So in theory this could have been an interesting and kind of tongue-in-cheek revenge story. I wasn't expecting to love it, and I certainly wasn't expecting to see every single twist and turn coming along the way, but I had hoped to enjoy it more than I did. Ultimately this is a book that doesn't say much and muddles up what it is trying to say in the first place. I am in no way "not all men"-ing over here, but the fact that every single male character besides the queer ones are just the absolutely worst is... a little much. I get the point of this book, that even the men we think we can trust are not always the people we want them to be, but I felt it got a little too up in its own ass about it. The result is a book that does what so many thrillers do which is try to be Gone Girl but entirely miss the point of what Flynn did. This book isn't fun, it isn't smart, it isn't even well plotted or put together. I cannot believe a story that boils down to being about a bi sexual murderer killing men who deserves it could be such a yawn fest but HERE WE ARE.

P.S. when I started this review it was a solid 2.5 but as I put my thoughts down I realized it didn't even deserve that.

It's crazy to me that this book was written in the 90's because it feels so modern. There's aspects of it that are slightly dated but overall this book holds up so well. It takes awhile for the story to really get going and once the set up is out of the way and the actual mystery kicks up it goes by really quickly.  I really liked how Blanche's character grows, I love the way that she is able to see others complexly while also not taking even a little bit of shit from them. Overall a really great story that is as relevant today as it was when it was written.

I am full on obsessed with this series. The through line of the diaspora, the sending to stories across worlds, across cultures, across generations just really hit me. This is such a good example of how to tell a beautiful and interesting and uniquely black story that isn't focused on racism. There is so much power between these pages, so much hope for young black men. It is so great that this kind of story exists. I am only upset that I now must WAIT for the last book in the series. 

I honestly couldn't get passed the power imbalance inherent in this relationship. It is not really a spoiler because it happens so early, but he finds out who she is almost right away and then spends a good chunk of the book not telling her. And I get the whole "but his career!!!!" but if that's what he cared about then why the actual FUCK did he keep dating her knowing full well that he was lying. I never could get over that. Plus the characters were just overall sort of cookie cutter and just shy of cardboard. Maybe it is just that my side of fandom is so very different than the straight side of fandom but it just didn't hit. I was so excited to love this but... I can't.

This book was far superior to the first. Maybe it's because Kyoshi has a better sense of self in this one but it's just a far more solid story. My understanding is that this is the last book in the series and I as much as I would love more of Kyoshi's story, I do think that it is wise to let it rest here. Overall the story fits so perfectly in with A:TLA and LoK while building up on the myths and lore of the world the way the rest of the series did. A bit darker for the world but then again so was LoK, with a little more death added to it as well. I particularly like the ending, it made me extremely happy. 

Wow! This is a lovely story and it hits really well. I love the narration and I love the story and I love the characters and I just love it. There's so much power in every word, in every line. It feels honest, like I know it was pulled straight out of the mind of a real teenager. I'm so so happy to have finally read this one. I wish I had read it so much sooner.

Every single one of these books just gets so much goddamn better. I am literally obsessed with every single side character. I appreciate the way this book does not use the excuse of the time period to be racist or sexist or homophobic and instead imagines women, queer, and POC as complex humans worth of respect and dignity. It's such a good and interesting take on the time and the story of Sherlock. I adore it. 

If I liked Gideon, I LOVE Harrow. Not the characters, the book, I love Gideon and Harrow the characters equally. This book amps up the drama and the world building. We are introduced to a few new characters  who are just as complex and complicated as other characters in book one. There is so much to love about this series but the STRESS of having to wait for book three is not one of them. I'm going to sit here counting the days until I can be reunited with these brilliant dumbasses again.

My full review is now up on my blog: https://bookedwithgrace.wordpress.com/2020/11/05/118/

This is such a big shrug emoji for me. I mostly just didn't find any of the story or characters compelling despite the fact that the premise is really interesting. There was a lot of coincidence and I just can't get over it. I'm not at all saying I don't see why some people loved it but nothing about it worked for me. I found myself zoning out as I read a lot and having to go back and reread.