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Cormoran Strike

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/13855059_low_res_strike_career_of_evil_dceff95.jpg

Played by: Tom Burke

A former military police investigator who became a private detective after losing his leg in Afghanistan.

An Arm and a Leg: He lost part of his right leg to an improvised explosive device while on a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
Accidental Misnaming: Even after the Lula Landry case makes him mildly famous, many people still can’t get his name right. "Cameron" tends to be the most common corruption of his first name. You'd think people could at least get "Strike" right, but people often end up on "Strick."
Aloof Leader, Affable Subordinate: He has this dynamic with Robin before she's promoted to full partner, often playing bad cop to her good.
Commitment Issues: Does he ever! Strike is highly emotionally avoidant, and usually resentful whenever a family member or girlfriend asks him to do something that distracts him from work or eats into his leisure time. He deliberately keeps his post-Charlotte relationships casual and immediately ends them if asked for something more. His friends dryly note that Robin is basically the only woman he's willingly entangled himself with.
Child Hater: A downplayed example. He definitely never really wanted to have children, even when he still had a girlfriend. He can make a decent pretense of getting along with them when he has to, and has a godson, but throughout a dinner with his godson's family (which has recently grown) is somewhat secretly uncomfortable and the screaming and antics of the children reminds him of exactly why he never wants to have any. He eventually develops a bond with his nephew Jack, so he doesn't despise all children.
Defective Detective: Only to a certain extent. While Strike is a war-wounded amputee with a tempestuous on-and-off relationship, death threats from a former client, and debt up to his eyeballs, he still manages to retain a remarkably level headed personality, free of self-destructive impulses.
Defector from Decadence: His father, rock star Johnny Rokeby, was very keen to bankroll his life, but he turned it down and went in the army instead.
Drink-Based Characterization: Whether he's interrogating witnesses, setting up information swaps with the police, or simply relaxing, Strike will order a pint of Doom Bar, a Cornish ale that reminds him of home.
Embarrassing Middle Name: It's Blue. His mother named him after the band Blue Öyster Cult, because she was obsessed with the lead singer.
- In the traditional Chinese translations released in Taiwan, "Cormoran" is transliterated as 柯莫藍 (romanised as "Ke Mo Lan") right from the beginning. 藍 means "Blue".
Handicapped Badass: Missing part of his right leg, but still a highly capable fighter as well as highly intelligent.
Heroic Bastard: Strike is the illegitimate child of a famous rock star, who for his part has a positively Victorian attitude towards Strike's existence.
I Have Many Names: Each one of Strike's many friends and acquaintances seem to know him by a different name. Robin is bemused when during her first day on the job, she receives calls for "Oggy," "Monkey Boy" and simply "Mr. Strike." His half-sister Lucy calls him "Stick", Detective Inspector Richard Anstis calls him "Mystic Bob," and his ex-girlfriend Charlotte Campbell calls him "Bluey" because of his middle name being "Blue." Shanker calls him "Bunsen," although he's not sure why. A complete list can be found here. At one point, Robin jokingly asks him if, among his many names, anyone has ever called him "Lightning."^note"Lightning Strike"
Innocently Insensitive: Frequently, especially around Robin, such as when he manages to miss several hints that she wants to be regarded as an equal partner. May possibly be as a result of his military background, due to the strict hierarchies in the armed forces.
Ivy League for Everyone: He went to Oxford.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: It bounces around between the "jerk" and "heart of gold" element a lot. He mentions in Troubled Blood that he never apologizes when arguing with a woman, even when, in the case of loudly and aggressively bringing up rape in front of Robin at a dinner party, he is clearly in the wrong (which he views as telling him a "few home truths").
Kavorka Man: Cormoran Strike looks like a boxer who’s had his nose broken too many times, is incredibly hairy, lost half his leg, and at the start of The Cuckoo's Calling, he is overweight. And yet, his on-again, off-again girlfriend Charlotte is described as supermodel gorgeous and over the course of his debut story he has sex with an actual supermodel without even trying. In fact, he never has a single love interest (no matter how brief) who isn't gorgeous.
- Interestingly, a throwaway line from Lady Bristow in The Cuckoo's Calling, implies that Johnny Rokeby also qualifies as this.
Living Lie Detector: It is said in The Cuckoo's Calling that Strike can smell a lie. He certainly doesn't he any supernatural abilities or anything, but he's more than experienced enough that if the signs are there, he will detect them. It basically takes a serial liar / psychotic type who is able to lie without giving off any of the usual signs to pull the wool over his eyes, as seen in Troubled Blood.
Mama's Boy: Justified in that he never knew his father, but he adored his mother, unlike his sister Lucy.
The Masochism Tango: seems to be a good description of his long-standing, off and on relationship with Charlotte (especially since some of his flashbacks to their relationship imply she was also emotionally abusive to him).
Meaningful Name: Both his name and surname…
- "Cormoran" is a giant from Cornish folklore. Fitting for a man of Strike’s size.
- "Strike" is appropriate for one who had a fighting career.
Sesquipedalian Smith: "Cormoran Strike".
Standard Cop Backstory: Cormoran has almost every single one.
- His mother was a wild drug user and, while his father was famous, he never knew him. Leda committed suicide in what he believes to be an unsolved murder, but which he was never capable of proving, hitting a lot of these categories at once. They moved around a lot and only avoided Social Services due to this nomadic lifestyle.
- On top of his My Greatest Failure feelings about his mother, he also saved lives (and failed to save several) while in the army, and he has a string of failed relationships.
Stiff Upper Lip: Despite all the difficulties Strike is experiencing, he maintains some degree of discipline in confronting his demons. It’s notable that most of his struggles are external, while his internal conflict is somewhat minimal.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Cormoran to a mild degree in The Cuckoo's Calling. He gets over it by the time of The Silkworm.
Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?: "Cormoran Blue Strike" — justified given his mother's... eccentricities.
Will They or Won't They?: The main element of his Unresolved Sexual Tension with Robin.
Women Drivers: He is biased against them due to several past bad experiences and knows it. He reluctantly allows Robin to drive him in The Silkworm and is surprised but pleased to have his biases challenged when Robin turns to be a hypercompetent driver who has taken advanced driving courses.

