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j_squaredd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Suicide, Domestic abuse, Antisemitism, Blood, Gun violence, Drug use, and Animal death
Moderate: Mental illness, War, and Cursing
amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Colonisation, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Drug use, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Confinement, Self harm, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Antisemitism, Blood, Cursing, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Infidelity
Moderate: Child death, Car accident, War, and Domestic abuse
ejmealer's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
WHK promised intrigue and murder with a twist, and delivered confusion and two murders, two deaths, and unnecessary conflagration. In an effort to pay homage to all the great (and I do mean ALL) mystery writers of the late 19th/early 20th centuries, McDorman loses his own voice and story. Moments that the narrator spoke directly to the reader mocked the arm-chair sleuth for thinking ahead or attempting to solve the puzzle (with phrases amounting to "surely, you think, this is how it would play out"), instead of just letting the plot narrate and instruct. There are interesting sections on the history of the murder mystery as a play or novel, and how various authors tackled scenes, but everything was so overladen with a pretentiousness, and the sections were so randomly interspersed through the novel, that instead of truly adding to the narrative it served more as a distraction.
McDormans journalistic background is felt in those sections and I would rather have read an entire nonfiction book about the history of the mystery novel. If the plot had been more developed and only told as a third-person, I would rather have read that. The denouement was done in an interesting format but resulted in a "whomp-whomp" of "I read the whole thing... for this?"
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Colonisation, Drug use, Car accident, Ableism, Racism, Addiction, Antisemitism, Blood, Alcoholism, Mental illness, Gun violence, Animal death, Domestic abuse, War, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Fatphobia
ajawritesthings's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
SPOILERS
I read this book in one sitting and literally couldn't put it down until I solved the murders. West Heart Kill has a star quality and fans of sleuthing will devour this novel. 3.75 stars.
Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for the ARC!
Graphic: Murder, Suicide, and Death
Moderate: Drug use, Child death, Drug abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Antisemitism and War