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Creating Cormoran and his "Career of Evil"

The Blue Oyster Cult and a severed leg. These are the only two clues that face Cormoran Strike in a perplexing mystery that will force him to examine his past and potentially lose his future. Strike is back for the third installation of Robert Galbraith's hit series featuring the veteran-turned-detective and his clever, resilient assistant, Robin Ellacott. Career of Evil is the latest installation in the seven part series by British author, Robert Galbraith (what a magical name!). This is perhaps the most twisted book in the series so far; Cormoran and Robin are directly targeted in a mystery that will reveal both Cormoran and Robin's inner demons and force them to reevaluate their lives and each other. Staying true to form , Career continues Galbraith's gritty, edgy style, with crimes that turn the stomach and suspects that come from all walks of life but all have twisted inner demons and leanings towards evil. A severed leg is delivered to Robin...

"The two men appeared out of nowhere, a few yards apart in the narrow, moonlit lane."

Courtesy of goodreads.com Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is the final installment in the series that captivated the world and changed children's literature forever. By this point, the movies had been smash hits, the series had reached rock star levels of fame, with the midnight book premier being more of parties and celebrations than just a book release. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at universal Studios in Orlando, Florida was already being rumored (it was true!) and the last book was heavily guarded, with only two people in the world knowing the exact reasons for everything (JK Rowling herself squealed to British actor who played Severus Snape, Alan Rickman). The world was hooked. The Harry Potter series had become so real for so many people that it was hard to imagine a book that would not only satisfy the masses, but that would wrap up everything that had happen in the last six books. Yet, Rowling delivered. Deathly Hallows ...

“It was nearing midnight and the Prime Minister was sitting along in his office, reading a long memo that was slipping through his brain without leaving the slightest trace of meaning behind.”

Straight from the get-go, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is probably the most entertaining and most mesmerizing book of the series. The other books build up the story, enticing you to keep reading to find out what happens next and to continue the journey to the climax of the story; Half-Blood Prince draws you in by sheer force of storytelling, by the way Rowling weaves the story in a way that you are in the moment, not wondering how this is all going to come together, not wondering what is going to happen next, but just simply interested in the story plot at hand. Everything has lead up to this book; all the unanswered questions, not yet solved problems, and the gray areas of loyalty are all made painfully clear in this book. The book opens with one of the most realistic, most darkly enjoyable scenes of the series. The Muggle Prime Minster is in a near panic from all the inexplicable disasters occurring in Great Britain. While i...

“The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive.”

Courtesy of amazon.com Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix could be called the turning point for the series. It is completely gloomy, dark, and our wizards and witches are growing up. I will tell you right now, it is not a feel good book. It signals the now darkness that the British wizarding world is enveloped in and now the gray areas of loyalty are becoming black and white. The good guys and the bad guys are distinguishing themselves and the underground war is just getting started. We had been left on a depressing cliff the last book, and we now meet our wizard hero being 15, bullied by his cousin, and blossoming into an angst filled teenager. After being attacked by dementors in Muggle London, Harry is whisked away into hiding with the Order of the Phoenix, the revived group of wizards and witches dedicated to fighting Voldemort. There we learn more about Sirius Black and his past, the new members of the Order, and what exactly are the...

“The villagers of Little Hangleton still called it “the Riddle House,” even though it had been many years since the Riddle family had lived there.”

Courtesy of goodreads.com I will admit, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is the third best book in the series. It also gives me the most anxiety. I tear through the other books, not being able to put them down until I triumphantly finish and then throw it aside to militantly start the next book; this one usually takes me about two weeks to read. I obsessively read through the beginning and then trickle down to a couple of chapters a day, and then, at the end, I am putting the book down every few pages to reel from the shock (the shock which never gets old.) By the time I am finished with the book, I am stunned all over again. Why? Goblet of Fire is perhaps the most critical book in the series. It not only signals a shift in the narrative, but also a shift in Rowling's writing style. The narrative is darker, most complex, with more twists and turns. Rowling's writing is more mature, more detailed, and her crafted plot twists and characte...

“Harry Potter was a highly unusual boy in many ways.”

Courtesy of goodreads.com There is a character in every successful series that pulls at your heartstrings in a way that no other character does. That character will have the love, admiration, and adoration of the readers. There are several of these characters in the Harry Potter series, but none quite wooed the audience like Sirius Black. A bad boy with a heart of gold, a dog with unending loyalty, and the fortitude to stand up for what's right no matter the consequences to himself; this is Sirius Black and readers met him for the first time in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The third book in the series, Prisoner is, without a doubt, one of the two best books in the series (the other being Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, which we will be reading about soon!) Prisoner introduces us to new characters, new magic, new places, and begins to crack open the larger story line arc of the series. It gives us a history ...

“Not for the first time, an argument had broken out over breakfast at number four, Privet Drive.”

Courtesy of goodreads.com By the time Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets arrived on the scene in 1998, the formerly unsure readers were ready. The book skyrocketed to the top spot in bestsellers in both the UK and the USA; Rowling became the first author to win the British Book Awards Best Children's Book of the Year two years in a row ( Philosopher's Stone winning her first award); and Harry Potter fever was officially here to stay. Movie rumors were being confirmed and, arguably the sign of a great book, people were challenging the series, due to witchcraft. However, no amount of protests could slow the rampant Harry Potter craze. The beginning of Chamber of Secrets finds Harry miserable and lonely with his Muggle relations. A series of mishaps later (a flying car! a mysterious elf! a tree that fights back!), Harry, along with his friends, are back off to Hogwarts. They endure tougher classes, dive deeper into the hist...