Robin Ellacott

Robin Venetia Ellacott

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ps_cormoranstrike_animagos_5_683x1024.jpg

Played by: Holliday Grainger

Cormoran’s secretary. Recently moved to London from Yorkshire, she becomes fascinated with detective work. By the time of 'Troubled Blood', she has become a detective in her own right, and a salaried partner at the agency.

Author Avatar: Robin has shades of Rowling in her. Being a woman in a masculine dominated profession, a victim of rape as a young adult, and a failed marriage in her twenties. She's also the character that Rowling uses to voice her own political beliefs.
Badass Driver: She is a highly trained driver and has several opportunities to show off her skills.
Damsel in Distress: She is distressed several times; she was one in the past when she was raped while at university, then she is attacked by the killer in Career of Evil and needs to be rescued after being attacked by him again, then in Lethal White, she is kidnapped by the killer and is on the brink of being killed when Strike saves her.
Deuteragonist: The narration focuses on her almost as much as it does on Strike and has increasingly done so as the series has worn on.
Embarrassing Middle Name: She's not overly fond of the name Venetia, and who can blame her? Despite this, though, she still uses it twice when going undercover.
Fiery Redhead: Downplayed. Robin is strawberry blonde, not all the way red, but she becomes increasingly feisty and assertive over the course of the series.
Girl Friday: Robin is this for Strike, providing an astonishing level of support and doing a lot of legwork.
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Robin has Strawberry-Blonde hair and is firmly on the side of the angels.
Hidden Depths: There's the expert driving skills listed below; also, Robin's pov implies that detective work was actually a dream of hers since childhood, but this was discouraged by her mother (who was worried about the danger it would put Robin in) and Matthew (probably because he didn't want her becoming so obviously more interesting than him). This comes out in the aftermath of her rape; Robin was the last of a chain of victims, because her innate talent for detection let her to remember details that the other victims didn't, which enabled the police to catch him.
Hypercompetent Sidekick: Robin exhibits traits of this right from the get-go, and she only becomes more competent as the series progresses. Unlike many other examples of this trope, Strike recognizes and appreciates her competency and is fully aware how lucky he is to have her around.
I Have Brothers: Robin has a lot of brothers, which she accounts for her tomboyish nature.
Meaningful Name: "Robin" is a singularly appropriate name for a great detective’s sidekick.
- Genius Bonus: Also, "robin redbreast" was an old slang term for the Bow Street Runners, Britain's first police force, due to them wearing red waistcoats^note, which foreshadows Robin becoming a detective in her own right.
Plucky Girl: Robin is very clever, resilient, and determined.
Plucky Office Girl: In The Cuckoo's Calling, although she later hates being regarded as Strike's secretary.
The Power of Acting: It's repeatedly noted that Robin is very talented whenever she has to go undercover, something which she often volunteers for.
Rape as Backstory / Rape as Drama: Robin dropped out of university after being raped on campus. While she had a so-called "good ending" as she both identified her attacker and testified to bring him to justice, the trauma has had a continuing effect on her life: her planned career was derailed after she had to drop out of university, and in Lethal White she comes to the realization that if the rape hadn't left her feeling that Matthew was the only man outside her family that she was safe with, they never would have stayed together so long, or embarked on their doomed marriage.
Tomboy with a Girly Streak: Robin is very tomboyish in dress and in hobby, but she is also very attached to beautiful things and, of course, She Cleans Up Nicely.
Took a Level in Badass: By the second novel, Robin turns out to be an expert driver who has taken advanced driving courses and has practiced those skills. Cormoran compares her skills to the combat-trained drivers he's met in the Army.
Will They or Won't They?: The main thrust of her Unresolved Sexual Tension with Strike.

Recurring Characters

Family Members

Matthew Cunliffe

Played by: Kerr Logan

Robin’s fiancé, then husband. Then ex-husband. An accountant in an important firm.

Be Careful What You Wish For: Matthew becomes extremely resentful of Robin's growing confidence and assertiveness, and starts an affair with his Old Flame Sarah Shadlock. Robin notes that Sarah is basically Matt's dream woman: sexy, wealthy, glamorous, working a job that's highly paid and respectable. After he and Robin split he naturally jumps straight into a relationship with Sarah. Troubled Blood reveals that Sarah is now keeping him on a much tighter leash than Robin ever did, though, and when he and Robin finally meet in person he appears subdued and morose, and seems to at least partially regret his choices.
Disposable Fiancé: Played with. The first novel paints him as one of these, but Robin and him are still together for the following books and eventually get married at the end of Career of Evil. But she finally does leave him a year into the marriage in Lethal White.
Evil Is Petty: downplayed. While not actually 'evil', Matthew spends most of Troubled Blood dragging out the divorce negotiations - Robin's lawyer tells her theirs is the most contentious divorce she's ever handled without custody arrangements being involved. Robin believes that Matthew's habit of petty one-upmanship is driving this; he needs to 'win' their divorce, so he is purposely trying to drive her to poverty with lawyer's fees so he'll come out of the divorce in the better position.
Green-Eyed Monster: Intensely jealous of Strike, whom he believes is trying to have an affair with Robin. Given his own affair, Psychological Projection likely factors into it, too.
Hated by All: At one point, a coworker who Matthew treats poorly goes on a rant while drunk, revealing that Matthew is in fact widely disliked at their office.
Hypocrite:
- Complains a lot about the long hours Robin keeps at her detective work, even though he does the exact same thing in his accounting job.
- His constant paranoia over Robin's relationship with Strike becomes even more outrageous after it's revealed he cheated on her. When confronted with this, he has the nerve to claim it's not "like for like".
Informed Attribute: Robin seems to think that Matthew is a wonderful human being who is utterly deserving of her love and devotion til death do them part. All the reader ever sees of Matthew is an overly jealous, paranoid, egotistical, short-tempered, and emotionally manipulative man-child who definitely sees his own happiness and goals as more important than Robin's. She finally starts to get wise in the third book, Career of Evil, and leaves him for good in Lethal White after having been married to him for over a year only to discover that he's again cheating on her. She realizes that she no longer loves him and tells him to his face.
It's All About Me: He has the singular ability to reframe every single problem or situation as a function of how it will affect or inconvenience him.
Jerkass: To the point where you wonder just what Robin sees in him.
Jerkass Has a Point: While his Stay in the Kitchen attitude is deeply unpleasant most of the time, he's not wrong to be angry with Robin for not prioritising him when his mother died. He's also not wrong about the fact that Robin's job is regularly putting her in grave danger and that she is working together closely with a man who she is romantically attracted to (and vice versa).
Malicious Slander: After he and Robin break up, he tells some of their friends she was cheating on him with Strike.
Never My Fault: Basically an extension of the "it's all about me" above. Pretty much any problem in his and Robin's relationship is, in his mind, her fault, no matter what it might be.
Pet the Dog: After a long and ugly marriage and divorce process, he and Robin do have a brief exchange of somewhat kind words and manners after they finally sign the papers and say goodbye.
Stay in the Kitchen: Although he is a lot more subtle about it than most, this attitude of his comes more to the forefront when Robin starts working with Strike.
Took a Level in Jerkass: Although it occurred in his Back Story, the revelation that he cheated on Robin while she was recovering from her rape makes him irredeemable. Then he does it again and torpedos their ill-advised marriage.

