Lethal White Chapters 26-35:

The hospital, the Yule Ball analog and Robin's first corpse

Chapter 26, where Strike keeps vigil by Jack's hospital bed, is a fan favorite. From Strike's "It's Uncle Cormoran, by the way" to his relief and joy at seeing Robin to the tears he sheds holding her hand to the accidental lip-kiss in the parking lot, there is a lot to love here.

However, what jumped out at me this time was that Strike, who had groused about his co-workers' family obligations back in Chapter 22, is now ignoring "a dozen missed calls from Robin" and texting Lucy instead, even though he surely knows that Robin would not call repeatedly unless it was something urgent. This time, he is the one who has to put aside his work responsibilities and attend to family matters. And Robin ditches her own "family" event (the Flobberworm's stupid cricket match!) to attend with him.

They cling to their dead a long time at Rosmersholm.

If you've ever listened to my guest appearance on The Strike and Ellacott files, you'll know this is the epigraph I selected as my favorite. Not only does it convey a central theme from Rosmersholm, it relates to Chapter 27 in multiple ways. The row Robin and Matthew have following her decision to skip his cricket match to support Strike at the hospital shows them clinging to a dead marriage. The Sun's conclusion that "Venetia" is the scandal involving Jasper Chiswell is them clinging to old news; assuming the minister is repeating his infidelity of years ago. But the true "Rosmersholm" counterpart is Chiswell House, and, when Izzy shows up weeping at the tea house, it leads into a bunch of Chiswell dirt beign spilled, from Izzy's resentment of her father's ingratitude and pretty much everything about her stepmother, to Raff's miserable childhood to the creepy Jack O'Kent and Chiswell's supposed insistence that O'Kent was haunting him. (This could be a lie Raff made up, to help the suicide seem more plausible). After her chat with Raff, Robin makes her last clandestine trip to Winn's office to collect the last bug. Once again, Aamir catches her, but this time a cover story about borrowing a fan gets her off.

Chapters 28 through 32 are all relatively short and interesting juxtapositions. We start with Robin and Strike at the office together, then alternate between their viewpoints as they make their separate journeys to the general area of Paralympic reception, Robin to attend as Venetia, Strike to stop Jimmy Knight from displaying a Chiswell-themed banner. They reunite unexpectedly in Chiswell's car, an wind up attending the fancy dress event together. The parallels between this and the Yule Ball become more obvious with each re-read.

• Robin, like Harry, wears a dressy green outfit that is quite flattering.

• Strike, like Ron, looks a bit of a mess; Ron with his embarrassing seond-hand robes and Strike rumpled and with signs of the fight with Jimmy.

• Two redheads (Robin and Ron) get pangs of jealousy at seeing their secret crush with a tall, dark celebrity.

• Strike's "nice dress" echoes Moody's "nice socks."

Chapter 28 has Strike, Robin and Barclay meeting up at Denmark Street, most notable for being the first time Sam and Robin meet, which seems strange since they've been working the same case for several weeks. I guess they aren't to the point yet where it is worth it to have regular team meetings in the agency. Despite Robin's status as partner, he seems to be exclusively responsible for hiring subcontractors at this point. By the start of Troubled Blood, he appears to be at least consulting her when it comes to new hires.

I loved Barclay's reaction to the suggestive Della-Aamir tape, as well as Della's suspicion that Aamir might have brought home some "poor little stray"--- not a bad description of Billy, given the state he's in. As I have said elsewhere, I thought Strike needs a bit of personnel management training here, especially if he wants to retain an employee with a chronic illness. Yes, it was Hutchins' responsibility to speak up about his relapse, but it is Strike's responsibility to create an environment where he feels comfortable doing so, and the way Strike barked at him when he hesitated about following Jimmy doesn't help that.

