Which pseudonym did J.K. Rowling use when writing The Cuckoo’s Calling?

J.K. Rowling used the pseudonym Robert Galbraith when writing The Cuckoo’s Calling.

The novel was published in April 2013 as a crime mystery about the death of model Lula Landry. Its detective, Cormoran Strike, investigates whether her apparent suicide was actually murder. The book was marketed as the debut of an unknown former military investigator named Robert Galbraith.

Rowling’s identity as the author was exposed several months after publication. The revelation created immediate interest in the novel and led to a sharp rise in sales. Rowling then confirmed that she had written it and continued the series under the same pseudonym.

The book is sometimes remembered as a Harry Potter spin-off because of its author, but it is unrelated in setting, characters, and genre. It established Rowling’s second major fictional world: contemporary adult crime fiction.