Lucy Strike

Played by: Sarah Sweeney

Cormoran’s younger sister on his mother’s side and the only one of his many siblings he's close to.

Annoying Younger Sibling: Is viewed by her brother as a bit pestering, although she has a point about Strike's lifestyle. She’s one of the people he loves most in the entire world but she annoys him due to their very different priorities.
Demoted to Extra: Her role is significantly smaller in the show, only having appeared in the first series.
Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: She sees herself as the responsible one because of Cormoran’s lifestyle and because he hasn’t settled down yet.
Like Mother, Unlike Daughter: She is the polar opposite of her flighty, Cloudcuckoolander groupie mother. She values stability and family life above all else.
Promotion to Parent: Judging by the way she treats Cormoran you would be justified in thinking she was his mother, constantly encouraging him to settle down and start a family.
Rape as Backstory: Her aggressive clinging to normalcy and her unwillingness to forgive Leda for the dysfunction of her childhood get a hell of a Freudian Excuse in book 7. She was sexually abused as a child while living on a commune to which Leda had taken her and Strike, with Leda's negligence allowing it to happen. In light of this, Strike realizes that her willingness to move forward and embrace a normal family life actually represents incredible personal strength.
Wacky Parent, Serious Child: The "serious child" to Leda's "wacky parent".

Leda Strike

Played by: Kierston Wareing

Cormoran's mother, a semi-famous groupie who ostensibly died of an overdose but Cormoran suspects was really killed by her husband, Jeff Whitaker.

Allergic to Routine: She constantly moved from place to place, never having a steady job or relationship. The only periods of stability in Strike and his sister's life was during those times when they lived with their Aunt Joan.
Celeb Crush: She was obsessed with Eric Bloom from Blue Öyster Cult, but she never managed to get him in bed.
Groupie: For Johnny Rokeby, Strike's father, but also for several others.
Hard-Drinking Party Girl: She was a professional groupie, so this trope is to be expected, and it's played to the fullest.
Posthumous Character: She is long dead by the time the novels take place, but her influence in Strike's life continues to be profound nevertheless.
Really Gets Around: Leda was quite promiscuous for most of her life, giving birth to three children from as many parents.
Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll: She lived this lifestyle to the fullest, to the point that near the end of her life she had become a minor icon of the British music scene.
Wacky Parent, Serious Child: The "wacky parent" to Lucy's "serious child". Cormoran is in the middle.

Switch Whitaker

Strike’s much younger half brother by Leda who was adopted into another family when she died.

The Ghost: Has never appeared in any of the books. Cormoran doesn’t like to think about him but admits to feeling guilty about not ever tracking him down in The Running Grave once he gets to know Prudence.
Practically Different Generations: He was born when Strike would have been 17 or 18.
Missing Mom: Leda died before he was even a year old.
Raised by Grandparents: His great-grandparents were originally raising him but he was put up for adoption when they could no longer care for him.

Charlotte Campbell

Charlotte Ross née Campbell

Played by: Natasha O'Keeffe

Strike’s former fiancé and on-again off-again girlfriend of many years.

