Started Early, Took My Dog

Starred review from January 17, 2011
British author Atkinson's magnificently plotted fourth novel featuring Jackson Brodie (after When Will There Be Good News?) takes the "semi-retired" PI back to his Yorkshire hometown to trace the biological parents of Hope McMasters, a woman adopted by a couple in the 1970s at age two. Jackson is faced with more questions than answers when Hope's parents aren't in any database nor is her adoption on record. In the author's signature multilayered style, she shifts between past and present, interweaving the stories of Tracy Waterhouse, a recently retired detective superintendent now in charge of security at a Leeds mall, and aging actress Tilly Squires. On the same day that Jackson and Tilly are in the mall, Tracy makes a snap decision that will have lasting consequences for everyone. Atkinson injects wit even in the bleakest moments—such as Jackson's newfound appreciation for poetry, evoked in the Emily Dickinson–inspired title—yet never loses her razor-sharp edge.

May 30, 2011
When Tracy Waterhouse, a recently retired police detective, sees a repeat criminal offender, Kelly Cross, aggressively dragging a small child through town, she impulsively decides to buy Kelly's child. Meanwhile, Jackson Brodie, a private investigator, also finds himself forcibly taking custody of a vulnerable beingâthis time it's an abused dog. Both Waterhouse and Brodie find themselves pulled together into a complicated mix of mysteries as they discover more about their new companions. Graeme Malcolm enriches the narrative with his deep, raspy, English-accented voice. When delivering the story from female points of view, Malcolm lightens his growl and shifts tone well enough to be convincing. The one drawback is that sometimes his delivery around quick exchanges between characters or even within the narrative text can be hard to follow. A Little, Brown/Reagan Arthur hardcover.