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matthijsgardeniers's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
feanor451's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
girlofsteel377's review
5.0
Laura is an amazing book. I had read Bedelia first--the main character is somewhat like being stuck in a closet with someone with too much lilac perfume. The character Laura is very much the antithesis of Bedelia.
for the time period, the character is quite unconvetional--the working woman, who, by being independent of men, puts herself in danger within society in an intrinsic way. She's not only in danger physically as the motives for murder are unwound, but also reputation-wise, which is also a horror of the time-period.
The majority of voices which narrate each section is male, and each is distinct in vocabulary in tone. My favorite section puts me in mind of Megan Abbott--very sensual--the colors and flavors of the moments are vivid.
I didn't think the killer was completely obvious, and the doubts and revelations were very much a draw until the end.
I have not seen the movie, but in reading the Femmes Fatales edition, the afterward seemed essential to the mindset of not only Caspary, but of the strata of society that she traveled.
for the time period, the character is quite unconvetional--the working woman, who, by being independent of men, puts herself in danger within society in an intrinsic way. She's not only in danger physically as the motives for murder are unwound, but also reputation-wise, which is also a horror of the time-period.
The majority of voices which narrate each section is male, and each is distinct in vocabulary in tone. My favorite section puts me in mind of Megan Abbott--very sensual--the colors and flavors of the moments are vivid.
I didn't think the killer was completely obvious, and the doubts and revelations were very much a draw until the end.
I have not seen the movie, but in reading the Femmes Fatales edition, the afterward seemed essential to the mindset of not only Caspary, but of the strata of society that she traveled.
barebookbear's review
3.0
Very interesting noir crime from a woman's eye. There's nothing super special going on here, though I greatly appreciated the shifts in narrator, with each major character allowed to speak, giving different vantage points of similar events. The atmosphere is captured with deft skill, and the mind-games played as the characters manipulate and try to read each other was tightly wound, a dance of impending death. One reviewer here wrote "It almost reads black and white" and I'd have to agree.
It was a good whodunnit, though while I was right about who did dunnit, I was wrong about the reasons. I honestly thought one of the characters would turn out to be deeply in the closet, drawn as they were with flamboyance and exasperating style. You can almost smell the perfume this person is obviously doused in. Much of their description was deeply coded, in the manner that was done often before characters could be openly described as such. (Think, any Peter Lorre character.)
Wait...maybe they still were? If you read it, you know whom I'm talking about.
It was a good whodunnit, though while I was right about who did dunnit, I was wrong about the reasons. I honestly thought one of the characters would turn out to be deeply in the closet, drawn as they were with flamboyance and exasperating style. You can almost smell the perfume this person is obviously doused in. Much of their description was deeply coded, in the manner that was done often before characters could be openly described as such. (Think, any Peter Lorre character.)
Wait...maybe they still were? If you read it, you know whom I'm talking about.
joshburnell's review
4.0
My goal for 2023 is to only read books by women and non-binary authors and this was a really fun surprise. Dark, twisty and claustrophobic in the best ways.
suspendedinair's review
5.0
i read this with a lot more enthusiasm than i thought i would.
now i can't stop looking at everyone's ankles. and wondering if how many folks in my subway car have killed people.
like waldo, i suppose, murder is my favorite crime.
now i can't stop looking at everyone's ankles. and wondering if how many folks in my subway car have killed people.
like waldo, i suppose, murder is my favorite crime.
alysian_fields's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.25