When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson

When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson

Reviewed by Brenda Hadenfeldt  

     Good news, indeed: Kate Atkinson is back with another delectably intricate novel filled with suspense and converging storylines.
     As in her previous novels featuring private detective Jackson Brodie – Case Histories and One Good Turn - Atkinson has intertwined what first seem to be many separate stories, giving an added sense of mystery: you know all the characters will connect, but the how and why aren't always obvious; and the twists to get them there can make your head spin. Somehow, Atkinson keeps them all on track, and the pieces fit together even better in this book than in the earlier ones. Whether the intersections are coincidence or fate could be debated, but the Brodie books don't dwell on this. Nor should they.

     When Will There Be Good News? takes place about three years after One Good Turn. Jackson Brodie is now living in London and billing himself, with more than a hint of sarcasm, as a "security consultant." But he is never far from detective work, and his path leads him back to the stalwart Louise Monroe. Louise, a strong and interesting addition in One Good Turn, has been promoted to detective chief inspector and really comes into her own here, equal parts caring, surly, pragmatic, introspective, and cynical. Others in their colliding character collective include a criminal released after serving thirty years in prison; a now-grown woman who witnessed his shocking crimes when she was six; and a sharp, sixteen-year-old girl with a history of bad luck, currently working as a nanny for a doctor who mysteriously goes missing. An extensive and colorful supporting cast fleshes out the book.

     Luck, both good and bad, is one theme throughout – particularly for Jackson, who seems to swing between extremes, and Reggie the nanny, who has been through more by sixteen than most people in a lifetime. Marriage is another thread in the story, which offers a variety of characters' conjugal experiences.
     Perhaps most striking are the theme of memory and the skillful treatment of this theme. Atkinson incorporates memory in many different ways, from memory loss to living with difficult memories. Many of the characters have faced hard challenges, if not outright tragedies. They all respond and remember differently. One keeps an old photo hidden away. Another lives with her husband's memories of a past wife. One remembers pieces of a dirge or a Bible verse, another the writing on a postcard that arrived after the sender died. Their memories and thoughts inspire larger questions: What does it mean to be a victim? How does someone survive a violent crime and live a normal life? What is "normal" in such a case? It is better to remember or to forget?

In this sense especially, When Will There Be Good News? lives up to its title; many characters get a lot of bad news before the good comes. Some have to work hard to pull the good from out of the bad. And they do, with effects ranging from lump-in-the-throat poignancy to wickedly dark humor.
     So this is no stereotypical triumph-over-adversity tale. Rather, it's an entertaining mystery and a smart and thoughtful novel, leaving readers with the feeling of an adventure, a sense of closure, and a few broader issues to ponder.

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