Right! So I borrowed this off my neighbour out of sheer curiosity and after hearing a number of conflicting reviews, I wanted to make my own mind up. Before I start, do I agree with JKR's views? Nope, absolutely not, she's still transphobic trash. #effterfs

The book itself? It's... long. Very long. At over 900 pages, it just... didn't need to be this long. There were too many random plot points crammed in that were either dragged out too long or which never really paid off. As a result, the main mystery just has too many moving parts to keep a track of (similar to Lethal White but even worse). The genuinely emotional beats are fine but it really could have been three-fifths the size and worked a lot tidier.

A lot of the initial reviews commented on the godawful timing of JKR's transphobic comments and the conceit of a cross-dressing serial killer. Is the book transphobic? Not as much as previous entries (hi there, The Silkworm), but there are still quite a lot of weird attitudes to body size and sexuality (there's a couple of examples of positive rep but at least one moment that feels very much written like a straight person writing an after-school special on The Gays).

In short, is the book worth a read? Only if you're really into the books and can contend with giving money to JKR (or you know, use a library, y'all). Otherwise give it a miss and grab another book by someone who isn't a burning garbage fire of TERF.