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A review by barrettbooks
Except the Dying by Maureen Jennings
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? Yes
2.25
Cw for mention of SA in this review.
I read this in a single day spent mainly in a walk-in clinic. Period mystery is a comfort genre for me. However, my thoughts on this are deeply mixed. The tldr is that the historical aspects of the book worked for me, the sex aspects didn't, and the mystery was...fine?
The good: this takes place in 1885 Toronto. I'm from nearby so that was fun. I love historical details and there was lots of (as far as can tell, accurate) worldbuilding. I prefer the fun facts inserted into books actually of the time because it happens so naturally but this did a good job of providing rich detail without constant info dumping. The book has characters of different social/economic circumstances and touches on common hardships that medical innovation has made far less common in North America, such as tuberculosis.
The mediocre: I found the mystery itself dull. It tried to be kind of sensationalist with lots of sprinkles of sex-based plot (which I will get into) but ultimately the whole web of info and false info felt straightforward to me. I did like the detection process moments though.
The bad: (this section contains spoilers)In the prologue, it's immeditely revealed that the teenage servant who becomes the murder victim has been raped, and her post mortem reveals that she was pregnant. The rich son is revealed to be gay, but only as a gotcha, and his fate is to marry a woman in the hopes that it "straightens him out." Two of ensemble cast are sex workers, who are living in poverty and judged harshly by the other characters; one is murdered and the other barely survives an attempt. The author is presumably trying to make some kind of point about sexual and class violence and perhaps cast her devout Roman Catholic cop protagonist in a darker light, but I didn't find the point clear or convincing and instead found these parts of the book pretty gratuitous.
Overall, it was...okay, I guess? It was readable. I might pick up more of the series if I find them used/cheap for the next time I have to wait for five hours at a clinic.
I read this in a single day spent mainly in a walk-in clinic. Period mystery is a comfort genre for me. However, my thoughts on this are deeply mixed. The tldr is that the historical aspects of the book worked for me, the sex aspects didn't, and the mystery was...fine?
The good: this takes place in 1885 Toronto. I'm from nearby so that was fun. I love historical details and there was lots of (as far as can tell, accurate) worldbuilding. I prefer the fun facts inserted into books actually of the time because it happens so naturally but this did a good job of providing rich detail without constant info dumping. The book has characters of different social/economic circumstances and touches on common hardships that medical innovation has made far less common in North America, such as tuberculosis.
The mediocre: I found the mystery itself dull. It tried to be kind of sensationalist with lots of sprinkles of sex-based plot (which I will get into) but ultimately the whole web of info and false info felt straightforward to me. I did like the detection process moments though.
The bad: (this section contains spoilers)
Overall, it was...okay, I guess? It was readable. I might pick up more of the series if I find them used/cheap for the next time I have to wait for five hours at a clinic.