hollie313's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.25
lilacs_book_bower's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Addiction, Body shaming, Grief, Infidelity, Murder, Death, Fatphobia, and Pregnancy
CW: fatphobia, elderly dementia, dated disability language, and speculation of possible suicide, the child death is mentioned briefly as occurring in the past. I had read this years ago and remember enjoying it because of all the Bronte references and writing "shop talk." I definitely did not enjoy it nearly as much this time around. The Bronte references were a lot fewer than I remembered, which was disappointing. Jacqueline can be an annoying and smug character. The mystery is interesting (I remembered being surprised the first time around), but this is not one of Peters' better works. The way that Peters has Jacqueline think about the disabled character feels dated, and the fatphobia is glaringly bad. There are also smarmy men who would use sexually harass women if they could, and at least two cheating men (and one woman), so the characters aren't super likable, with a few minor exceptions. Not entirely surprising in a mystery, but Peters's books are often more amusing than this one was. Lowered the rating because of the fatphobia and the disability rep, which another reviewer described as weird, and I agree with that.sjgochenour's review against another edition
4.0
The most complex of the Jacqueline Kirby novels, both emotionally and plot-wise. Deeply engrossing, though I find Jacqueling the most uncomfortable of Peters' heroines.
Some weird disability rep, and the disabled woman is violently murdered.
Some weird disability rep, and the disabled woman is violently murdered.
kathrynamonett's review against another edition
3.0
Better whodunnit than the last, but soooo much fat-shaming. It was so blatant that every time it happened, it completely took me out of the story.
scorpstar77's review against another edition
4.0
I downloaded this as an audiobook when I had an Audible.com subscription because...well, I don't remember why I chose it, exactly. Mystery novels are absolutely my personal guilty bookish pleasure, so it's not a stretch to imagine that someone recommended it to me and I picked it up for that reason. Regardless, I greatly enjoyed it. Plot summary: Jacqueline Kirby, loud-mouthed, brash, fearless, hilarious, best-selling romance author, needs a vacation from the publishing biz. Unfortunately, she's also out of money. So when she hears about the opportunity to write a sequel to one of the best-selling books of all time, which also happens to be one of her favorite books ever written, she jumps at it. The book's author, Kathleen Darcy, disappeared in the middle of nowhere seven years ago, and she's now presumed dead. Her family is interviewing candidates to write the sequel, and Jacqueline very much wants to get the job. The more she pokes around in their family business, however, the more certain she is that one of them wanted Kathleen dead - and she's determined to get to the bottom of that particular mystery.
This was a fun, fast, entertaining story. The actor who reads the book captures Jacqueline Kirby PERFECTLY, which made the audiobook that much more enjoyable. I believe that this is the second or third Jacqueline Kirby book, and I definitely want to read the others in the series after experiencing this one. When I mentioned on Facebook that I'd read it, one of my friends said she liked to describe Elizabeth Peters's books as a peanut M&M - candy-coated chocolate with a nugget of protein in the center. I think that's a dead-on description. It is a fun, fluffy, cozy mystery story, but there's something weighty about it. It's well-written, and I can tell Peters is a smart woman.
This was a fun, fast, entertaining story. The actor who reads the book captures Jacqueline Kirby PERFECTLY, which made the audiobook that much more enjoyable. I believe that this is the second or third Jacqueline Kirby book, and I definitely want to read the others in the series after experiencing this one. When I mentioned on Facebook that I'd read it, one of my friends said she liked to describe Elizabeth Peters's books as a peanut M&M - candy-coated chocolate with a nugget of protein in the center. I think that's a dead-on description. It is a fun, fluffy, cozy mystery story, but there's something weighty about it. It's well-written, and I can tell Peters is a smart woman.
quietjenn's review against another edition
3.0
It meandered a bit and I figured out a lot of key points way before they were officially revealed, but still quite enjoyable.
wordnerdy's review against another edition
3.0
http://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2013/06/2013-book-165.html
ssejig's review against another edition
5.0
I know I'm in a minority but, for me, there is only one Elizabeth Peters mystery series and it's not Amelia Peabody.
