Career of Evil

Career of Evil, a mystery novel written by J.K. Rowling, under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, is the third novel in the Cormoran Strike series. A BBC television series based on the novels has been in production since 2014.

An unidentified killer wants to enact revenge against the investigator Cormoran Strike. He begins by targeting Cormoran’s assistant Robin Ellacott, who has just become a full-fledged investigator in her own right. Robin is in conflict with her fiancé, Matthew, who disapproves of her relationship with Cormoran and her work. She is thinking about their latest fight when a package arrives for her containing a severed leg.

Cormoran rushes in when he hears Robin scream. After investigating the package, he sees that it was originally addressed to him and so suspects that it was intended as a warning. Cormoran begins to compile a list of suspects, men whom he thinks might want to take revenge against him. One of them is his stepfather and the other two are men he served with in the army. There is a fourth suspect, a man whom Cormoran testified against and sent to prison, but Cormoran thinks it is unlikely this is the killer because his testimony was given anonymously.



The two investigators begin researching the suspects. Cormoran tells Robin to stay off the case because he is worried about her safety, but Robin cannot resist doing research of her own. Cormoran is relieved that Robin’s current assignment has her working in an office where she should be safe.

Later, Cormoran notices someone on the street following him. He gives chase, but the man gets away. Cormoran realizes he is at a disadvantage because he doesn’t know what any of his suspects look like today. He strongly suspects his stepfather, Jeff Whittaker, who Cormoran thinks killed his mother. Jeff was acquitted at trial, and Cormoran wonders if he is just looking for an excuse to blame the killings on him. Meanwhile, the police focus their investigation on Terence Malley, the man Cormoran sent to prison, which frustrates Cormoran.

Cormoran investigates his two suspects who served in the military. First, he visits the town of Melrose, where Donald Liang, whom Cormoran arrested for abusing his wife, lives. Cormoran is recognized by a neighbor, who introduces him to Rhona, Donald’s ex-wife, who details Donald’s history of violent behavior. She tells him that Donald is doubtlessly still dangerous, and gives Cormoran a current photograph so he can identify him.



Another package arrives at the office, this one containing a severed toe from the same corpse the first leg came from. Information about the packages has leaked to the press, jeopardizing Cormoran’s business and his working relationship with Robin. Robin accuses Cormoran of not trusting her, and so Cormoran allows her to go to question relatives of Noel Brockbank, the second suspect from Cormoran’s military days.

Robin learns that Noel’s sister Holly was caring for him after his dishonorable discharge, but she kicked him out after his violent outbursts became too much to handle. She threatened to tell the police that Noel was a pedophile; Noel bribed her with his pension checks to stay quiet.

Robin and Cormoran reconvene, and Cormoran brings Robin up to speed on his stepfather, Jeff. Remembering Jeff being obsessed with death, he thinks that he must have been responsible for his mother’s death by overdose since his mother had stopped using heroin by the time she overdosed. When the pair gets back to London, they learn that the killer has struck again. Cormoran strikes a deal with the police to not interfere with their investigation since his own suspects in the case are very different.



Cormoran begins by tailing Jeff. He finds his former step-father pimping and dealing drugs, but when he talks to Stephanie, a woman he is abusing named, he learns that she and Jeff were having sex on the night of the first murder, ruling him out as a suspect. Meanwhile, the real killer attacks Robin; she escapes though she doesn’t see his face.

Robin takes action to protect Noel’s stepdaughters from him, which sends Noel on the run. A frustrated Cormoran fires her for misconduct. He later tries to contact her to apologize, but Matthew deletes the evidence of his call from Robin’s phone.

Cormoran deduces that the killer is Donald Liang, who has been posing as the live-in boyfriend of his first victim. With the help of a petty criminal acquaintance, Cormoran breaks into Donald’s flat. Donald attacks him, but Cormoran defeats him, turning him into the police. He also learns that Noel has been arrested at a local homeless shelter.



Finally, Cormoran rushes to be present at Robin’s wedding, arriving just as she and Matthew exchange vows. Robin turns around from the altar, and, seeing Cormoran there, smiles.