Allergic to Routine: Possibly her most defining characteristic. In Lethal White, it is stated that Strike knows that she has practiced a "career of disruption" and that she has "an almost pathological hatred of routine, responsibility or obligation" and has therefore sabotaged every possibility of permanence before having to deal with the threats of boredom or compromise.
Ambiguous Situation:
- In The Running Grave, Charlotte claims to have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Cormoran never managed or wanted to find out if she was telling the truth before she kills herself. He doesn’t ask when he has lunch with her sister Amelia at the end of the book either, leaving the truth ambiguous.
- Strike's final break-up with her happens because he does not believe her claim that she miscarried a child fathered by him. In The Silkworm, just before getting married to Jago Ross, she sends him a text stating "It was yours." She continues to cling to this throughout the series, but as with the above, her suicide means that the question will never likely be truly answered for sure.
Aristocrats Are Evil: Strike's aristocratic ex is also extremely manipulative, physically violent, and unstable. In Lethal White Cormoran's POV says outright that Charlotte has spent her whole life trying to cause as much trouble and conflict as possible to everyone around her.
The Bus Came Back: She appears in Cuckoo's Calling when she and Cormoran break up for the last time on Robin's first day at the agency. It's not until Lethal White that she pops back up again, this time pregnant with twins, when she and Cormoran end up at the same party. She's physically absent from Troubled Blood but Cormoran spends most of the book texting with her. She comes back for Ink Black Heart when she shows up at the agency asking for help with her divorce because Jago found the unsolicited nude she'd sent Cormoran. She appears in a scene at the beginning of Running Grave but ultimately kills herself by the middle of the book.
Child Hater: The one thing she and Strike share is their mutual dislike of children. Even pregnant with Jago Ross' twins is met with indifference at best.
Expy: She has some resemblance to a (presumably more villainous) version of Rose Hanbury. Charlotte is an aristocrat (like Hanbury), described as beautiful enough to be a model (Hanbury was a model), and more specifically, was announced as engaged, married, and then pregnant (with twins) within three days in 2009; Charlotte was engaged, married, and then pregnant with twins by an aristocrat in a very short space of time around 2010.
Fetishized Abuser: Emotionally and (on at least one occasion) physically abusive to Strike.
Ivy League for Everyone: She met Strike at Oxford.
Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Downplayed, but pivotal. In Ink Black Heart, Strike finally admits to himself that he was convinced that somewhere deep within Charlotte was something that made her better than the rest of her family and social circle. Her complete lack of concern over Ross being horribly physically abusive to his children (beyond that she can use it to nail him in their divorce proceedings), and her willingness to share custody of her own children with him despite this, forces Strike to accept that he was wrong and she really is just as bad as the rest of them.
Killed Off for Real: She commits suicide about halfway into the seventh book.
Mood-Swinger: Described as jumping from funny to erratic and, as of the end of the fifth book, she's made at least three suicide attempts.
Rich Bitch: She seems nice, but this is what she is at heart.
Small Role, Big Impact: Her first appearance in the flesh is when Robin bumps into her at the beginning of the first book, but her presence weighs heavily across the following books, until she reappears in Lethal White.
The Vamp: Heavily implied, given that there are just three weeks between her breakup with Strike and her engagement to the man she was with before him. Strike himself certainly thinks so.
- It's implied that Charlotte bounced between Cormoran and Jago Ross (her eventual husband) for most of their university days, and she rarely bothered to break up with one before starting up with the other.
- When she reappears in Lethal White, Cormoran immediately realizes that Charlotte has deliberately arranged to "run into him". He swiftly deduces that Charlotte wants to restart their relationship, even though she's married and heavily pregnant with twins; not because she misses him, but because Charlotte's greatest fear is routine and "normal life". Leaving her aristocratic husband and babies for her one-legged Army veteran ex is guaranteed to cause exactly the kind of scandal and kerfuffle she craves.
What Does She See in Him?: The question in everyone’s mind when they see her and Strike together. If they really knew what she was like, they would be asking the opposite question.
Yandere: This woman is as insane as she is hot. Unfortunately, while Strike is fully aware of it, he still can’t let go of his obsession with her, though at the end of Troubled Blood, he does finally cut the proverbial cord by changing his mobile number, admitting to himself that he kept it because he wanted her to be able to get in touch with him. Although she quickly worms her way back in to his life in the next book with her divorce.

Jonny Rokeby

Strike's father and a famous Rockstar.

A Party, Also Known as an Orgy: The fifth book reveals that he and Leda conceived Strike in the corner of a room where a party was happening.
Ambiguous Situation: Is Jonny a deadbeat dad who only showed interest in his son out of fear that Cormoran would sell his story to the tabloids, or is he genuinely interested in forming a relationship with Cormoran that Cormoran doesn't want? Jonny's behavior since Cormoran left the army is difficult to understand, not helped by Al and Cormoran's very different opinions of their father. For his part, Jonny also mentions during their brief phone call in the fifth book that his staff kept things from him about Cormoran’s financial situation as a child. There is also the fact that he’s been able to reconcile with Prudence, his other illegitimate child.
Disappeared Dad: Even after a DNA test proved he was Strike's father, he didn't make any attempt to have any kind of relationship with his son. Strike has only met him twice in all his life. However, the nature of their estrangement is certainly ambiguous with conflicting information coming from different sources:
- It's implied in The Silkworm that Strike may be deliberately perpetuating this (although who could blame him?). Strike's half-brother Al claims that Rokeby is actually quite proud of his detective son and would like to meet him, and that it's Strike who keeps making sure that doesn't happen.
- In Troubled Blood Strike tells Robin that he met his father twice—the first time when he was seven and his mother took him to a recording studio to corner Rokeby, who called him a "mistake" to his face, and the second time when he was eighteen and Rokeby offered to pay for Oxford University using the money he'd already paid in child support but hadn't let Leda touch. Strike also notes that Rokeby never reached out to him except for a single note while he was in the hospital and (although it's unclear if he's right) feels that Rokeby is only interested in reaching out to Strike because he's earned fame and success from his detective cases.
- Jonny claims in their brief phone call during the fifth book that his management staff deliberately kept information from him about Cormoran’s living conditions as a child after Leda was no longer allowed to be directly given money.
- He seems to have been similarly distant with his other illegitimate child, Prudence, but she reconciled with him as an adult and she believes Cormoran should do the same. However, Prudence does admit that while they have reconciled he’s a Manchild who has no sense of reality due to being a celebrity for half a century.
Kavorka Man: Implied by Lady Bristow in The Cuckoo's Calling, which would make Cormoran's ability to pull beautiful women genetic.
No Celebrities Were Harmed: maybe. While Rokeby's backstory is fairly common with rock/pop musicians of the mid-to-late twentieth century, he does seem to bear more than a passing resemblance to Mick Jagger.
The Ghost: He is mentioned in every novel, but he has yet to make an appearance in the flesh, he sends Cormoran a birthday card and they briefly talk on the phone in the fifth book.
Really Gets Around: He has fathered seven children with five different women, only three of whom were his wife at the time.
Speak Ill of the Dead: While he didn't get quite far enough to elaborate (Strike insults him and promptly hangs up), he certainly seems to have been headed in this direction about Leda in Troubled Blood, referencing her number of sexual partners.
The Voice: Has yet to appear in the series but does briefly talk to Cormoran on the phone in the fifth book.

Alexander 'Al' Rokeby

Al Rokeby

Strike's half-brother on his father's side (from Rokeby's third, and current wife). For most of the series, Al is the only person on that side of the family with whom Strike is fairly close to before he connects with Prudence.

Annoying Younger Sibling: He's a Nice Guy and genuinely admires Cormoran but can't seem to grasp his unwillingness to forgive their famous father, having actually been raised by him, unlike Strike.
Demoted to Extra: While he does show up in The Silkworm adaptation, his role is significantly reduced - his part in the climax is given to Robin.
Early-Bird Cameo: He is first mentioned in the The Cuckoo's Calling alongside all of Jonny Rokeby's children when Robin reads the rock star's Wikipedia page, before playing a supporting role in The Silkworm.
Jumped at the Call: When Strike asks for his help with the Quine case, he is all too happy to help.
Nice Guy: The only one of Jonny Rokeby's many children to make any attempt to have a relationship with Strike, even visiting when he was in the hospital with a missing leg (although two of their half-sisters did send flowers then).
Rich Sibling, Poor Sibling: Cormoran suspects part of the reason Al goes out of his way to have a relationship with him is because Al appreciates that Cormoran has had to work hard for everything he has in life while Al lives the life of luxury.
Rudely Hanging Up: His last scene in Troubled Blood has him hang up on Strike in mid-conversation, although this was in response to Strike launching into a particularly angry tirade about Rokeby which Al was distressed by.

Prudence Donleavy

Another of Rokeby's children, illegitimate like Strike. She is mentioned in passing in the first book and reaches out to Strike in Troubled Blood trying to help mediate Strike and Rokeby's difficulties and happens to be a therapist. Their planned meeting in Ink Black Heart is cancelled when her daughter gets injured. She and Cormoran meet at an unspecified time before The Running Grave and she becomes vital to helping take down the Universal Humanitarian Church via one of her clients who is an ex-member.

Affectionate Nickname: Al calls her Pru.
Ambiguous Syntax: In the first book Strike mentions that only three of Rokeby's legitimate children (Al, Gabi and Dani) did anything when he was in the hospital with his leg blown off. Prudence isn't legitimate making it ambiguous if she also sent a card, flowers or anything (although since Strike explicitly says they've never met before, this means that she didn't visit in person).
Brutal Honesty: Once she finally appears in person, she is willing to speak openly to Robin about her father's juvenile attitude and how Robin is taking some big risks with her plan to infiltrate a cult that one of Prudence's patients was once a member of. She is also good at assessing her own failings and admitting them to other people.
Commonality Connection: Attempted when she tries to contact Strike in the fifth book. She's the only other one of Rokeby's children born out of wedlock and also had a troubled relationship with him in the past. Strike actually finds himself being interested in this overture and acknowledging some desire to connect, just not right then, with so much on his plate.
The Fashionista: She describes expensive clothes as her weakness and has a wardrobe that is bigger than she needs, leading to her frequently giving thousands of dollars of clothes to charity, her teenage daughter, or Robin (when she needs a convincing attire to pose as a discontented heiress).
The Ghost: She doesn't appear in person until the seventh book, although Strike reads a few text messages from her in the fifth book and decides he wants to meet her once things settle down. They don’t get the chance because her daughter is injured in an accident at a climbing gym.
Meaningful Name: Possibly. Given Cormoran's middle name being from Blue Öyster Cult, Prudence's first name may be from The Beatles song 'Dear Prudence'.

Luke, Jack and Adam

Lucy's sons and Strike's nephews. Strike is not fond of them but develops a bond with Jack.

Adapted Out: They have yet to appear in the show although Lucy does mention them in the first series.
Bratty Half-Pint: Luke is selfish, often petulant, and a big part of the reason Strike is such a Child Hater. Adam is less bad but described as "whiny" by his uncle. Averted by Jack, who gets on well with Strike and finds his military history fascinating.
Distressed Dude: Jack is hospitalized for a few chapters of the fourth book from a burst appendix.
Generation Xerox: Luke reminds Strike a lot of his father, who Strike dislikes.
Strong Family Resemblance: Jack bears a resemblance to his grandmother, Leda.
Took a Level in Kindness: In The Running Grave, Adam seems nicer than in his previous appearances as he thanks Strike for a present.

Gabriella and Daniella Rokeby

Rokeby's daughters from his second marriage. They're mentioned in the first book and then never referenced again until Troubled Blood. Charlotte mentions being friendly with Gabi in Ink Black Heart.

Affectionate Nickname: Gabi (or Gaby, sometimes) and Dani.
The Ghost: Neither has made an in-flesh appearance yet. Charlotte mentions in the sixth book that Gabi is the one who told her about Prudence’s daughter getting injured.
Nice Girl: They sent Strike flowers in the hospital and Gabi is mentioned as trying to do something nice for their father on his bands anniversary in the fifth book.
Noodle Incident: Based on dialogue in Troubled Blood about which of his siblings he's never seen in person, Strike apparently met the two in the past at one point. He doesn't reflect on them at all across the series and describes Al as the only member of his father's family he's quasi-close with, but Strike does refer to them by their nicknames, and they did send flowers when he was in the hospital. He’s also not appreciative of Charlotte trying to use Gabi to manipulate him.

Ted Nancarrow

Strike's uncle, Leda's brother, who Cormoran views as his father.

Generation Xerox: Strike strongly resembles him and became a military policeman largely due to Ted's example.
Law of Inverse Fertility: He and his wife could never have children of their own.
Parental Substitute: Ted saw to a lot of Strike's upbringing when Leda was lacking in the area and after her death. Cormoran even tells Joan in the fifth book that while Jonny Rokeby may be his biological father, Ted is the man he considers to be his real father.
Scatterbrained Senior: In the seventh book, Cormoran and Lucy decide to sell the house in Cornwall and move Ted to a care facility London closer to them after he starts to develop dementia.

The Ellacott Family

The Ellacott family.

Robin's parents and brothers.

The Baby of the Bunch: Jonathan, a university student, is many years younger than Robin, the closest of his siblings in age.
Basement-Dweller: Martin is almost thirty, but still lives with his parents.
Big Brother Instinct: Martin, one of Robin's brothers, punches Matthew for messing with her phone to delete a message from Strike.
Fantasy-Forbidding Father: All of them have moments of discouraging Robin when she shows an interest in detective work, although they gradually adjust to her new job and her brother Stephen acknowledges that he was a jerk about it in the past.
Odd Friendship: Stephen’s wife Jenny gets along with the gruff and awkward Strike surprisingly well when they briefly meet at Robin’s wedding, showing good humor throughout the event and helping break the ice between Strike and the other Ellacotts.

Joan Nancarrow

Strike's aunt and Ted's wife.

Parental Substitute: She helped raise Strike and Lucy. Strike is grateful but spent a long time conflicted that she was replacing Leda. Lucy embraced it wholeheartedly, openly saying she sees Joan as more of a mother than Leda, and having her sons call Joan "Granny".
Turn the Other Cheek: She encourages Strike to let go of his issues with Rokeby and maybe reach out some. He doesn't take her advice.

