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3.78 AVERAGE
3.78 AVERAGE
Took me a while to get into this one, and I’m usually a KA fan. I found the short jumps forward and back in time a little jarring and had trouble getting the characters straight in my head. But once I accepted who was who and the time device, I enjoyed it.
I enjoyed this story of London clubs between the wars. Liked the way WWI informed so many of the characters' motivations in different yet compelling ways. The characters make the story, but the story holds its own until the end, which feels a bit rushed and a little forced.
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I felt it took a while to really get going, but was nevertheless immensely enjoyable throughout.
All that glitters is not gold...unless Kat Atkinson writes it. It's maybe not her best, but I still loved this take on Roaring 20s London. It brings the era to life better than any history book.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a very unique story, with a nonlinear structure, but I think that worked very well in its favor! The story revolves around Nellie Coker, the matriarch of a family a la Peaky Blinders; Detective Frobisher, very similar to Peaky Blinder's Chester Campbell without the creepiness; Gwendolen Kelling, a former librarian turned spy for the detective; and Freda, a 14 year old runaway. The story does an excellent job of weaving their narratives together to create a compelling story that keeps you guessing what happens next - is Freda going to be found dead? What role does the Coker family play in all of this? What's great though is that each narrative has such a distinct voice, it makes it easy to know when you've switched POVs, which is a rarity, and the characters are very complex and multilayered. I loved the setting of this, 1920s London, and you can tell it was very well researched, and the narrative structure brought the story up to such a head, that the ending was almost a let down in how quickly it all seemed to wrap up. But this story was excellent, and I would read it again even after all its mysteries have been revealed to me!
Kate Atkinson is one of my favorite contemporary authors, and I was so excited when this book came out. While her trademark wit — like she's letting the reader in on something — was apparent throughout this book, overall, this book, sadly, did very little for me. I was so unenthused for the first 50 percent, and although it started to kick off a little later, I never (or barely) felt invested in any of the characters. There were a few storylines that were left fully resolved, and I question why this was necessary — why intentionally have something happen to character A or B and then just say, "Well, no one ever knew what happened, in the end."
This was often described as witty but I missed it.
Slow start, the book picks up halfway but ultimately there’s not enough action or satisfying character development for me to really enjoy it.
The ending was shocking and dreadful.
Slow start, the book picks up halfway but ultimately there’s not enough action or satisfying character development for me to really enjoy it.
The ending was shocking and dreadful.
Absolutely fabulous story, loosely based on Kate Meyrick, the Nightclub Queen of 1920's London. A cast of characters whose lives didn't always take the path I wanted for them, and Kate Atkinson leaves a few untied strands which will keep me wondering what happened to those 'friends of mine'.