Reviews with content warning for Abortion - Cocaine Blues

A fun, fast paced read with a great main character and side characters. It has some dark topics but I think they are tackled well and the tone is still kept mostly light with the antics of Phryne.

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antarcticophile's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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allydee's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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hanyaya's review

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.0

#girlboss

More misogyny than mystery

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cursed10fold's review

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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meagangrace's review

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adventurous dark funny fast-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? No

3.75

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quiet_reader's review against another edition

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adventurous dark lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

Content Warnings

oddduck's review

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medium-paced

3.0

I watched the first two seasons of the (very excellent) TV show based off of this series and got a little curious about the source material. After all, the book is always better, and I really enjoyed the TV show. I do think this is a rare occasion where I prefer the TV show though.

I'm not quite sure what it is, but there's something that did not really grab me about this story. Everything was just kind of. . . fine.

I did find the characters interesting (and the differences from their television counterparts were especially interesting), though Dr. Macmillian is hands down my favorite. The part where she knocks the man trying to break into her room at the hospital to kill her out of a second floor window and is annoyed because a) he made her break her perfectly good wash basin and b) now she has to go deal with his injuries was the absolute best part of this book. She's an icon and I cannot wait to see more of her.

I like the TV show enough to try another book or two to see if I can get more into this series, but I’m not anticipating continuing much beyond that. I do see why so many people like this series, but I suspect it may not be for me.

[Note on content warnings: half of the main plot is catching a man performing poorly done back alley abortions that have been killing women. No details are given, but there is discussion of it happening. Similarly, busting a cocaine ring is the other half of the plot, though there is no on-screen drug use, only references to it.]

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