as two books, for which story see my Spotlight).Troubled Blood’, the fifth novel in the Cormoran Strike series, was published by Sphere Books on September 15, 2020. It was met with critical acclaim, and nominated for two Crime Writer’s Association Awards. J.K. Rowling is an esteemed British author whose stories have delighted readers around the globe. She has a unique talent for creating characters that are relatable and engaging, as well as crafting stories that entertain and impart meaningful messages. Her writing has become a fixture in our culture, with the Harry Potter series selling over 600 million copies and being translated into 84 languages. The series has also spawned a huge media franchise with books, films and video games. Her first novel for adults, The Casual Vacancy, was released in 2012. The UHC, which presents as a benign organisation with worthy aims, has a charismatic leader known as Papa J, some high-profile followers, a lot of prime real estate, and expensive lawyers to rebut any claims of indoctrination or ill treatment. Added to which, it’s very difficult to find any former members who will discuss their time at the farm. Those who can be persuaded talk of supernatural happenings, in particular the apparition of the “Drowned Prophet”, believed to be a divine reincarnation of Papa J’s seven-year-old daughter Daiyu, who supposedly disappeared during a dip in the North Sea in 1995. This is a tale of how the human desire for approval, validation and a sense of purpose can lead us astray

Book 7 resolves, or at least discusses Questions I hope Book 7 resolves, or at least discusses

I would use poetry and its structure to describe this duology within the series. I think TB was the lyric verse of the Strike series. It dived deeply into the emotional core of the characters, particularly Robin. In response, IBH was the narrative or descriptive verse of the sonnet. It reminded me of Petrarchan construction (narrative than lyric) in reverse. There is a clear volta between books 6 and 7, as the writing tone changes between the books. Which would make sense with what John said about IBH being planned first. Both books use poetry as their major framing device for all of the different chapters and parts. Finally, TB is 7 parts long, and IBH is 7 parts long, for a total of 14 unique sections. October 20, 2015 saw the release of ‘Career of Evil’, the third novel in the Cormoran Strike series. Published by Mulholland Books, it was met with great enthusiasm from readers and was even nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award for Mystery/Thriller.There are few pleasures richer than knowing a new Robert Galbraith thriller is on the way! Seven novels into the Cormoran Strike series, J.K. Rowling keeps expanding her already peerless skills in crafting drama, emotion, urgency, and capturing the infinite complexities of the human spirit—in dark and in light.’ Michael Pietsch, Chief Executive Officer, Hachette Book Group. Robin Ellacott, a private detective, was approached by Edie Ledwell, who wanted help to discover the identity of an online figure called Anomie. Robin and her business partner Cormoran Strike decided to investigate, but soon Edie was found murdered in Highgate Cemetery. Strike and Robin then devoted themselves to uncovering the truth behind Anomie, navigating a complex web of online aliases and business interests. Ultimately, the case put their own lives in danger. I go through all that to make the point that, if Rowling only wrote seven Strike novels, then the teevee program would only have seven seasons. Why give a premature death sentence to a goose laying golden eggs? When stretched to ten or more books, the series and teevee show could have a significantly longer and more profitable run. I think all of Rowling’s comments about the length of the Strike series have to be filed away until there is any solid evidence they contain any truth of sufficient substance to comment on. Lonely and desperate, Strike allows himself to be comforted by a randy, loopy lawyer improbably called Bijou, with unfortunate ­consequences. Sadly, he doesn’t know that Robin is detecting in Murphy an unfortunate level of similarity to Matthew, her jealous, controlling ex-husband (this is the reddest of red flags – few writers have ever shown such naked ­loathing for one of their creations as Rowling has for Matthew).