Jacqueline Kirby is the woman I want to be when I grow up. Former librarian turned world famous romance writer who has a quick quip for every situation. A little brash yet able to charm. Maybe without so many dead bodies though...
I read the Kirby books about ten years ago and enjoyed them immensely. When I saw this book on NetGalley, I immediately hit 'request' to see if they were as good as I remembered.
Oh, they are. Or, at least this one is. Yes, it's a bit dated (word processors anyone?) but most of it holds up amazingly well.
Jacqueline jumps at the chance to finish the last two books in a trilogy. The author wrote one fabulously received book and then, one rainy night, vanished. Seven years later, she's now officially been declared dead and authors are vying to be the one chosen to finish out the series. Some are in deadly earnest, though that doesn't throw Jacqueline off her stride. She tries to finish the next book but is distracted by what happened to the original author. Okay, and a little distracted by the increasingly dangerous "accidents" that seem to be occurring to her.
Jacqueline Kirby is the woman I want to be when I grow up. Former librarian turned world famous romance writer who has a quick quip for every situation. A little brash yet able to charm. Maybe without so many dead bodies though...
I read the Kirby books about ten years ago and enjoyed them immensely. When I saw this book on NetGalley, I immediately hit 'request' to see if they were as good as I remembered.
Oh, they are. Or, at least this one is. Yes, it's a bit dated (word processors anyone?) but most of it holds up amazingly well.
Jacqueline jumps at the chance to finish the last two books in a trilogy. The author wrote one fabulously received book and then, one rainy night, vanished. Seven years later, she's now officially been declared dead and authors are vying to be the one chosen to finish out the series. Some are in deadly earnest, though that doesn't throw Jacqueline off her stride. She tries to finish the next book but is distracted by what happened to the original author. Okay, and a little distracted by the increasingly dangerous "accidents" that seem to be occurring to her.
holtfan's review against another edition
4.0
Jacqueline Kirby isn't a universal favorite amongst Elizabeth Peters readers but I absolutely adore her, especially now that she is firmly in the driver's seat as the main character.
Having published her tongue-in-cheek romance novel to rave reviews, the ex-librarian now gets the chance to complete the sequel for a wildly popular novel whose author disappeared 7 years earlier. Except the more she looks into it, the more suspicious the disappearance appears...
While I personally enjoyed [b:Die for Love|66506|Die for Love (Jacqueline Kirby, #3)|Elizabeth Peters|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1391231838l/66506._SY75_.jpg|1674960] more, this was a better mystery. Jacqueline spends less time protesting that she doesn't know why people confide their life stories to her and more time sleuthing. At least one of the twists is fairly obvious, but it is fun seeing everything come together.
I'd definitely recommend this series to mystery lovers with a taste for '80s throwback, the use of a word processor alone should leave you grinning.
You can skip the first two books in the series without much loss but this one won't make as much sense if you don't read Die for Love first. Well, you can probably get away without reading Die for Love first, because honestly this book rehashes the important bits, but you'll have missed out.
Having published her tongue-in-cheek romance novel to rave reviews, the ex-librarian now gets the chance to complete the sequel for a wildly popular novel whose author disappeared 7 years earlier. Except the more she looks into it, the more suspicious the disappearance appears...
While I personally enjoyed [b:Die for Love|66506|Die for Love (Jacqueline Kirby, #3)|Elizabeth Peters|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1391231838l/66506._SY75_.jpg|1674960] more, this was a better mystery. Jacqueline spends less time protesting that she doesn't know why people confide their life stories to her and more time sleuthing. At least one of the twists is fairly obvious, but it is fun seeing everything come together.
I'd definitely recommend this series to mystery lovers with a taste for '80s throwback, the use of a word processor alone should leave you grinning.
You can skip the first two books in the series without much loss but this one won't make as much sense if you don't read Die for Love first. Well, you can probably get away without reading Die for Love first, because honestly this book rehashes the important bits, but you'll have missed out.
raben_76325's review against another edition
4.0
This book was such a lovely little way to spend some time over the past few days. The main character, Jacqueline Kirby, has so much great personality and the mystery was very appealing to me. Loved it!!