Chapter 29: Minister Chiswell is equally presumptuous when Strike calls him on his way to the protest; Strike should have reminded him he is a detective, not a hired security goon. And given everything Strike goes through tonight, I'm surprised he made dinner with Lorelei at all. Chapter 30 takes us to the Parliament offices, where the "Serpentine Goddess" in her Green Dress makes a stunning debut and rides in the fancy car to the party. I find myself wondering if Kinvara is genuinely jealous, or if this is an act for the benefit of her cover story. And is it Chiswell's attention to "Venetia" that disturbs her, or the fact that Chiswell says Raff is "smitten" with her. Note that Kinvara reacts to Chiswell's planned "chat" with Raff tomorrow by twisting the "chain on her ugly evening bag, which sported a horse's head picked out in crystals. Another pointer to a horse as a death omen. And, while I wasn't able to find a bag exactly like the one described, there are a surprisingly high number of crystal evening bags that are actual horses heads.

Chapter 31 shifts back to Strike, with his buggered leg, deciding he is going to try to single-handedly stop a protest by a group of younger, fitter people. He's remarkably successful in preventing the banner of Chiswell atop a pile of Black children. Given he's had arty placards at two protests, he must have a talented artist on his team. Chapter 32 takes us back to the Chiswell car, and their view of the protest. Chiswell's actions in getting Strike away from the police were surprising, but effective. I'm surprised the police never followed up with him; Jimmy certainly recognized him and likely would have tried to press charges, given his litigious nature. Chiswell manages to get Strike into the gala with "breathtaking chutzpah," Chiswell has a tantrum, reveals his contempt for Kinvara (which Robin notices) and Izzy chimes in with a lovely upper-class "Nice to see you again, Corm." Robin and Strike agree not to be seen together, but he manages to get in a very satisfying "Nice dress, by the way," before they part.

Chapter 33 takes us into Strike's Paralympic reception experience, including his unexpected encounter with Charlotte. Earlier at Pratts he had claimed

The memory of Charlotte clinging to his hand no longer hurt, and he felt like an alcoholic who, for the first time, catches a whiff of beer without breaking into a sweat or having to grapple with his desperate craving.

Now, seeing her in the flesh and with the Dissolute Arctic Fox conveniently out of town:

Now it became apparent to him that the gravitational pull Charlotte had so long exerted over him, even after hundreds of fights and scenes and a thousand lies, was not yet spent.

And of course Charlotte and Robin are aware of each other, even though they have never officially met. Interesting that Charlotte remarks that Strike "always liked girls with that coloring"--- foreshadowing Madeline as the Robin-replacement of TRG. And Izzy Chiswell seems to know nothing about the level of discretion a private investigation requires.

We also get a glimpse into Strike's equinophobia in Charlotte's and Izzy's conversation. As we know, part of The Hallmarked Man takes place on Sark, where cars are forbidden and horses remain a common mode of transportation. And, looking at the pictures, Clydesdales seem to be popular, the one horse breed Robin has claimed is sturdy enough to support Strike's weight. I am still holding out hope we'll see some sort of encounter with Strike and a horse on the adventure there, especially considering the role of horses in John Oxenham's Sark-based works, at least one of which supplies epigraphs for THM.

Strike gets a reprieve from Charlotte, and another delay in his dinner with Lorelei, from the terrified call from Billy Knight, who claims someone is going to kill him. Well, someone's about to get killed....

Chapter 34 jumps to Robin's arrival at the Ebury Street cafe, where she waits and broods, both womdering what happened between Strike and Charlotte when they left the reception together, and recalling her return to the Flobber-home last night, where Matthew had, after a supposed talk of reconciliation, had "tested her in an ugly, underhanded way" by aggressively initiating sex. It's hard to say which is bothering her more. Bizarrely, finding Chiswell's body seems to cheer her up considerably, which is not the typical reaction of a new detective coming across her first corpse. At least it's not as gruesome as Owen Quine's.

Part 1 closes out with Chapter 35, when Robin steps on and cracks the the Lachesis pills, inspects the body to determine that Chiswell's number is indeed up, and documents the scene, including Kinvara's "Dear John" note, with pictures before calling 999. Strike arrives, sweeps the house to make sure no killer is lurking about and notes that they will soon be back on the front pages.

Coming up: The Part Two with no Part One. Is it Part two of the book, the series or the start of a second 7-part ring?