Friends, Acquaintances, and Business Associates

Shanker

'Shanker'

An old friend from Strike's past with an entrepeneurial view of the law.

Breakout Character: Shanker's most definitely a fan favorite.
Chekhov's Gunman: It's J.K. Rowling, what were you expecting? Shanker is mentioned early on in The Cuckoo's Calling as someone Strike knows who works on the other side of the law. He's finally introduced in Career of Evil and his and Strike's backstory is more fleshed out.
Early-Bird Cameo: Shanker's off-page appearances in Cuckoo made it on-screen in the TV adaptation, mostly due to his Ensemble Dark Horse status.
Face of a Thug: Subverted. Shanker looks like a terrifying criminal, and he can be. However, he's quite civil to Robin, appears to respect women generally, and acts protectively toward a young child who's being sexually abused.
Genius Bruiser: While Shanker is not as big as Strike, he's a nasty fighter who doesn't hesitate to put suspects into headlocks, when he's not pulling knives on them. However, Strike describes him as sharper and more sober than many businessmen.
Missing Mom: His mother disappeared when he was quite young and he clung to Leda as a result.
Morality Pet: Leda was one to him.
My Greatest Failure: He regrets buying drugs at a time when Leda was dying, and believes that his absence is what allowed Whittaker to murder her.
Only Known by Their Nickname: Shanker is not his real name; in Troubled Blood it's mentioned that Strike would be hard pressed to remember what his real name is.
Restraining Bolt: He acts as a version for Whittaker. Whittaker is a violent man; so is Shanker. Shanker loves Leda, and sees Whittaker as a threat to her. However, he lacks the same self-restraint that's keeping Cormoran, Leda's son, from flat-out murdering Whittaker.
Revenge Before Reason: Explicitly identified as why Shanker has spent half his adult life in jail, he's had multiple relatives and friends die by violence and doesn't tend to take it well.

Dave Polworth

Affectionate Nickname: Strike call him "Chum", both as a reference to their friendship and how Dave once had a scare with a shark while swimming.
Ascended Extra: He has some minor appearances in earlier books before being more prominent in Troubled Blood
Awful Wedded Life: He and his wife don't sound like they get along very well (although they've been married for a long time with two kids), largely because of his tendency to make important decisions without asking her. He also makes no secret of the fact that he didn't want to marry her at first and changed his mind when he realized it would make his life much easier to have a reliable source of sex at home rather than having to trawl the bars for it.
Childhood Friends: Strike describes him as his oldest (although not quite his closet, due to people in his life like Robin) friend.
Jumped at the Call: In the second book he's eager to contribute to Strike's catching of the culprit mainly for the fun of showing up the cops.
Patriotic Fervor: Dave is keen on the idea of Cornwall becoming independent as the European Union weakens.

Nick and Ilsa Herbert

Nick and Ilsa

Close friends of Strike who also befriend Robin.

Law of Inverse Fertility: They've been trying to have a baby for a while, eventually resorting to In vitro fertilization. Ilsa miscarries in the fifth book, and implies that it's happened before and they won't have another chance, straining her relationship with Nick. In the sixth book, however, Ilsa gets naturally pregnant and it seems to hold, though it's left for the next book to reveal how things will turn out. She gave birth to a baby boy named Benjamin between the books.
What the Hell, Hero?: Ilsa isn't afraid to call Strike a dickhead for forgetting Robin's birthday.

Sam Barclay

A former soldier investigated for drug offences by Strike during his army days. Barclay uncovered contractors defrauding the British taxpayer, who then planted drugs in his possession. Strike saw the charges against Barclay dropped, but could not prevent his court martial. He later hires Barclay as a freelance investigator and has him infiltrate Jimmy Knight's gang and do subsequent detective jobs.

Family Man:He has a wife and baby daughter he seems concerned about spending time with.
Funetik Aksent: Barclay has a very heavy Scottish accent, which is rendered this way on the page.
Hard Boiled Detective: He is the most street smart and occasionally coarse of Strike's subcontractors, vapes, and is the most likely detective Strike and Robin will pick for a job like unearthing a buried corpse or infiltrating an apartment to look for a murder weapon.
Hidden Depths: During their first encounter Strike realized that the simple squaddie with a taste for drugs also had the natural instincts of a first-rate investigator for gathering thorough evidence on his superiors corruption without being asked.
The Mole: He doesn't just keep tabs on Jimmy Knight in Lethal White, he so successfully infiltrates his group that Jimmy brings him along to search Flick's apartment.

Izzy Chiswell

Isabella "Izzy" Chiswell

Jasper Chiswell's second daughter who works as his assistant in the fourth book and is a government and high society contact of the firm in later novels. She is over-worked, under-appreciated and yet constantly defends her father's behavior.

Eating the Eye Candy: Izzy met Cormoran during the heyday of his relationship with Charlotte, and she hints to Robin that she found him very attractive. It's implied during the book that Izzy still does, but she's too shy to actually ask him out (not that Cormoran would ever date a client).
Extreme Doormat: Her father treats her little better than a slave, and not only does she not complain, she constantly defends him.
Lack of Empathy: Not as bad as most examples but she doesn't seem to care that much when Strike brings up Billy Knight's abusive father when saying that Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse for her brother Raphael being a killer.
The Un-Favourite: No matter how hard she worked for him, her father never loved her as much as her late brother Freddie.
White Sheep: Despite her loyalty to her father, she is the only member of the family who is not a complete and total asshole.

Andy Hutchins

An ex-policeman hired by Strike between the third and fourth books at the recommendation of Eric Wardle.

Career-Ending Injury: He had to retire from the force due to MS that left him with a limp. History Repeats in the sixth novel, where his multiple sclerosis makes him retire from detective work as well.
Family Man: He has a wife and children.
Older Sidekick: "Sidekick" is probably overstating his plot importance, but Hutchins is about decade older than his boss.
Out of Focus: Hutchins has the least characterization and plot importance of Strike's employees so far and most of his conversations with Strike and Robin are described second hand rather than being given verbatim.
The Quiet One: He's described as quiet by Strike's point of view and its supported by the story.
The Reliable One: He isn't infallible (losing a tail at one point in the fourth book) but he's a practical, efficient man who Strike generally trusts to leave to his own devices.

