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sandygx260's review
5.0
Cass Neary finally found her story. This third Cass Neary Crime Novel is wonderful. I didn't love the first two novels, but here Hand finds Cass Neary's true voice. It is a mighty voice, compelling and seductive.
This novel is a lovingly twisted mix of music, antiquities, photography, deception, death, and memories. It's far gentler than Available Dark and more real, much closer to the heart. The emotional depth is amazing. Hand is a master of emotions, and here she's squeezing our hearts.
Please let there be a book four. Please. Cass deserves a break.
This novel is a lovingly twisted mix of music, antiquities, photography, deception, death, and memories. It's far gentler than Available Dark and more real, much closer to the heart. The emotional depth is amazing. Hand is a master of emotions, and here she's squeezing our hearts.
Please let there be a book four. Please. Cass deserves a break.
fleurhoplof's review
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
raginsagein's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse
Moderate: Body horror
john_bridges's review
4.0
I listened to the audiobook edition, with another excellent performance by Carol Monda, although perhaps her attempt at British accents is not spot on. That fits though, given that the book is narrated in the voice of Cass Neary, who would probably be terrible at doing those accents herself. Cass is a very damaged and road-worn protagonist, and here she is thrust into a world of even more damaged people, an artistic scene with a dark past that haunts the present. Hand is great at evoking atmospheric locales, and she brings to life the rain lashed streets of London and the snow and sleet whipped moors of Cornwall. I enjoyed the way Hand wove the work of the eccentric photographer William Mortensen into the story too. Archaeology also figures into the story as well, with Cass making a fascinating discovery of ancient ingenuity. Cass may be too dark and damaged for some readers, even ones accustomed to down and out alcoholic detectives, but Carol Monda’s performance pulls me in and makes Cass vivid and compelling, even when she is not very admirable.
emmaconstantly's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
joshgauthier's review
5.0
2020 reread.
Pitch dark with flashes of hope, gritty and uncomfortable with glimpses of beauty--harsh and lyrical in a single breath--Liz Hand is an incredible talent and the Cass Neary books are truly remarkable.
-----------------------------------------------
This was a true successor to the first two books of the series.
If I'm being honest, there's a part of me that didn't like it quite as much as the others. But then there's another part of me that thinks the first part doesn't know what it's talking about.
Basically, this book takes the story in some slightly new tones and directions. They aren't so much changes as they are the growth of the character and series.
Ultimately, it works. The story is still dark and beautiful and twisted and unsettling and everything that makes the series so gripping.
And that ending just works.
"I'm the ghost of punk, haunting the twenty-first century in disintegrating black-and-white.
Pitch dark with flashes of hope, gritty and uncomfortable with glimpses of beauty--harsh and lyrical in a single breath--Liz Hand is an incredible talent and the Cass Neary books are truly remarkable.
-----------------------------------------------
This was a true successor to the first two books of the series.
If I'm being honest, there's a part of me that didn't like it quite as much as the others. But then there's another part of me that thinks the first part doesn't know what it's talking about.
Basically, this book takes the story in some slightly new tones and directions. They aren't so much changes as they are the growth of the character and series.
Ultimately, it works. The story is still dark and beautiful and twisted and unsettling and everything that makes the series so gripping.
And that ending just works.
unboxedjack's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, and Murder
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, and Cancer
faustian_bargain's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
carolynf's review
4.0
The trilogy ends with Cass in England on a stolen passport, once again stumbling upon dead bodies. She continues to make poor life choices regarding sex and drugs while trying to track down her long lost boyfriend from the previous book. Her ability to get into ever deeper trouble is amazingly entertaining, and enhanced by her insights into photography and punk roots. Most of this book takes place in London, with a side trip to moors of Cornwall.