Adam – One of Strike’s nephews.
Al Rokeby – Strike’s half-brother.
Anna Phipps – Strike and Robin’s client.
Cagney (cat) – Anna Phipps’ and Kim Sullivan’s cat.
Charlotte Campbell – Strike’s ex-girlfriend of sixteen years.
Chris – A friend of Dave Polworth.
Cormoran Strike – You know who he is.
Cynthia Phipps – Wife and third cousin of Anna Phipps’ father.
Bill Talbot – The detective inspector who worked on the disappearance of Margot.
Dave Polworth – Strike’s oldest friend from Cornwall.
Dennis Creed – Serial killer suspected to be related to the disappearance of Margot.
Dinesh Gupta – A doctor at the St John’s medical practice. Likes fig rolls.
Dorothy Oakden – The secretary at the St John’s medical practice.
Gail Wrightman – Victim of serial killer Dennis Creed.
George Layborn – A detective inspector in the Met who gets hold of the old Bamborough case notes.
Gloria Conti – A receptionist at the St John’s medical practice; last person to see Margot alive.
Gregory Talbot – The son of Bill Talbot, the detective on the original Bamborough investigation.
Ilsa Herbert – Strike and Robin’s friend.
Irene Bull – A receptionist at the St John’s medical practice.
Jack – Strike’s favourite nephew.
Janice Beattie – The nurse at the St John’s medical practice.
Joan Nancarrow – Strike and Lucy’s aunt who lives in Cornwall.
Jonathan Ellacott – One of Robin’s brothers.
Jonny Rokeby – Strike’s biological father.
Joseph Brenner – A doctor at the St John’s medical practice.
Ken Lawson – The detective that took over from Bill Talbot on the original investigation.
Kim Sullivan – Girlfriend of Anna Phipps.
Lacey (cat) – Anna Phipps’ and Kim Sullivan’s
Linda Ellacott – Robin’s mother.
Lucy Fantoni – Strike’s half-sister.
Luke – One of Strike’s nephews.
Margot (Margaret) Bamborough – The mother of Anna Phipps; disappeared in 1974.
Matthew Cunliffe – Robin’s husband who continues to complicate the divorce.
Max Priestwood – Robin’s live-in landlord in Earl’s Court.
Michael Ellacott – Robin’s father.
Mrs Campion in Windsor – A wife of Tufty.
Nick Herbert – Strike and Robin’s friend.
Oonagh Kennedy – The friend Margot was supposed to be meeting before she went missing.
Patricia Chauncey – Strike and Robin’s new office manager.
Paul Satchwell – Margot Bamborough’a ex-boyfriend.
Penny Polworth – Wife of Strike’s friend Dave Polworth.
Postcard – The person sending one of Strike and Robin’s clients postcards.
Robin Ellacott – You know who she is.
Roy Phipps – Anna Phipps’ father.
Rozwyn – A name mentioned by Dave Polworth.
Sam Barclay – One of Strike and Robin’s subcontractors.
Sarah Shadlock – Matthew’s friend from university.
Saul Morris – Strike and Robin’s new subcontractor.
Shanker – Strike’s contact to the dark side of London.
Shifty – A target who got promoted suspiciously.
Steve Douthwaite – A regular patient at the St John’s medical practice.
Ted Nancarrow – Strike’s uncle who lives in Cornwall.
Tom Turvey – Friend of Matthew Cunliffe and Sarah Shadlock’s fiancé.
Twinkletoes – A dancer whose father wants her boyfriend watched.
Two-Times – One of Strike and Robin’s regular clients.
Tufty (Edward Campion, John) Vera Kenny – Victim of serial killer Dennis Creed.
Wilma Bayliss – The cleaner at both the St John’s medical practice and the Phippses’ house.