Pat Chauncey

A new secretary at the agency.

Affectionate Nickname: Morris calls her Moneypenny in one scene, which Pat finds amusing.
Age Insecurity: She is 67 years old as of The Running Grave but prefers working to retirement. She lied about her age when applying to the agency, for fear of not being hired because of her age. Littejohn, a new subcontractor at the agency, discovers her real age and tries to use it against her in a clumsy blackmail attempt. It doesn't work as she goes directly to Strike and admits the truth.
Awful Wedded Life: Hinted when she says Strike reminds her of her first husband in a way which (along with the fact that they're divorced) suggests it's a negative association.
Fire-Forged Friends: She and Strike are openly antagonistic towards each other in Troubled Blood, but the cold case's difficulties eventually has them recognize each other's true personalities and talents. By Ink Black Heart, Strike is openly quite warm to her, and she angrily defends him to the other contractors when they begin bad-mouthing him. The pipe-bomb incident has them grow closer still, with Strike genuinely concerned for her well-being.
Happily Married: We meet her husband Dennis in the seventh book, and he's clearly better for her than her ex.
Horrible Judge of Character: She thinks well of Morris, who turns out to be extremely slimy, and initially writes off Strike due to his resemblance to her ex-husband.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She's rough, brash, and not afraid to be abrasive to people whom she thinks deserves it...but she's genuinely kind to people who are sick or down on their luck.
Sassy Secretary: She doesn't seem to like Strike that much, although she does bring him some hot soup on Christmas when he's sick.
Shipper on Deck: For Robin and new detective Morris, to Robin's chagrin. She is disappointed when it becomes clear this won't happen (and when Morris is fired) until Morris's previous poor behavior is explained.
You Remind Me of X: Pat eventually says that Strike reminds her of her first husband.

Midge Greenwood

Michelle "Midge" Greenwood

An ex-cop who is hired as a subcontractor at the end of Troubled Blood.

Bodyguard Crush: She becomes involved with a bisexual actress the agency is helping deal with a stalker in the seventh book, something which causes temporary friction between her and Strike.
Butch Lesbian: She is a muscular "gym fanatic" with short hair and recently ended a long-term relationship with another woman after her partner tried to cheat on her.
Chronic Hero Syndrome: She blows her cover during a stakeout when she races out of her hiding place to try and help after a young girl is injured in a riding accident.

Sarah Shadlock

A long-time acquaintance of Matthew and Robin, who seems to have more than platonic feelings for him.

The Baby Trap: Robin theorizes that she got pregnant on purpose because Matthew was dragging out their divorce to punish Robin.
The Mistress: To Matthew, before and after his marriage, eventually becoming his new fiancee after he and Robin split up.
What Does She See in Him?: During Troubled Blood Robin muses that Sarah has been playing a very long game: she's been pining, plotting and scheming to get Matthew for ten years, ever since their university days. Even after he married Robin, she didn't give up. While objectively, Sarah and Matthew are actually well-suited, it's something of a mystery why she's remained so hung up on him for so long.

Tom Turvey

Matthew's co-worker and Sarah's fiancee.

Alliterative Name: Tom Turvey.
Butt-Monkey: He gets mocked a lot for his baldness, and his fiancee is cheating on him And ultimately leaves him a month before their wedding.
Misplaced Retribution: He seems to partially blame Robin for Sarah leaving him due to Matthew and Sarah giving him the false impression that Maatthew left Robin because she had affair with Strike. This causes him to make an angry phone call.

Dominic Culpepper

A journalist specializing in scandal and stories about the rich and powerful.

Immoral Journalist: Culpepper is eager for scandal on the rich and powerful, tries to convinced Strike to resort to illegal methods like wiretapping to do so, and is later described as "one of those journalists who had most enthusiastically raked over Strike's personal life" out of bitterness that Strike won't do him any special favors.
Ungrateful Bastard: A minor example. He's initially introduced as a client of Strike but goes on to be the author of some harassing and/or derogatory stories about him after Strike won't give him advance notice on his murder investigations.

Max Priestwood

Robin's flatmate beginning in the fifth book, an actor. Has a dachshund named Wolfgang.

Defrosting the Ice Queen: Gender Flipped. Max is initially gloomy and standoffish due to a bad breakup and being unemployed, but becomes a lot more pleasant after getting a job.
Manly Gay: As Robin puts it, he isn't Camp at all, doesn't like musicals and plays rugby. She says he reminds her of some of Matt’s buddies.
Nice Guy: He lets Robin’s brother Jonathan and his friends stay on short notice. He’s a welcoming host to them and isn’t mad at Robin when Strike has a drunken screaming match with Jonathan’s friends.
Performance Anxiety: Max tells Robin that once he had stage fright that was misdiagnosed as a heart condition. The botched operation that followed left him with a real heart condition that necessitated a pacemaker.
Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Treats Strike having a drunken blow out as this, merely being interested in it as character research for a veteran he'll be playing in a show.

Dev Shah

A subcontractor who begins working for Strike in The Ink Black Heart.

Fair Cop: Well, fair ex-cop, as he used to be an officer with the Met and has gorgeous eyelashes.
Hero of Another Story: He does most of the work for a couple of less glamorous cases that take up subplots and still involve unsavory people and the need for street smarts (with Dev posing as an international art dealer during one and a safety inspector during another) but that Strike and Robin have little involvement with.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: He is noticeably more uncompromising and frustrated than usual during a scene in The Running Grave where he and Strike discuss evidence implicating a client's son in statutory rape as part of his cult's practices.
The Reliable One: He's described as being an efficient investigator who is fine with being subordinate to Strike and the other subcontractors.
Screw the Money, I Have Rules!: He quit a well-paying job for Strike's rival Mitch Patterson (who is notorious for conducting surveillance in unethical ways) due to being "tired of working for c*nts."

Graham Hardacre

Graham "Hardy" Hardacrew

An old colleague of Strike from his time in the military.

