Reviews

Good Man Friday by Barbara Hambly

lacewing's review against another edition

informative mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

miraclemarg's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

lian_tanner's review against another edition

4.0

Barbara Hambly's fantasy writing is wonderful, and so is the Benjamin January series. Unlike far too many other authors I've read recently (yes, Dana Stabenow, I'm looking at you), Hambly's books seem to be getting stronger as the series progesses, rather than weaker. This one is set in Washington, and the sense of threat that hangs over the whole book is palpable. Hambly captures the fear, the helplessness and the indignities of slavery with great compassion, while also telling a ragingly good story.

besha's review against another edition

3.0

I enjoy Hambly's sentence-level writing, her characterization, and her period details. Plotting has never been a strong point of the series, but I've heard sob stories from drunks in bars that made more sense than this story.

I really appreciate that Hambly changes up settings; she can show off her research about life in 1830s anywhere and I'll enjoy it. But I have no idea what just happened.

abicat's review

hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I would love to read about this character and his time and place, written by a person of color.  It feels dishonest to read a white woman's version - I feel dishonest trusting her voice for this story.

archytas's review against another edition

4.75

Look, there is a lot of very ordinary historical crime fiction out there, and Barbara Hambly writes none of it. Her Benjamin January series has the standard ups and downs, but on the whole she gets the combinations of exploring historical detail AND *implications* of that detail (racial, ecomonic and gender justice are enduring themes), drawing likeable and complex characters, and building a world that you are both horrified by and want to fall in to, just right. I found the plotting really engaging in this installment, and while the mystery was less mystery than chase, it was delightful in it's embrace of the tropes of the genre, and skillful in execution.
Hambly doesn't shrink from coincidences that allow her to explore things that interest her. This novel features Edgar Poe, the origins of baseball and early code breaking and creation, nevermind the tension between the Brits and the Yankees, and ties them all gloriously into the plot to ensure they get the space they deserve. It's fun, it's interesting and the world is so so wonderfully transporting that the book is pure immersive, world-drop-away pleasure.

lizbarr's review

3.0

Good Man Friday is the latest in Barbara Hambly’s Benjamin January series, about a free man of colour who investigates crime in antebellum New Orleans. There comes a point in every series where the author starts moving their characters out of their established settings. Here, January goes to Washington to deal with bank fraud, a missing mathematician, and the laws that forbid legislators to even discuss slavery.

I enjoyed this, although I have no concept at all of what Washington looked like in this stage of its history, so I spent a lot of time feeling geographically dislocated. But it was great to spend more time with January’s sister, Dominique, her white lover and his wife. It’s an awkward extended family, but an entertaining one. I hope the next book returns to New Orleans and Rose, though, because January’s wife has been on the sidelines for a few books, and I miss her.

nilchance's review

4.0

I felt the absence of Rose, Hannibal and Shaw in this roadtrip story, but it was good to spend time with Ben and to see more of Chloe, Henri and Dominique. The mystery was gripping and tense. Good stuff.

catevari's review

4.0

I kept meaning to write a longer review for this, but it's a week later and I haven't done it yet. Which is probably a good sign that I won't. Suffice it to say that, as a long time fan of Hambly and the Benjamin January series, I enjoyed this book a hell of a lot. As much as I really love the New Orleans milieu for the majority of the series, I am enjoying it just as much to see him travel...in this case to Washington (City now D.C.).

I really love the historical facts with which she infuses her fiction as much as I adore her flights of fancy, as when

she puts Edgar Allan Poe in the position of January's sidekick.

And even when I have a good idea where the central mystery is going (which is not always the case), the journey is so enjoyable that I never mind taking the trip.

As well (and as mentioned in other reviews of the series, iirc), Hambly is one of the few authors who writes about a cultural experience that she's not privy to (in this case, a white woman writing about black slaves and free people of color) with all the thoughtfulness, nuance and empathetic humanity that I should want. I think she was less successful with this in the last of her vampire books, so it's nice to see a clear return to form.