hollygo12345 's review for:

Things in Jars by Jess Kidd

3.0

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This book has a lot of appealing and intriguing elements going for it — supernatural, gothic, a 7’ tall housemaid, the ghost of a dead boxer with tattoos that act like they are alive, and an aberrational child who has pike-like teeth, smells of the sea, attracts snails and is able to draw people’s memories out of them. The main character is a red-haired woman detective who smokes a pipe (she likes Prudhoe’s Bronchial Balsam Blend) and is able to read corpses and perform simple surgeries. Despite all of this wonderful quirkiness, I was unable to stay focused on this book while reading it. While I did finish it, i wanted to quit several times and it ultimately took me four times as long as other books to read. I never was able to become invested in any of the characters or the story. I am certainly in the minority so take my review with a grain of salt because it may work much better for you. Jess Kidd is a wonderful writer and that is why I continued to read Things in Jars to the end.

Thank you to Atria Books and a NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for my honest opinion.