Failed a Spot Check: Downplayed, but he drives a Mini to pick up Cormoran before remembering how tight of a fit it will be for him.
Friend on the Force: Hardacre is still serving as a military policeman, and is the man Strike seeks out in the third book when he needs information about two men he investigated in his army days. Hardacre can't let him take their files, but does let him take a picture of them since neither man is still serving in the military.

Metropolitan Police

Roy Carver

Detective Inspector Roy Carver

The detective with the Metropolitan Police who led the Lula Landry case and later becomes involved with the Shacklewell Ripper case.

Adapted Out: Carver doesn't show up in the TV adaptations of The Cuckoo's Calling or Career of Evil; his parts in those are instead given to Eric Wardle. No one misses him.
Fat Bastard: Carver is an unmitigated asshole who also happens to be quite paunchy.
Fat Slob: His shirts are usually ringed with sweat around the armpits and his shoulder covered in dandruff.
The Friend Nobody Likes: Even the other policemen detest him, to the point that Anstis refers to him as a cunt.
Humiliation Conga: While mostly off-screen, it's implied that he undergoes this in both instances when Strike does solve the case instead of him. The first book mentions him being chased down the street with reporters, and their photos capturing the sweat stains on his jacket. The third book has him locking himself in his office and refusing to see Strike. The seventh book mentions he has been forced into retirement.
Jerkass: He's a raging asshole who can never admit when he's wrong and treats Strike like garbage for having the audacity to investigate the Lula Landry case.
Obstructive Bureaucrat: He takes an instant dislike towards Strike and refuses to even consider any leads coming from him.
Police Are Useless: In contrast with his colleagues who are portrayed as simply misguided, Strike considers Carver downright incompetent.

Richard Anstis

Detective Inspector Richard Anstis

Played by: Sargon Yelda

A detective with the Metropolitan Police who was involved in the incident that cost Strike his leg. The lead detective in the Owen Quine case.

Fatal Family Photo: Specifically averted, with Strike reflecting on how he saved Anstis's life instead of a third soldier who was in the vehicle with them (someone it is hinted that Strike may have liked better than him) and wondering if that instinctive decision was influenced by the fact that Anstis had been skyping with his pregnant wife earlier that day.
Friend on the Force: He starts off as this, but becomes more antagonistic towards Strike when Leonora Quine is arrested for the murder. At the end of the second book Strike acknowledges that they're only on civil terms still because he is the godfather of Anstis's son, but their friendship is not what it once was and in the three books since, Strike has only mentioned Anstis twice in passing.
Inspector Lestrade: He has shades of this. Strike considers him a competent investigator, but lacking in imagination.
I Owe You My Life: Strike saved his life in the Middle East, and a grateful Anstis made Strike the godfather of his son.
The Nicknamer: The giver of one of Strike's many nicknames; in Anstis' case it's 'Mystic Bob'. The story behind this nickname has yet to be revealed.

Eric Wardle

Detective Sergeant (later Detective Inspector) Eric Wardle

Played by: Killian Scott

A detective in the Metropolitan Police. The lead detective on the Shacklewell Ripper case.

Adaptation Expansion: Wardle plays a bigger parts in the TV adaptation of The Cuckoo's Calling and Career of Evil than in the novels, due to Roy Carver being Adapted Out.
Eating the Eye Candy: Wardle never passes up a chance to get a good look at a pretty lady, and they enjoy looking at him back.
Fair Cop: He is boyishly handsome, his good looks being one of the first things we learn about him.
Friend on the Force: He is a lot friendlier towards Strike and Robin than most of his colleagues in the Met. By the end of Career of Evil, he is the only policeman in London on speaking terms with Strike, though this changes at the end of Lethal White after Strike and Robin call in the police on their case, realizing it's likely the only way to prevent a second murder.
Trauma Conga Line: A delayed example, but his brother dies in a car accident in the third book and his beloved wife leaves him and takes their child between the sixth and seventh books, with Strike observing that the once boyish Wardle has grown sadder and looks prematurely aged.

Vanessa Ekwensi

Wardle's partner during the Shacklewell Ripper Case, who befriends Robin.

Fair Cop: She's a fair-minded and intelligent cop described as having the body of a model.
Friend on the Force: She is willing to hear out Strike and Robin and give them information within reason, while also being friendly with Robin socially, outside of work.

George Layborn

A detective who first appears near the end of Lethal White.

Attention Whore: In the fourth book Robin describes him as straining to impress the detectives and being disappointed when Wardle arrives to take this away from him.
Characterization Marches On: Possibly. He comes across as a bit posturing and socially awkward in his first appearance, but more straightforward and vaguely insightful in his second.
It's Personal: Layborn's father was one of the detectives who investigated the serial killer Dennis Creed in the fifth book's backstory, leaving him with a personal interest in giving Strike some aide and information about it.
Jumped at the Call: He's quick to contact Strike and offer help in the fifth book despite not even being among the police contacts Strike had asked (as they've only met one time at that point).
Mr. Exposition: So far he's had just one scene in each of the books he appears, which involves telling Strike, Robin and the audience information.
Sir Swears-a-Lot: Layborn has a foul mouth, dropping bits of casual profanity in a conversation and then apologizing in a way that Robin finds patronizing.
Suspiciously Specific Denial: Quite a bit of his dialogue in Lethal White is complimenting Strike's efforts in the investigation while claiming that the police would have figured it out on their own eventually.

Ryan Murphy

A high-profile CID officer who meets Strike and Robin in The Ink Black Heart and becomes romantically interested in Robin.

Fair Cop: He is a "pleasant-looking man with wavy hair" who works important police cases.
Hero of Another Story: In his first appearance, he has spent a long time investigating the same domestic terrorists as Strike and Robin and makes some big breakthroughs on the case without them that he is quick to share.
Recovered Addict: He is a former alcoholic whose past substance problems probably wouldn't be apparent if he hadn't mentioned them.

Characters from The Cuckoo's Calling

For characters introduced in The Cuckoo's Calling, see here.

Characters from The Silkworm

For characters introduced in The Silkworm, see here.

Characters from Career of Evil

For characters introduced in Career of Evil, see here.

Characters from Lethal White

For characters introduced in Lethal White, see here.

Characters from Troubled Blood

For characters introduced in Troubled Blood, see here.

Characters / Cormoran Strike Novels

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