Book Review of When Will There Be Good News?

Kate Atkinson Combines Literary Fiction and Mystery in New Novel

Feb 9, 2009

When Will There Be Good News? involves readers in the events of four people whose lives intersect in surprising ways.

Kate Atkinson has a knack for blurring the genres of fiction, and this book is no exception. It has enough suspense to keep the story moving while using humor to lighten up otherwise tragic events.

Character development is Atkinson’s strongest element in her novels. She presents each of the four people with complexity that allows readers to see what motivates their actions. It is the characters that drive the story, and the first chapter is a real attention grabber.

Joanna Hunter

As the novel opens, Hunter is six years old and witnesses a brutal crime perpetrated on her family. She is the only survivor. Thirty years later, as the man convicted of the crime is being released from prison, Doctor Joanna Hunter and her infant son go missing from their home in Edinburgh Scotland.

Reggie Chase

Chase, Hunter’s nanny, is unaware of her employer’s tragic past. Her own story is equally sad. Recently left motherless, 16-year-old Chase is trying to make her life better, but her drug-dealing two-faced brother doesn’t help matters. She doggedly attempts to solve the disappearance of Hunter although Mr. Hunter insists she and the baby are visiting an ailing aunt in England. Chase suspects Mr. Hunter is hiding something.

Jackson Brodie

Atkinson brings back the character of Jackson Brodie in this third consecutive novel; the first two being Case Histories and One Good Turn. Semi-retired, the private detective is on a personal case in Scotland when his rental car’s global positioning system fails. Once he finds his way to the train heading back to London, more trouble strikes that keeps him from reaching home.

Louise Munroe

Detective Chief Inspector Louise Munroe, based in Edinburgh, is investigating the shady business dealings of Dr. Hunter’s husband. She believes Dr. Hunter has left on her own accord but is urged by Chase to look further. In the midst of all of this, she doesn’t expect to cross paths with Brodie again. Munroe and Brodie met in the last Atkinson novel.

Woman’s Best Friend

Another important character in the story is Dr. Hunter’s dog Sadie. Chase takes over the care of Sadie while the doctor is away, and the loyal pet discovers an important clue. She sniffs out the baby’s favorite square of blanket from the bushes in front of Hunter’s home. This evidence convinces Chase that Dr. Hunter did not leave voluntarily.

Coincidence or Fate?

The compelling narrative makes it easier for readers to suspend believe when threads of the story begin to connect. These characters seem to be brought together by fate, and each one is there to help the others.

The circumstances under which Brodie and Chase meet are harrowing indeed. This leads to a touching relationship between the two. Equally satisfying is the history that exists between Brodie and Dr. Hunter.

Good News?

The title provokes a load of bad things happening to good people. That is true. But at the same time, as all the loose ends are tied up, some good does happen.

The characters and their situations make her novels so entertaining. Let’s hope Atkinson will bring back some of them in her next novel.

The copyright of the article Book Review of When Will There Be Good News? in British/UK Fiction is owned by Noreen Mulcahy. Permission to republish Book Review of When Will There Be Good News? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.