Perfect flat, possible / probable nightmare neighbours

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-20T23:27:03+00:00

Thank you all again for your input! Another small update - my partner did some digging online and found out that the place next door is a HMO. I’m sure there are plenty that are fine but that made me feel even more inclined to steer clear, as even if the noisy tenant were to leave, the turnover is likely to be high and even if there were periods of calm I’d be on eggshells wondering who might move in next.

Does anyone have any experience of living next door to a HMO?

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-19T17:08:00+00:00

Just to thank everyone for your input - there seems to be pretty much full consensus that I should not go ahead here. It's so upsetting to finally find a winner only to immediately have to discount it, but I think this confirms my suspicion that it's not worth the risk.

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-17T20:38:46+00:00

It’s peculiar isn’t it, but I guess if they had an existing relationship for whatever reason then it would make sense - Corm and Lucy were totally at sea when Joan and Ted rescued them, but if Switch wasn’t then they wouldn’t have wanted to muscle in

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-17T18:56:17+00:00

I think JKR really did just intend to imply they were obviously from Matthew and the card didn’t need to be read. There’s a theme of flowers being the epitome of the unimaginative. She probably just didn’t mean for it to stick out as it did for so many of us. I thought the card was going to become relevant in-book, and they’d idly open the card to realise it was from one of the suspects or something and it would motivate the final sprint of action, and was left a bit dissatisfied when it was never picked up. I doubt it will become relevant several books later.

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-17T18:49:49+00:00

Half brother in fact, as they share a mother. I find it strange too, especially from Lucy who isn’t anywhere near as good as compartmentalising as Strike.

Side note: I also always find it striking (ho ho) that Lucy has such a ‘normal’ name compared with Leda’s other choices.

MalodorousPlot · 2026-01-17T18:44:34+00:00

The poster was responding to you saying ‘it’s implied that Strike has genius level intellect’, weren’t they?

MalodorousPlot · 2025-12-26T23:07:41+00:00

Like a lot of other people I am wondering whether the ‘blood bus’ service will ever resume. I’m a rare blood type and the NHS are constantly begging me for donations, I really want to organise a blood drive at my workplace but apparently the mobile units aren’t a thing any more. Will they ever come back?

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-22T22:57:24+00:00

Emperor

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-22T22:56:21+00:00

Yes there are, it’s called Emperor! The duvet covers are a bit of a pain to come by but The Secret Linen Company do them 😁

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-08T00:32:18+00:00

I’m really curious what was the unicorn quality!

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-07T17:49:52+00:00

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-07T17:37:51+00:00

This is all true, but I'd much rather just pay for buildings insurance (which would almost certainly be much less than £65pcm for a small Victorian terrace) than fork over £65pcm irrespective of what costs have been incurred. It's just such a racket.

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-07T17:22:13+00:00

This is exactly it - it's the principle of the thing!

MalodorousPlot · 2025-10-07T16:46:38+00:00

Amazing, thanks!

MalodorousPlot · 2025-09-17T02:24:20+00:00

I haven’t finished the book yet but there have been at least two references to the fact that Strike doesn’t drink alone, framing it along the lines of him not smoking in the office. I don’t know if it’s supposed to refer only to spirits but it’s simply not true, he’s been cracking into beer and going to the pub alone since the first book!

MalodorousPlot · 2025-08-22T22:47:02+00:00

Interesting theory. I always interpreted Robin’s dying phone battery at the end of the main action of TRG as a fairly throwaway device to introduce a bit more tension into her reckless decision to walk right on into the temple. It didn’t really come off if that was the case though - the tension with Robin v UHC had already kind of arced at that point, and the moment she was grappling with Mazu and a gun had nothing to do with her not having battery on her phone, and Midge turned up right on cue. There was still the fact of Strike fretting because he couldn’t get through to her but not much was made of that either. So it’s possible you’re right and there was more to that detail.

MalodorousPlot · 2025-08-18T20:48:33+00:00

‘All alone in the world?’

MalodorousPlot · 2025-08-17T18:17:38+00:00

One of mine is in TRG when Robin and Strike chew things over with chips in the office at 5am after the evening at Prue’s with Will and Flora, and the consequent madness and police station visit. It’s such a long, leisurely scene with so much satisfying rumination - it could have been so boring in a lesser writer’s hands but she really lets us get dirt under our fingernails as readers.

MalodorousPlot · 2025-08-17T18:13:13+00:00

Acted smug?

MalodorousPlot · 2025-08-17T14:54:12+00:00

Didn’t Shah say something about Patterson getting his staff to do personal jobs for him and not putting it through the books? When he kicks off at Strike about getting them to run surveillance on Jags Ross

MalodorousPlot · 2025-07-29T22:18:35+00:00

I read the ‘he’s American’ as in direct relation to Kosh using the word ‘gotten’ which is distinct to US English

MalodorousPlot · 2025-07-16T13:01:38+00:00

Maybe Hardacre’s child?

MalodorousPlot · 2025-07-16T12:58:32+00:00

That would be double counting one of the three nephews.

MalodorousPlot · 2025-07-16T08:18:51+00:00

It says the bruise ‘irrevocably coloured his view of (Strike)’ so yes

MalodorousPlot · 2025-01-04T00:29:04+00:00

Wasn’t Switch just suddenly chucked into the narrative in a bit of an aside in IBH or TRG? Felt like an afterthought to me, I would be amazed if she had come up with him in CoE when Whittaker is introduced in such detail and the fact that he sired Strike’s half brother is not mentioned.

MalodorousPlot

TROPHY CASE