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agmaynard's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Not quite as engaged as the setup is not quite as appealing. However, humor and great character development kept me consistently interested to see how they'd get to their happy ending.
leahkarge's review against another edition
4.0
Rep: lesbian MC, pansexual LI, black LI, biracial LI, fat LI
Warnings: slurs, gendered slurs, ableism, pregnancy / insemination, suicide mention
Warnings: slurs, gendered slurs, ableism, pregnancy / insemination, suicide mention
cleo_reads's review against another edition
4.0
I love, love this whole series. It's the urban, queer version of a small town romance series that I didn't know I needed, but I did. It centers around a scruffy queer bar and a queer youth center in a fictional version of Oakland CA.
This is the 5th and last book. It's not at all stand alone, in my opinion. There's an over arching murder mystery that was solved in book 4 and there's a lot about healing the community from the earlier string of murders. I suppose you could read it without reading the rest but then you'd know the murder's identity.
I thought it wrapped the series up really well. I thought the romance was a little understated. And there's a sub-plot about starting a new career program thingie for queer youth that I felt was distracting and also felt like a set up for a new series.
This is the 5th and last book. It's not at all stand alone, in my opinion. There's an over arching murder mystery that was solved in book 4 and there's a lot about healing the community from the earlier string of murders. I suppose you could read it without reading the rest but then you'd know the murder's identity.
I thought it wrapped the series up really well. I thought the romance was a little understated. And there's a sub-plot about starting a new career program thingie for queer youth that I felt was distracting and also felt like a set up for a new series.
veethorn's review against another edition
4.0
This series keeps getting better. I'm so glad it exists. The first couple of books were okay, but this one and the last one are wonderful.
aprillen's review against another edition
4.0
The love story didn't grip me as hard in this one, much like The Queer and the Restless, but the story about how the community deals with the aftermath of the murder spree did. This is what sets this series apart from your usual murder mystery stories; this was never about the solving of a crime, but about how people -- especially people who are already marginalised and targeted in numerous ways -- are impacted by a situation that threatens the bonds of their community and their support structures.
goodbyepuckpie's review against another edition
4.0
This was charming, and a really nice bookend to the series as a whole, with plenty of on-going glimpses into the lives of characters previous books were based around. I really enjoy and appreciate the sense of community and interlocking lives that this series is built on, it rings very true to me. Really loved getting to see more of Dred and Zane, and also to meet Aunt Florence. :D
(Also, the author's note at the end made me feel a lot of feelings in this, our current timeline.)
(Also, the author's note at the end made me feel a lot of feelings in this, our current timeline.)
ariadna's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating: 2.8
At first, my excitement for this book was v. strong: I’m always on the lookout for well-written F/F, I had already met most of the characters via previous books, and Ripper is a pretty good author. Despite not being a huge fan of pregnancy stories, I was ready for Zane’s story.
There were 2 things that got on my nerves, i.e. really didn’t work for me:
- The pregnancy plot
This book goes in deep about Zane’s obsession with wanting to be with child. As the A Plot, the bulk of the book focuses on what Zane needs to do to have a kid, where she gets the sperm, etc. It is, in many ways, the thing that defines Zane as a character and, frankly, it was exhausting more often than not.
Since Zane’s "I NEED TO BE PREGGO OR ELSE!" was so strong, I thought it was a bit weird that there aren’t any moments where she talks about the reason(s) why she wants to have a kid. Like, yes, there are a couple of mentions of the possibility of adoption. For the most part, though, Zane is pretty much desperate to go through the experience of being pregnant...and that is pretty much it.
It’s not until later in the book that one character asks her point blank why she’s so eager to carry a kid and Zane’s answer is rather superficial, imo.
Adding to my annoyance about this specific plotline was Zane feeling defeated because she couldn’t conceive (despite being given a clean bill of health). Many scenes centered around Zane’s friends consoling her for not being pregnant yet and her own sadness/unfulfillment.
- The gorram quilting.
I’m sure this is gonna sound silly to some, but the B Plot focused on quilting a lot (A LOT.) Part of it has to do with it being an activity that Zane and Dred liked. The book went on and on about the kind of blocking they do, the different materials they use, what makes a good design over a bad one, etc. I found it tremendously boring despite the book’s efforts to add some meaning to all that quilting (vis a vis Dred’s potential reconciliation with her parents).
Some of my frustration with the quilting scenes was that I couldn't skip them because they always involved Zane and Dred. Therefore, I had to roll up my sleeves and deal with the tedium of quilting if I wanted to read up on their relationship. Being forced to read about quilting annoyed me to end.
And now for the positive…
I loved Zane/Dred. They were a cute couple. Also, the fact that they started as two people pretending to date each other was GREATNESS. Their romance felt genuine and strong. There was a lot of sparkage between them in and out of bed. Unfortch, it felt like the romance was pushed back several times so that the story could once again remind the readers that Zane needed to have a babby in her belly. #Eyeroll
I also liked how the book followed up on all the MCs from previous books in the series. The way Zane would interact with Cam or Emmerson or Ed, for example, never felt forced.
There was a tertiary plotline that was a combination of the La Vista queers dealing with the aftermath of the murders + a community center for queer youth.
TL;DR: The last book in the series bring a lot of storylines forward (with Zane’s quest for pregnancy being the main one.) I loved the F/F couple and catching up with other characters from the series.
My interest in the book waned a lot because of the pregnancy + quilting combo.
Definitely NOT a standalone since those who avoid the other books will miss out on many details.
At first, my excitement for this book was v. strong: I’m always on the lookout for well-written F/F, I had already met most of the characters via previous books, and Ripper is a pretty good author. Despite not being a huge fan of pregnancy stories, I was ready for Zane’s story.
There were 2 things that got on my nerves, i.e. really didn’t work for me:
- The pregnancy plot
This book goes in deep about Zane’s obsession with wanting to be with child. As the A Plot, the bulk of the book focuses on what Zane needs to do to have a kid, where she gets the sperm, etc. It is, in many ways, the thing that defines Zane as a character and, frankly, it was exhausting more often than not.
Since Zane’s "I NEED TO BE PREGGO OR ELSE!" was so strong, I thought it was a bit weird that there aren’t any moments where she talks about the reason(s) why she wants to have a kid. Like, yes, there are a couple of mentions of the possibility of adoption. For the most part, though, Zane is pretty much desperate to go through the experience of being pregnant...and that is pretty much it.
It’s not until later in the book that one character asks her point blank why she’s so eager to carry a kid and Zane’s answer is rather superficial, imo.
Adding to my annoyance about this specific plotline was Zane feeling defeated because she couldn’t conceive (despite being given a clean bill of health). Many scenes centered around Zane’s friends consoling her for not being pregnant yet and her own sadness/unfulfillment.
- The gorram quilting.
I’m sure this is gonna sound silly to some, but the B Plot focused on quilting a lot (A LOT.) Part of it has to do with it being an activity that Zane and Dred liked. The book went on and on about the kind of blocking they do, the different materials they use, what makes a good design over a bad one, etc. I found it tremendously boring despite the book’s efforts to add some meaning to all that quilting (vis a vis Dred’s potential reconciliation with her parents).
Some of my frustration with the quilting scenes was that I couldn't skip them because they always involved Zane and Dred. Therefore, I had to roll up my sleeves and deal with the tedium of quilting if I wanted to read up on their relationship. Being forced to read about quilting annoyed me to end.
And now for the positive…
I loved Zane/Dred. They were a cute couple. Also, the fact that they started as two people pretending to date each other was GREATNESS. Their romance felt genuine and strong. There was a lot of sparkage between them in and out of bed. Unfortch, it felt like the romance was pushed back several times so that the story could once again remind the readers that Zane needed to have a babby in her belly. #Eyeroll
I also liked how the book followed up on all the MCs from previous books in the series. The way Zane would interact with Cam or Emmerson or Ed, for example, never felt forced.
There was a tertiary plotline that was a combination of the La Vista queers dealing with the aftermath of the murders + a community center for queer youth.
TL;DR: The last book in the series bring a lot of storylines forward (with Zane’s quest for pregnancy being the main one.) I loved the F/F couple and catching up with other characters from the series.
My interest in the book waned a lot because of the pregnancy + quilting combo.
Definitely NOT a standalone since those who avoid the other books will miss out on many details.
kjcharles's review against another edition
A great end to a terrific series. This should definitely be read as book 5 of 5, in order, a) because you want to read all of them, and b) because it ties up loads of loose ends, and has a lot to do with the murder mystery that comes to a head in #4.
First person, with Zane's voice coming across loud, clear and fun. There's a lot going on in this book other than the romance--Zane's extremely well conveyed need to get pregnant, the drive to heal the community damaged by a killer, a near-victim's effort to overcome trauma, and much more--and that plus the 1st person means we don't see quite as much of Dred as I'd have liked. She's a brilliant character--strong but vulnerable, protecting herself but brave enough to trust again--and I loved every scene she was in. These are the challenges of writing massive ensemble pieces, and indeed of first person. I loved both leads, and all the supporting cast, and the themes are really well handled, with the soapish quality Ripper has been playing with throughout balanced by intense realism and serious issues.
Plus another fab cover. The whole set looks great and indeed is.
First person, with Zane's voice coming across loud, clear and fun. There's a lot going on in this book other than the romance--Zane's extremely well conveyed need to get pregnant, the drive to heal the community damaged by a killer, a near-victim's effort to overcome trauma, and much more--and that plus the 1st person means we don't see quite as much of Dred as I'd have liked. She's a brilliant character--strong but vulnerable, protecting herself but brave enough to trust again--and I loved every scene she was in. These are the challenges of writing massive ensemble pieces, and indeed of first person. I loved both leads, and all the supporting cast, and the themes are really well handled, with the soapish quality Ripper has been playing with throughout balanced by intense realism and serious issues.
Plus another fab cover. The whole set looks great and indeed is.
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