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lauracooleyjohnson's review against another edition
2.0
This book is a basic whodunnit, set in the 1800s. It has a pretty cool protagonist, a woman (imagine!) inspector, and some interesting colorful descriptions of the times. But I didn’t like it. Too boring.
timinbc's review against another edition
5.0
I'm going to read all of Kidd's work.
Many reviewers here have mentioned the wonderful characters. I'll add how refreshing it is that Bridie is only moderately competent and plucky, and Inspector Rose respects her - just two departures from the all-too-common tropes. And an additional character: London, also avoiding the too-common wallowing for pages in the details of horrible poverty and nasty pubs and alleys. Cora, wow, there has to be another book with Bridie and Cora, even if it is otherwise a completely different book. The bad guys are pretty standard bwah-hah-hah villains, but this is balanced by a few characters who were decent enough but got drawn in over their heads.
But I didn't see many mentions of how wonderfully Irish the prose is, often nearly poetry with rhythms and idiom and uniquely Irish structures.
The plot develops at a very nice pace, and small mysteries are revealed, last of all being Ruby's story.
The book uses the two-time-stream approach, with flashbacks to Bridie's earlier life. It's often done badly, but not here. We're given past information when we need it, relevant to what we have just learned in the present.
Be warned that it's not a nice cozy mystery: the bad guys do some nasty stuff. Nor is it 100% real-world, because a few elements edge into folklore.
It's been a while since I said, "Oh, darn, it's over," but this is one of those books.
It's in my Top 5 of the year so far.
p.s. "There are things in jars" goes into my notes right next to "there's something nasty in the woodshed."
Many reviewers here have mentioned the wonderful characters. I'll add how refreshing it is that Bridie is only moderately competent and plucky, and Inspector Rose respects her - just two departures from the all-too-common tropes. And an additional character: London, also avoiding the too-common wallowing for pages in the details of horrible poverty and nasty pubs and alleys. Cora, wow, there has to be another book with Bridie and Cora, even if it is otherwise a completely different book. The bad guys are pretty standard bwah-hah-hah villains, but this is balanced by a few characters who were decent enough but got drawn in over their heads.
But I didn't see many mentions of how wonderfully Irish the prose is, often nearly poetry with rhythms and idiom and uniquely Irish structures.
The plot develops at a very nice pace, and small mysteries are revealed, last of all being Ruby's story.
The book uses the two-time-stream approach, with flashbacks to Bridie's earlier life. It's often done badly, but not here. We're given past information when we need it, relevant to what we have just learned in the present.
Be warned that it's not a nice cozy mystery: the bad guys do some nasty stuff. Nor is it 100% real-world, because a few elements edge into folklore.
It's been a while since I said, "Oh, darn, it's over," but this is one of those books.
It's in my Top 5 of the year so far.
p.s. "There are things in jars" goes into my notes right next to "there's something nasty in the woodshed."
greymalkin's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
An okay gothic murder mystery, with lots of fun period details. Unfortunately I couldn't find a character to really latch onto, and I found Bridie too much of a cypher to get invested in her story. For being a detective she seemed to do very little detecting work or deduction, she just knew things that were sometimes clues. The "romance" with the ghost was frustrating because it relied too much on the author being coy and not having the detective main character actually piece it together herself.
I also was a bit surprised that in the author notes, the author didn't mention that they were essentially making a female Sherlock Holmes. The addiction, the measured emotional responses to everything, the use of disguises specifically of other genders and ages, the partnership with a lumbering goodhearted person who happens to be their biggest fan, the complicated family relationships, the fondness for belittling other people, the interest in science and lack of disgust of dead and dismembered things... it felt so obvious to me. But that's probably my biases coming into play there.
I also was a bit surprised that in the author notes, the author didn't mention that they were essentially making a female Sherlock Holmes. The addiction, the measured emotional responses to everything, the use of disguises specifically of other genders and ages, the partnership with a lumbering goodhearted person who happens to be their biggest fan, the complicated family relationships, the fondness for belittling other people, the interest in science and lack of disgust of dead and dismembered things... it felt so obvious to me. But that's probably my biases coming into play there.
catherine_hopper's review against another edition
4.0
This was an unexpected fun read. Bizarre and strange at times, this "gothic mystery" (as it was described on the back cover) contained stirring, beautiful (and sometimes haunting) descriptions of victorian London and had me pulling for the main characters Bridie Devine and her companions from page 1.
feedon's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
ellenjanemck's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.5
meghan_plethoraofpages's review against another edition
4.0
Things in Jars by Jess Kidd : A book review
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
manderzreadz's review against another edition
3.0
The first half of this book was great (5 stars). It set the scene, got you invested in the characters, and just overall very intriguing. The ending was very drawn out, anti-climactic, and left a lot of loose ends. You also have to get used to the style of descriptive writing.
milooo's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
great characters, super well executed storylines that all weave together beautifully, and the most superb gothic victorian vibes. as someone who loves stories about strange water related creatures, this was such a treat to read. i love that it takes a different approach to the typical mermaid myth by rooting it in irish folklore (it also adds a layer to the class discourse within the book). i also love that even though it’s a mystery with an investigator as our main character, Kidd doesn’t shy away from letting Bridie be wrong. she allows for complex characterisation and also complete and utter psychopaths (victorian england amirite). something that i was pleasantly surprised by was the romance. i’m personally not a huge fan of romances in general, but this one had me really invested. it was so beautiful in its tragedy and it never felt forced. it came about in a very natural way, and getting to see both perspectives while they were falling in love with each other was so heartbreaking and endearing. the mystery itself is a bit predictable because you as the reader get quite a lot of clues, and the third person narration with shifting focalisers mean that you get a much broader view of what happened than Bridie investigating in real time. the nurse’s exposition being done through her telling a bedtime story did feel a bit heavy handed at times, but thematically it fits so i didn’t really mind that much. overall a really fun real, with spectacular vibes