ninaprime 's review for:

Frog Music by Emma Donoghue

3.0

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Grounded in a historical true crime, Donoghue deftly describes late 1800s San Francisco, and particularly the lives of its French, Chinese, and Irish immigrants. I have mixed feelings about the plot and characters - I think I thought it would be more of a mystery, but it was focused moreso on the relationships between different characters and women's role in society - Jenny faces judgement for dressing like a man while Blanche does for her sexual appetite and for her perceived failings as a mother and partner. I was really engaged for the first quarter of the book, but it became repetitive with the characters' banter and with Blanche's continual rash decisions, though I liked the ending too - I'm glad Blanche grew from her friendship with Jenny and stood up for herself against those who were using her, and I like to imagine she and P'tit lived happily in Sacramento (though apparently not in real life).