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brittbat's review against another edition
Wow, people on this site will really read noir and then complain that bad things happen to the characters, huh?
Scorched Grace came to me via a recommendation from someone in my book club, who had me at “this gay nun book made me think of you.” It’s a character-driven, voicey, stylized whodunnit set against the sweltering backdrop of New Orleans. All of that sounds great, right?
Unfortunately, I feel that the potential here outstrips the execution. The mystery doesn’t hold together that well, the reveal seemed to drop out of nowhere, and there’s not much sleuthing. Some important elements, especially the setting, feel superficial. I kept reading because it’s not bad, but it also wasn’t as good as I expected.
It kept me reading during some stressful hours in the hospital, though, so points for an engaging first hundred pages!
Scorched Grace came to me via a recommendation from someone in my book club, who had me at “this gay nun book made me think of you.” It’s a character-driven, voicey, stylized whodunnit set against the sweltering backdrop of New Orleans. All of that sounds great, right?
Unfortunately, I feel that the potential here outstrips the execution. The mystery doesn’t hold together that well, the reveal seemed to drop out of nowhere, and there’s not much sleuthing. Some important elements, especially the setting, feel superficial. I kept reading because it’s not bad, but it also wasn’t as good as I expected.
It kept me reading during some stressful hours in the hospital, though, so points for an engaging first hundred pages!
peepington's review against another edition
4.0
i really struggled to get into this but once i settled i got REALLY into it and im kinda obsessed with it… immediately wanna read the second book
kathrinelar's review against another edition
3.75
Lidt mærkelig men kunne godt lide den. Havde ikke set slutningen komme
alice52's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Animal death and Rape
migle_l's review against another edition
2.0
The concept is nice, but it is just a really poorly written book. The main themes are not properly developed, lack nuance and the book just fails to engage the reader on the level of the mystery. Also there is a lot of grotesque included seemingly for shock value only.
kaas's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
lunablch's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
kell_xavi's review against another edition
2.0
I was curious about this one when looking for queer mysteries. However, I found a fairly unlikeable character, unnatural dialogue and characters, odd progression of action, an unchallenging mystery, and a too-lengthy background narrative that dragged out the equally bland plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Cancer, Homophobia, and Rape
Minor: Incest
coleridgegirl's review against another edition
5.0
Well, hell. This was incredible. Thought-provoking and rage-inducing, but I like that it’s very effective at making its point but also putting the reader in the uncomfortable place of deciding if the ends justify the means.
I’d love to see this in a “real world” format like performance art (IYKYK), film, theatre, etc.
So here are my less than articulate thoughts:
- This is going to be divisive but only the ending parts really should be because whether it’s been your experience or not, yes, the world really is violent for women.
- If your experience with the world hasn’t led you to see that, I applaud you for living such a positive life. But calling this man-hating or unrealistic further perpetuates that world the rest of us live in, so please don’t.
- Of course it’s “not all men,” but if you need to remind us, maybe you’re part of the problem?
- I’m not sold on the argument by the activists that violence against women is almost solely at the hands of porn, mainly because I’ve experienced significant trauma and harm by men well before the days of the internet. I don’t disagree that porn, especially east access to it, adds to the issue in many cases. However, I find that to be an oversimplification.
- Every character in this is kind of awful. But also feels authentic. I love that kind of story. However, I don’t know that it’s as easy as “this person is good” or “that person is bad,” and I feel like the ending leaves you kind of hating everyone and the world as a whole. So be prepared for a cynical ride.
- The structure of this novel is brilliant.
- I wish I could highlight so many lines.
- I think the cover might do the book a disservice. I don’t know that it captures the kind of book this is (I only requested the ARC because of the Gillian Flynn connection - and if you like GF, you’re going to enjoy this.) and I worry it may appear cute. It’s very much not cute.
Anyway, I’m angry and frustrated and also thinking about the ways the actions of certain characters were awesome but also horribly immoral, and really, you can’t get better than a book that brings up this much emotion.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.
I’d love to see this in a “real world” format like performance art (IYKYK), film, theatre, etc.
So here are my less than articulate thoughts:
- This is going to be divisive but only the ending parts really should be because whether it’s been your experience or not, yes, the world really is violent for women.
- If your experience with the world hasn’t led you to see that, I applaud you for living such a positive life. But calling this man-hating or unrealistic further perpetuates that world the rest of us live in, so please don’t.
- Of course it’s “not all men,” but if you need to remind us, maybe you’re part of the problem?
- I’m not sold on the argument by the activists that violence against women is almost solely at the hands of porn, mainly because I’ve experienced significant trauma and harm by men well before the days of the internet. I don’t disagree that porn, especially east access to it, adds to the issue in many cases. However, I find that to be an oversimplification.
- Every character in this is kind of awful. But also feels authentic. I love that kind of story. However, I don’t know that it’s as easy as “this person is good” or “that person is bad,” and I feel like the ending leaves you kind of hating everyone and the world as a whole. So be prepared for a cynical ride.
- The structure of this novel is brilliant.
- I wish I could highlight so many lines.
- I think the cover might do the book a disservice. I don’t know that it captures the kind of book this is (I only requested the ARC because of the Gillian Flynn connection - and if you like GF, you’re going to enjoy this.) and I worry it may appear cute. It’s very much not cute.
Anyway, I’m angry and frustrated and also thinking about the ways the actions of certain characters were awesome but also horribly immoral, and really, you can’t get better than a book that brings up this much emotion.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.
alisonabridged's review against another edition
1.75
Bad! Kind of a fun idea, but just not a fun perspective to inhabit or a plot that was satisfying.