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kathleencoughlin's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Infidelity, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Misogyny, Lesbophobia, and Homophobia
axmed's review
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
"So, In the Game works best when it is read less as a mystery and more as social commentary."
Nikki Baker, forward to the 2019 repub
it was witty and i found the writing good, but the plot terrible and v much on the nose. the main character is a black woman in a sea of white women and then the plot is that her only black friend is the killer? there is a lot of great social commentary and very progressive politics, except when it comes to the fact that all 3 black women were dating white women, some of whom who openly fetishizing them. this was not only brushed off as normal at best, but the critique of black ppl with white partners is compared to homophobia by the main character ðŸ˜
the author does say in the forward of the new edition that rereading it now, she found aspects of the story, dialogue and the characters cringy and i'm guessing /hoping that she is referring to some of the things i mentioned above.
i will listen to the rest of the novels in the series, because there are no novels like this from that time (that i know of) with a black lesbian main character. plus i'm a sucker for wit and now that i know the writer / the main character was (hopefully not anymore lol) a raging palmiteiro, i have less expectations on that front.
Nikki Baker, forward to the 2019 repub
the author does say in the forward of the new edition that rereading it now, she found aspects of the story, dialogue and the characters cringy and i'm guessing /hoping that she is referring to some of the things i mentioned above.
i will listen to the rest of the novels in the series, because there are no novels like this from that time (that i know of) with a black lesbian main character. plus i'm a sucker for wit and now that i know the writer / the main character was (hopefully not anymore lol) a raging palmiteiro, i have less expectations on that front.
johnnyb1954's review against another edition
2.0
The Goodreads synopsis is right, the plot’s logic is off. Also the pace is off. It’s a short book that took a long time to read. Ginny, the main character is a finance person, which I thought should figure into solving the crime, but it is irrelevant. Ginny is also not really that interesting of a character to make me want to read more in the series.
claudia_is_reading's review against another edition
3.0
I have mixed feelings about this book. I liked the mystery a lot, it was well thought out and developed, and the writing is very good. But... I truly didn't like Virginia. At all.
In fact, she is the character I dislike the most in the story. Yep, even over stalker-Susan and the killer. So, you can see my problem, as I'm usually a character-driven reader.
I might read the second book in this series because, again, the mystery was really good and I enjoyed the writing but it will take some time.
In fact, she is the character I dislike the most in the story. Yep, even over stalker-Susan and the killer. So, you can see my problem, as I'm usually a character-driven reader.
I might read the second book in this series because, again, the mystery was really good and I enjoyed the writing but it will take some time.
imaginary_sauropod's review
3.0
Virginia Kelly, Ginny, is a black business woman lesbian who ends up involved in an off-the-books investigation of a murder because it seemed related to the off-the-books investigation to prove that her friend Bev’s girlfriend was cheating on her. Another friend Naomi is convinced that if Bev gets arrested for the murder of her cheating girlfriend both she and Ginny would lost their corporate jobs when people realize they are part of the lesbian community. And so Ginny starts investigating the crime to protect herself and Bev only to fall deep into the mess of it all.
I stumbled upon this book trying to find a lesbian buddy cop drama and this was definitely not that, but it was something. The foreword has an apology for not being great writing, which is true. I struggled understanding what was going on in the beginning and took me a third of the way in to finally figure out who was who. But really, it matches the pulp detective genre but everyone is a lesbian. It delivers on that front and I was going to complain about some tropes and then realized that they were tropes of the era. It was also a great insight into the lesbian world of the early nineties.
But yes, buckle in and prepare for mediocre writing while enjoying the wonderful characters and tropes of a genre that excluded three dimensional women, especially black and queer women. I don’t think I will continue reading the series, but I’m glad I read this one.
I stumbled upon this book trying to find a lesbian buddy cop drama and this was definitely not that, but it was something. The foreword has an apology for not being great writing, which is true. I struggled understanding what was going on in the beginning and took me a third of the way in to finally figure out who was who. But really, it matches the pulp detective genre but everyone is a lesbian. It delivers on that front and I was going to complain about some tropes and then realized that they were tropes of the era. It was also a great insight into the lesbian world of the early nineties.
But yes, buckle in and prepare for mediocre writing while enjoying the wonderful characters and tropes of a genre that excluded three dimensional women, especially black and queer women. I don’t think I will continue reading the series, but I’m glad I read this one.
psalmcat's review
3.0
About black lesbian culture in L.A. (I think?) and what happens when a friend is murdered. Interesting characters, decent plot, but the story needed tightening up. Still, ok for a small press.
yeahdeadslow's review
3.0
I read the last book in this series a couple years ago, and really enjoyed it and its protaganist, Ginny. I didn't like this book as much, however. Ginny's casual view of cheating was irksome. The murder mystery was interesting, but did not feel plausible. Still... on to the second book! (As soon as I get my hands on it, that is...)
audreyintheheadphones's review
3.0
Ginny Kelly is an investment-banking buppie at the start of the 90s, living and dating in Chicago. She's not actually a private investigator, being less hard-boiled than "the hard-bitten type that cries at Disney movies and opens her purse to the homeless."
When her best friend's girlfriend is shot dead behind a lesbian bar in Chicago, Ginny investigates by cheating on her own girlfriend with a psychotic defense attorney who miraculously, does not boil her cat, Sweet Potato, because I am hella sensitive to animal harm and omg the pussy jokes.
Eventually, Ginny investigates and solves the murder despite herself. Mainly she drinks, which is commented on in a kind of subtle, offhand way but is never directly commented on or resolved.
She's kind of like the antithesis of VI Warshawskiapart from them both being lesbians and she's incredibly well-written and fascinating. She's very at home with her own experience as a middle-class black lesbian and how that differs from parents' experiences and expectations along with how it isolates her in her pursuit of a career in a very white world. As she says of her relationship with her best friend:
A little meandering in the middle, and there are parts where the relationship drama overshadows everything, but eventually the story gets back on track and you understand exactly how it is that friendship can make detectives out of the unlikeliest of people.
When her best friend's girlfriend is shot dead behind a lesbian bar in Chicago, Ginny investigates by cheating on her own girlfriend with a psychotic defense attorney who miraculously, does not boil her cat, Sweet Potato, because I am hella sensitive to animal harm and omg the pussy jokes.
Eventually, Ginny investigates and solves the murder despite herself. Mainly she drinks, which is commented on in a kind of subtle, offhand way but is never directly commented on or resolved.
She's kind of like the antithesis of VI Warshawski
I did not have to paint for her the backdrop of my American history. Bev understood how hard it is to know that there is nothing happier than little black girls coming from a beauty parlor or nothing sadder than little black girls in the rain.
A little meandering in the middle, and there are parts where the relationship drama overshadows everything, but eventually the story gets back on track and you understand exactly how it is that friendship can make detectives out of the unlikeliest of people.
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