Which fictional detective is the protagonist of J.K. Rowling’s Cormoran Strike series?

Cormoran Strike is the protagonist of J.K. Rowling’s Cormoran Strike series.

Strike is a private detective who operates in London. He is a former Special Investigation Branch investigator in the Royal Military Police and has a prosthetic leg after losing part of his lower leg in Afghanistan. Those experiences shape both his investigative skills and his personal life.

The character first appears in The Cuckoo’s Calling, published in 2013 under Rowling’s pseudonym Robert Galbraith. Robin Ellacott joins his office as a temporary secretary and becomes an important partner in the cases.

Strike is not a disguised version of Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, or another classic detective. The books establish their own characters, investigations, and relationships. Rowling’s crime novels are aimed at an adult audience and use a more realistic investigative setting than the magical world of Harry Potter.