Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith

 Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith is an outstanding murder mystery story with so many subplots. This novel follows Comoran Strike and Robin Ellacott on the mystery of the disappearance of Margot Bamborough. A historic case of a missing woman who has never been found, with lots of conspiracy theories and lots of thinking out of the box. Margot's Daughter hired Strike to find out what happened to her mother and little did they know what they were letting themselves into. Unreliable witnesses, dangerous gang members and discombobulating police notes. On top of the main story, we look at the workings of Strike's investigative agency, Robin's divorce and the feelings of love between Strike and Robin.

This is probably the best book I have read in a very long time and I have loved every moment of reading it. This really is a gripping book which I could not put down and I spent many late nights reading this excellent piece of literature, it really did keep me awake. I really felt like I was pulled into the story with the time of my reading flying by. It felt like the long chapters were not taking me that long to read at all, they were just so interesting. The investigation of Margot was constantly developing with so many twists, turns and cliffhangers leaving me fearing the consequences for Strike and Robin. I also loved how the author intertwined a romance story between Strike and Robin in this novel. The novel touched on many aspects of Psychology, Criminology, investigations and even Sex which made it a brilliantly, varied and hilarious book. 

It would be nice if the case of Margot Bamborough took some different turns in terms of who was responsible although the author carefully crafted the novel so it was one of the last people you would have expected. I think I would also have liked to see a bit more risk-taking with a second attempt to interview Mucky Ricci, the first interview really did have me on the edge of my seat in both fear and excitement. It would have also been nice if the relationship between Strike and Robin developed a bit more in this book to the point where they either actually shared their feelings for each other and/or entered into a relationship. Maybe we can look forward to these progressions in future novels in the series. I was upset to have come to the end of this book as I was enjoying it so much.

Altogether, I rate this book Outstanding Level 5 as it was extremely entertaining, enjoyable and gripping and I very much plan to and look forward to reading the rest of the books in the Strike Series. I was able to identify with the characters, fear for the characters and laugh with the characters. Don't let the size of this book put you off (with 1073 pages) as it can seem like a lot to read but you really will want it to keep going on. I really would recommend this book to any young adult, although I would suggest 16+ to allow readers to appreciate the strong language and sexual scenes.