Scan barcode
polarbearlvr's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I am loving these mysteries. They read so smooth and fun.
rereader33's review
2.0
Woooow, this was bad. And there was so much yikes it made me uncomfortable at times.
Okay, slight tangent but this is necessary in understanding my disappointment with this book and the series as a whole:
What got me back into reading mysteries was rereading my favorite mystery manga series In/Spectre, and if you want to know more about that, read my reviews cuz I'm not giving a Ted Talk on the series here. Most importantly, what I realized as I was rereading it was that the characters involved in the mysteries were diverse personality wise. You had the asshole criminal, the paranoid criminal with a guilty conscience, the privileged wealthy family, the guy just trying to live a peaceful life, etc. Basically, not every mystery had purely unlikable characters as either bystanders or criminals; there were bad guys, good guys, morally grey guys, and that made it enjoyable because I got to watch different characters experience justice in different ways.
Now, how does this relate to the Gaslight Murder series? Simple. Everyone who is not Sarah Brandt, Frank Malloy, and Mrs. Ellsworth is an irredeemable asshole. Even the murder victims. Everyone is just the absolute worse in an almost hilariously cartoonish way that unless all of them end up dead, there is no true justice. Is this intentional? I have no idea and frankly I don't care. All I care about is that I have no one to care about or root for because they are all just the worst. Don't misunderstand, its not just this book--the same is true for her other two books as well. And I know that justice can't always be served, but when I got to the end of this novel and realized that all of the awful people were going to continue to be awful, I felt like I wasted my time.
As for the yikes part, the descriptions of Chinese people were so racist and insensitive that it made me uncomfortable. And no, I don't care that this was written in the early 2000's and the novels take place in the 1890's, Victoria Thompson did NOT have to write the Chinese characters with those descriptions. Period, end of story, do not fight me on this, it will not change my mind.
Anyway, those are my thoughts. I have no idea if I'll continue with this series, especially if Thompson isn't going to tone down the racist writing towards minorities. Eh, whatever, moving on.
Okay, slight tangent but this is necessary in understanding my disappointment with this book and the series as a whole:
What got me back into reading mysteries was rereading my favorite mystery manga series In/Spectre, and if you want to know more about that, read my reviews cuz I'm not giving a Ted Talk on the series here. Most importantly, what I realized as I was rereading it was that the characters involved in the mysteries were diverse personality wise. You had the asshole criminal, the paranoid criminal with a guilty conscience, the privileged wealthy family, the guy just trying to live a peaceful life, etc. Basically, not every mystery had purely unlikable characters as either bystanders or criminals; there were bad guys, good guys, morally grey guys, and that made it enjoyable because I got to watch different characters experience justice in different ways.
Now, how does this relate to the Gaslight Murder series? Simple. Everyone who is not Sarah Brandt, Frank Malloy, and Mrs. Ellsworth is an irredeemable asshole. Even the murder victims. Everyone is just the absolute worse in an almost hilariously cartoonish way that unless all of them end up dead, there is no true justice. Is this intentional? I have no idea and frankly I don't care. All I care about is that I have no one to care about or root for because they are all just the worst. Don't misunderstand, its not just this book--the same is true for her other two books as well. And I know that justice can't always be served, but when I got to the end of this novel and realized that all of the awful people were going to continue to be awful, I felt like I wasted my time.
As for the yikes part, the descriptions of Chinese people were so racist and insensitive that it made me uncomfortable. And no, I don't care that this was written in the early 2000's and the novels take place in the 1890's, Victoria Thompson did NOT have to write the Chinese characters with those descriptions. Period, end of story, do not fight me on this, it will not change my mind.
Anyway, those are my thoughts. I have no idea if I'll continue with this series, especially if Thompson isn't going to tone down the racist writing towards minorities. Eh, whatever, moving on.
badseedgirl's review
3.0
For the last year or so, I have been on a bit of a Murder Mystery kick. The thing is, I like the more cozy style mysteries. I loved and have devoured every Hamish MacBeth novel in the series. All the Aurora Teagarden Mysteries, I have read some truly horrible books about murders solved by the employees of a Maine Needlepoint company (Mainely Needlepoint Mystery.) And yes, they are just as bad as they sound and I enjoyed every minute of them!
But of all these, I think I am enjoying these Gaslight Mystery just a little bit better. The mysteries are not the most original. I figured out the killer in this one pretty quickly into the book. What keeps me coming back to this series is the wonderful play between the characters. Not just the playful, will they/won't they banter between Sarah Brandt and Frank Malloy, but all the people in the neighborhoods and the City of New York itself, which is a fully formed character, interacting in it's own subtle way with the other characters.
But of all these, I think I am enjoying these Gaslight Mystery just a little bit better. The mysteries are not the most original. I figured out the killer in this one pretty quickly into the book. What keeps me coming back to this series is the wonderful play between the characters. Not just the playful, will they/won't they banter between Sarah Brandt and Frank Malloy, but all the people in the neighborhoods and the City of New York itself, which is a fully formed character, interacting in it's own subtle way with the other characters.
moonblink39's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
spevensie's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
littletaiko's review
4.0
Third in the gaslight mystery and I got completely sucked into the story. Seargent Malloy is called out to what should be an easy assignment but instead of the apparent suicide he discovers that it's most likely murder. To top it off the new widow has gone into labor. He calls for Sarah Brandt, midwife, to come help out. She of course ends up helping him out with he investigation as their friendship strengthens.
retiredlibrarylady's review
3.0
I enjoyed this third in the series because of the main characters. I was disappointed that I figured out the perpetrator long before the reveal...
elarsonwhittaker's review
2.0
these books are just getting worse but i’m going to read one more just to see if sarah and frank end up together because they’re getting close.
lisalor16's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
bikes_books_yarn's review
4.0
The third in the Gaslight Mystery series.
This was just as good as the first two and I love that there is a budding crush on Sarah that she seems completly unaware of.
This was just as good as the first two and I love that there is a budding crush on Sarah that she seems completly unaware of.