John Mark McMillan promises good things to come

It’s been almost a decade since the release of John Mark McMillan’s most popular single, “How He Loves,” and you can still hear it being overplayed in sanctuaries and youth worship rallies around the country. Like a fine wine the song just seems to get better with age (or maybe worship leaders have just boiled it down to a science after playing it nearly every week for a decade.) You can’t argue that the song possesses a certain timeless quality, something that McMillan seems to bring to the table with every song he releases.

His newest single, “Future / Past,” sticks to McMillan’s tried and true formula of powerful choruses and pristine lyrics, hinting at great things still to come from the artist, even if they aren’t fully realized in this release. The song, while feeling a little stunted by its formulaic structure, nevertheless drives home its message, even if it does so a little heavy-handedly. With Phil Collins toms blaring in the background, the chorus grabs hold and doesn’t let go until the end of the song. What the song misses is the ups and downs that made early McMillan songs so powerful. The song hits a plateau early on with the first chorus and never backs off.

What the song lacks in nuance it makes up for with solid writing and that ineffable quality that made “How He Loves” so catchy. The chorus shares the simplicity of most of McMillan’s songs and lends itself to the multiple repeats and a cappella moments that come standard on Sunday mornings. With vivid lyrics that call up images of everything from constellations to kingly chariots, the writing borders on great but ends up falling a little flat. As always the lyrics are incredibly singable, but they’re a long way from “Death in His Grave.”

Overall this newest single from McMillan just feels like a rehashing of old standards. He has proven perfectly capable of writing some of the most original worship music this side of the century, even if it is under-rated and overshadowed by the more accessible work he’s done. Despite the worst of McMillan’s work standing heads above most music in the modern worship/gospel genre, simply revamping what’s worked for him before won’t cut it if he wants to retain his standing as one of the best contemporary lyricists the Christian genre has to offer.

“The Cuckoo’s Calling”

Following Afghan war veteran turned private investigator, Cormoran Strike, as he investigates the apparent suicide of  supermodel Lula Landry, “The Cuckoo’s Calling” has all the unexpected revelations of a classic mystery that culminate in an immensely satisfying exposition of the machinations leading to the model’s death. A mystery writer in the classic vein, Robert Galbraith (who is now known to be a pseudonym for JK Rowling) keeps us just a step behind Strike right up until the very end, leaving his readers scrambling for more outings from this strikingly (pun intended) lovable P.I.

When the revelation was made that newcomer Robert Galbraith was in fact the author of the world-renowned Harry Potter series, JK Rowling, the comparisons to her past work became inevitable. Unlike her previous novel, “The Casual Vacancy,” the similarities between Rowling’s earliest work and this latest novel seem to work in the author’s favor. Most critics found “The Casual Vacancy” to be too far of a departure for the beloved children’s author, but “Cuckoo’s Calling” manages to find a happy medium. All the elements that made the Harry Potter series and “The Casual Vacancy” work so well are present without the few glaring flaws of her previous work.

Rowling has always had a knack for creating lovable characters with flawed pasts and she executes this perfectly in “Cuckoo.” Our introduction to the novel’s lead comes at a time of incredible turmoil for the private dick, having recently split from his long-time girlfriend. He returned from the Afghan war years earlier only after losing a leg. When the story finds him he is living out of his office, on the verge of bankruptcy, and constantly beset by problems with his prosthesis. All this on top of a troubled childhood creates a perfectly attainable standard for the reader to impute their own struggles onto. He’s relatable, flawed, and incredibly bright leaving you with a confused notion that you could fill his shoes if necessary.

Early on in the novel Strike finds himself aligned with Robin, a temporary secretary who apprehensively steps into the detective’s world. She (much like the audience) begins with a romantic notion of what a real investigation looks like, but as things progress finds the world more and more enticing despite its (and Strike’s) flaws. The characters of the novel really are some of the best Rowling has created, and like “The Casual Vacancy” even secondary characters take on lives of their own that could easily become the subjects of novels themselves.

The story itself is wonderfully enticing from the moment we learn the subject of the investigation: the suicide of one of Britain’s most famous supermodels, Lula Landry, known to her friends as “Cuckoo.” The apparent suicide shocked the entire nation, but none so much as Landry’s half brother, who refused to believe his sister would commit such an act. Initially skeptical, the story takes us through a whirlwind of interrogations and stakeouts as Strike, aided by Robin, piece together the reality of the story with testimony gathered from unreliable friends, neighbors, and employees. Unlike “The Casual Vacancy,” the story doesn’t suffer from a painfully slow pace or a dragging second act. Every page feels like it belongs and as the clues and tips amass, the pace intensifies until the culmination of the story that ties up the loose ends.

Rowling (as Galbraith) truly has created a classic mystery set in an age where nothing is secret. The difficulty of the task coupled with the prowess of the execution leaves readers desperate for a second installment featuring the most original detective team since Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander.