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kappafrog's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved the 1940s Brooklyn setting. That's where half my family lived in the 1940s so it was really fun to see it in fiction. I LOVED the two detectives, Parker and Pentecost. Parker was a very funny protagonist who was easy to root for in spite of her flaws. I was impressed at how well a male author wrote all the women in this book, including the queer women. There were some really tender moments with queer characters that felt very real.
Pentecost and Parker played off each other really well. I loved their found family relationship. And can I just say, it was really moving and exciting for me to read a character as badass as Ms. Pentecost who walks with a cane and has a dynamic disability that makes her require lots of rest and slur her words. I have chronic daily migraine and not MS, but I related with her so much and felt seen and represented in a way that felt really good - and really unusual. Hats off to the author for impressing me so much with the representation in this novel!
The mystery itself was really fun. I loved how we followed along as Parker and Ms. P figured things out. There were a lot of things that I was slowly piecing together. I liked how the book didn't have the protagonists overlooking obvious clues but had the detective pair constantly pointing out suspicious details and speculating, putting just what I was thinking into words. And yet, many aspects of the ending took me completely by surprise!! Even when this book employed classic tropes of the hard-boiled noir, I ate it all up.
I loved the complexities opened up by the final few chapters.
Graphic: Biphobia, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Minor: Addiction, Cancer, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Excrement, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Cultural appropriation, and War
kimveach's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Cancer, Drug use, Infidelity, and Pregnancy
karcitis's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Homophobia, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Blood, Outing, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Cancer, Terminal illness, Antisemitism, Fire/Fire injury, and War