Take a photo of a barcode or cover
j75 's review for:
Busman's Honeymoon
by Dorothy L. Sayers
all over the place review incoming
this book is extremely hard for me to rate. It's the last Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane book (also the last Lord Peter Wimsey book ever written), so there is this sense of fanservice and closure in a way? that I quite enjoyed. The mystery is definitely not the focus in this book, so while I enjoy the two main characters, I missed more of a mystery feel to this story (although, to be fair, there is always a lot going on besides mystery in this series).
Also, the snobbery in this book is quite apparent, an issue in previous books, but even more so in this installment. Yes, this series is focused on a literal Lord and written in 1930s England, but still...not the most fun to read about at times. Speaking of snobbery, there were certain parts in this book written in Latin and French that just...didn't have translations?? I have learned that people in 1930s England who were supposed to be in 'certain social circles' or whatever knew Latin and French...besides the issues this presents for making this book more accessible, the fact that there is no translation provided in the book in a much more recent edition definitely took me out of the book a couple times.
Harriet and Peter's relationship were definitely the best part of this story imo, I love how mature and loving they are with each other. There was also a good bit of humor and silliness between them that was very cute and made me chuckle. I also really enjoyed that we got to see the toll solving mysteries has on Peter, especially because in this era it meant that whoever he found guilty of murder was hung. Not something I see discussed a lot in mystery books.
Overall, while I did enjoy parts of this book, unfortunately it was not the slam dunk I had hoped it would be. I reallly have enjoyed previous books in this series, so it's a bit disappointing. That being said, a disappointing installment in this series is honestly still better than a lot of other books.
Rating: somewhere around 4 stars
this book is extremely hard for me to rate. It's the last Peter Wimsey and Harriet Vane book (also the last Lord Peter Wimsey book ever written), so there is this sense of fanservice and closure in a way? that I quite enjoyed. The mystery is definitely not the focus in this book, so while I enjoy the two main characters, I missed more of a mystery feel to this story (although, to be fair, there is always a lot going on besides mystery in this series).
Also, the snobbery in this book is quite apparent, an issue in previous books, but even more so in this installment. Yes, this series is focused on a literal Lord and written in 1930s England, but still...not the most fun to read about at times. Speaking of snobbery, there were certain parts in this book written in Latin and French that just...didn't have translations?? I have learned that people in 1930s England who were supposed to be in 'certain social circles' or whatever knew Latin and French...besides the issues this presents for making this book more accessible, the fact that there is no translation provided in the book in a much more recent edition definitely took me out of the book a couple times.
Harriet and Peter's relationship were definitely the best part of this story imo, I love how mature and loving they are with each other. There was also a good bit of humor and silliness between them that was very cute and made me chuckle. I also really enjoyed that we got to see the toll solving mysteries has on Peter, especially because in this era it meant that whoever he found guilty of murder was hung. Not something I see discussed a lot in mystery books.
Overall, while I did enjoy parts of this book, unfortunately it was not the slam dunk I had hoped it would be. I reallly have enjoyed previous books in this series, so it's a bit disappointing. That being said, a disappointing installment in this series is honestly still better than a lot of other books.
Rating: somewhere around 4 stars