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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
So, I skipped from the first Maeve Kerrigan book straight to number 5. This is because I got my hands on another advance reader copy before I got around to reading book number 2. I like this series and fully intend to fill in the middle books as well.
To Casey's credit, I slipped into the book, including backstory, without any confusion. Maeve is such a believable character. I can put myself in her shoes quite easily. She is ambitious, somewhat political in that she tries not to rock the boat and goes quietly out on her own instead of loudly declaring her dissatisfaction. In that way she's the opposite of her partner, Josh Derwent, who didn't appear in book number 1. Derwent manages to be sleazy, annoying, sexist, and yet somehow someone I still liked. Casey humanized him just enough that he appeals to the bad boy-loving part of me, even though he's pretty horrible to deal with, and Maeve reads his moods and creeps around his rages much like a battered spouse might.
Maeve has several political issues to deal with in this book, quite apart from the cases at hand, which are murdered police officers with no obvious connection between them other than their profession. She knows a secret about her boss, and because of the furtiveness of some aspects of their relationship a lot of people assume she is sleeping with him. She has to deal with, shrug off, and push back at the sexism ingrained in the police department. This book does a great job of exploring just what it is to be female in a male-dominated profession, and in a male-dominated world, for that matter.
You can see that I've concentrated on characters more than plot. This is partly because I don't want to give much away about the plot, and partly because the characterization is so great in this book. I'm not sure that the mystery is impossible to guess, but I was as much interested in what was going on in the background as in the case itself, so that didn't bother me.
One thing: both in this book and in the first one there were female villains who were unhinged, dangerous, and with not enough backstory to know exactly why they were that way. These characters seem almost caricatures compared with the other people in the book. I haven't read enough to know if Casey is the same way with male bad guys, or if she has a bit of a blind spot here.
So, I skipped from the first Maeve Kerrigan book straight to number 5. This is because I got my hands on another advance reader copy before I got around to reading book number 2. I like this series and fully intend to fill in the middle books as well.
To Casey's credit, I slipped into the book, including backstory, without any confusion. Maeve is such a believable character. I can put myself in her shoes quite easily. She is ambitious, somewhat political in that she tries not to rock the boat and goes quietly out on her own instead of loudly declaring her dissatisfaction. In that way she's the opposite of her partner, Josh Derwent, who didn't appear in book number 1. Derwent manages to be sleazy, annoying, sexist, and yet somehow someone I still liked. Casey humanized him just enough that he appeals to the bad boy-loving part of me, even though he's pretty horrible to deal with, and Maeve reads his moods and creeps around his rages much like a battered spouse might.
Maeve has several political issues to deal with in this book, quite apart from the cases at hand, which are murdered police officers with no obvious connection between them other than their profession. She knows a secret about her boss, and because of the furtiveness of some aspects of their relationship a lot of people assume she is sleeping with him. She has to deal with, shrug off, and push back at the sexism ingrained in the police department. This book does a great job of exploring just what it is to be female in a male-dominated profession, and in a male-dominated world, for that matter.
You can see that I've concentrated on characters more than plot. This is partly because I don't want to give much away about the plot, and partly because the characterization is so great in this book. I'm not sure that the mystery is impossible to guess, but I was as much interested in what was going on in the background as in the case itself, so that didn't bother me.
One thing: both in this book and in the first one there were female villains who were unhinged, dangerous, and with not enough backstory to know exactly why they were that way. These characters seem almost caricatures compared with the other people in the book. I haven't read enough to know if Casey is the same way with male bad guys, or if she has a bit of a blind spot here.
Oh my god. I already love Jane Casey. I have devoured her Maeve Kerrigan books ever since I discovered them. And this was one of the best so far. The most emotionally draining, one of the most suspenseful mysteries, and full of amazing (and stressful) moments featuring my favorite team of detectives.
Also, it was extremely relevant. The questions of police brutality/gun violence really resonate, especially with an American reader.
Also, it was extremely relevant. The questions of police brutality/gun violence really resonate, especially with an American reader.
challenging
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When a schoolgirl is killed on a London bus, DC Georgia Shaw in on the case alongside DS Kerrigan & DI Derwent. The bus was full of passengers & there is CCTV, yet no-one noticed a thing.
This a novella of approx 100 pages from the viewpoint of Georgia. The reader gets to know about her life a bit more, including her crush on Derwent & how all he sees is Maeve. It was interesting to see Kerwent's dynamic through an outside observer & how obvious it is to everyone except Maeve. It didn't make me like Georgia any more than I did before though.
This a novella of approx 100 pages from the viewpoint of Georgia. The reader gets to know about her life a bit more, including her crush on Derwent & how all he sees is Maeve. It was interesting to see Kerwent's dynamic through an outside observer & how obvious it is to everyone except Maeve. It didn't make me like Georgia any more than I did before though.
Glad I read it, too short, definitely not a necessary read to follow the series, I still don't like Georgia.
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
I didn’t think I liked this one more than The Stranger You Know but then the last third kicked in and I thought, you know what, I still don’t, but it does come close. Basically, I thought this was going to be a 3.5 and then after finishing it, I liked it too damn much to round down. I’m having the best time with these books!! Seriously so incredibly underrated, this is the most spot on “if you like Tana French you must read these” recommendation I’ve ever seen.
This one in particular dealt with a cop-killer, and touched on some themes of civil unrest due to public opinion on the police. I do want to flag that if that’s not something you’d like to be reading about at the moment, because it did make me a bit wary at first (reconciling my own enjoyment and comfort in police procedural media alongside my abolitionist goals/mindset has been a whole thing itself), but eventually I was able to set my concerns aside due to the focus on the characters.
Overall, though, these are just really great standalone thriller/mysteries while also doing some really great character work across novels. I think you’d get more out of this one knowing the characters previously, but I also think it could work as a complete standalone as well. Basically what I’m saying is if you like police procedural novels at all, you must pick up a Jane Casey.
Final note, if you see me, a lesbian, simping for Derwent, who is the absolute worst, no you didn’t <3
This one in particular dealt with a cop-killer, and touched on some themes of civil unrest due to public opinion on the police. I do want to flag that if that’s not something you’d like to be reading about at the moment, because it did make me a bit wary at first (reconciling my own enjoyment and comfort in police procedural media alongside my abolitionist goals/mindset has been a whole thing itself), but eventually I was able to set my concerns aside due to the focus on the characters.
Overall, though, these are just really great standalone thriller/mysteries while also doing some really great character work across novels. I think you’d get more out of this one knowing the characters previously, but I also think it could work as a complete standalone as well. Basically what I’m saying is if you like police procedural novels at all, you must pick up a Jane Casey.
Final note, if you see me, a lesbian, simping for Derwent, who is the absolute worst, no you didn’t <3
The brand new novella from the point of Georgina is a great read! We finally find out more about Georgina, who she is, what she wants, and her troubling past. A school girl is stabbed to death on a bus. Who did it and why? She seemed quite innocent, but was she really? Fast and easy read, typical great writing by the excellent author Jane Casey!