Overall, I liked this. I actually liked the flashbacks, I thought they were used really well and added to the story. I liked the structure of the plot, especially how it allowed the relationship of the two MCs to develop. The best thing about the book was their relationship which was really sweet.

However, the writing was a bit stilted and unnatural in parts. The angst was pretty repetitive. And worst of all, the racist depiction of “Africa”.

Oliver Twist, but lesbians

I read almost all the stories in this (there were a couple I hadn’t read the original novels of) and all of them were fantastic. Also, I need to read A Curious Woman now so I can read the sequel short story!

It was great!

In the pantheon of “fake dating someone then falling for a family member” sapphic romances, this is up there with the absolute best.

It’s absolutely hilarious, but also really emotional and heartfelt.

I love Georgette Kaplan’s writing.

I love the pop culture references, and discussions of pop culture, which are actually integral to the plot and character development.

I can’t recommend this enough, but start with Scissor Link first.

Really well written and engaging. Loved the characters and their chemistry. But a bunch of stuff ends up too easily resolved, or resolved offscreen, or is left unresolved.

What does Allie, her contact at the nanny agency (and friend?), say when she quits her job as a nanny because she is now in a relationship with her boss? A big deal is made over what Fernando will say, but we don’t see that scene. A big deal is made over what will happen when the school and parents find out the teacher’s aide is dating a parent, but we never see that.

Etc. It keeps the angst and drama low, but it also just turns the end of the book into a bit of a blur.

Really great except for the one that was all a dream!

Okay so this is beautifully written, and I loved the Welsh setting and the inclusion of Welsh language.

The mystery was gripping

although anyone who has seen Sweeney Todd could work out one of the mysteries in a heartbeat

.

Unfortunately, the brilliantly tense and realistic atmosphere that is established in the beginning comes undone by the end.

First off, the long lecture on feminism that Beth gives her father in the middle of the police station totally broke my suspension of disbelief. While I believe it in her character to bring up these topics to her father once she has been pushed to, the way it was written, and it happening in the police station without him forcibly stopping her and dragging her out, was unbelievable. Also, the fact she didn’t back up anything she was saying by bringing up the handsy doctor or the violent headmaster seemed strange. (And while Bryn Thomas was jailed at the end, nothing was said about those two being dethroned leaves a bitter taste in one’s mouth.) The ending of the book seemed too happy, in a fairytale, fantastical way, at odds with the majority of the book. I’m glad that Sophie, Beth and Elin ended up in a thrupple, but the fact they were apparently living very openly as a lesbian polycule in the Manor House just seemed unbelievable. And while Gieriet garnered some sympathy for living under his father’s thumb and the threat of violence (and possibly being slightly developmentally challenged in some way?) the fact is that he repeatedly sexually harassed Beth, and literally buried Elin alive, and helped conceal the murder of Alwyn, Sophie’s cousin, for two decades, so why the three of them were happy to hire him as their gardener and have him constantly hanging around is beyond me.

Overall a great book, but with some tonal issues towards the end.