cmgmaine's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
readwithbrittany's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
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
3.0
faith_meacham's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
laura_skel's review against another edition
4.0
I was a fan of the author long before her book 'Room' came out it was actually her books set back in 18th century England that I loved, Slammerkin and Life mask, I also read Room and loved it but was delighted when I saw that this book was going to take place in a more historic setting. I was not disappointed.
I truely enjoyed this novel, the characters for the most part were unlovable and horrible, and disease ridden and baking hot San Francisco did little to impress me, but the story kept me reading to the end, I wanted to know who redeemed themselves and who really didnt. I like the fact that unlike others the author doesnt feel the need to give everyone redeeming qualities. The author takes her fictional story from people that really existed, and fills in the many gaps as she likes.
I truely enjoyed this novel, the characters for the most part were unlovable and horrible, and disease ridden and baking hot San Francisco did little to impress me, but the story kept me reading to the end, I wanted to know who redeemed themselves and who really didnt. I like the fact that unlike others the author doesnt feel the need to give everyone redeeming qualities. The author takes her fictional story from people that really existed, and fills in the many gaps as she likes.
annareads31's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
marym8653's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
5.0
shachargannot's review against another edition
3.0
After the experience I had reading Room and The Wonder, I decided that a Donoghue novel would be a surefire way to find another enjoyable read. Unfortunately, Frog Music wasn’t half as interesting as the other works I’ve read by her, and sometimes even a slog to get through.
I love historical fiction, and I liked being transported to 19th century San Francisco, but Blanche was one of the least compelling tour guides I could have been transported with. I don’t usually mind crass and lewd thoughts, but there was something kind of exasperating in the way Blanche spoke of sex. And I really disliked being privy to every single one of her thoughts and theories. It felt like 90% of the novel was Blanche theorizing about what was happening, and that made the actual events unfolding that much less interesting.
I didn’t even mind that she was a flawed (bad?) mother to P’tit. Honestly, the baby farming aspect of the story was by far the most fascinating part of the story. The fact that working-class parents felt this was the only way they could survive paints a very grim portrait of the realities of so many. I wanted to know more about it. To see whether P’tit was going to recover from this. Could children recover fully? Would the damage be done at that point? I suppose it is similar to Room in that way, and I hoped there would be more exploration to that.
It’s really sad how much I didn’t care about Jenny, or Arthur, or the Irish family, or really anyone else. The jumps in time, too, were exhausting. So just a bad combination for me all around. I was surprised to learn in the Afterword that Frog Music is inspired by an actual story. I appreciate Donoghue for the historical research she put into producing this work. I just wish it was a bit more my style.
I love historical fiction, and I liked being transported to 19th century San Francisco, but Blanche was one of the least compelling tour guides I could have been transported with. I don’t usually mind crass and lewd thoughts, but there was something kind of exasperating in the way Blanche spoke of sex. And I really disliked being privy to every single one of her thoughts and theories. It felt like 90% of the novel was Blanche theorizing about what was happening, and that made the actual events unfolding that much less interesting.
I didn’t even mind that she was a flawed (bad?) mother to P’tit. Honestly, the baby farming aspect of the story was by far the most fascinating part of the story. The fact that working-class parents felt this was the only way they could survive paints a very grim portrait of the realities of so many. I wanted to know more about it. To see whether P’tit was going to recover from this. Could children recover fully? Would the damage be done at that point? I suppose it is similar to Room in that way, and I hoped there would be more exploration to that.
It’s really sad how much I didn’t care about Jenny, or Arthur, or the Irish family, or really anyone else. The jumps in time, too, were exhausting. So just a bad combination for me all around. I was surprised to learn in the Afterword that Frog Music is inspired by an actual story. I appreciate Donoghue for the historical research she put into producing this work. I just wish it was a bit more my style.
alykat_reads's review against another edition
2.0
I just don't think Donoghue's books are for me. This is the third I've tried and none have been all that great.
The dark subject matter didn't bother me that much, but none of the characters were likeable. The story seemed to jump all over (before and after the shooting) and it was difficult to follow along sometimes to figure out which timeline you were in as there was no distinguishing between them. This could have been due to listening to the audiobook, where the print book may have had different fonts or page breaks to distinguish; not sure. Either way I didn't enjoy this very much, and maybe it's just her writing style since I haven't really enjoyed any of her books.
The dark subject matter didn't bother me that much, but none of the characters were likeable. The story seemed to jump all over (before and after the shooting) and it was difficult to follow along sometimes to figure out which timeline you were in as there was no distinguishing between them. This could have been due to listening to the audiobook, where the print book may have had different fonts or page breaks to distinguish; not sure. Either way I didn't enjoy this very much, and maybe it's just her writing style since I haven't really enjoyed any of her books.
anniekayefic's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It took me a bit to get back to this book after having blown through the first 3/4 while on a camping weekend. Overall I enjoyed the story and after finishing the book, was interested to read the historical basis for the events and the characters. It’s not my typical novel but I enjoyed it.