agentkp's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This book kept me up at night because i couldn't stop reading and I was so curious and wanting to know what would happen but then when I got to the end I couldn't help but be a little disappointed. I absolutely love the main character, Jamie is a delight and relatable character and I was really cheering for her through it all. And yet by the end I really felt the lack of other characters that could be there for her and for her to actually bond with. She went through such a traumatic experience but the ending just seemed to brush that off in a way. I like reading books where through all the hardships the character find someone or someones to be there for them and be their support system and I guess that's why this one wasn't as good as I expected. Jamie was alone through most of her life and just had bad experiences with people leaving her and then she went through multiple betrayals only to end up alone again? I guess at least she had the monkeys as friends.
I would've liked more if she had teamed up with Anne Beth to bring the cult down. The cult was also pretty vague but I guess that was on porpoise to show that cults rarely make sense?
I would've liked more if she had teamed up with Anne Beth to bring the cult down. The cult was also pretty vague but I guess that was on porpoise to show that cults rarely make sense?
lexbian's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kittykornerlibrarian's review
3.0
This book was just bizarre enough that I wanted to continue reading it, but I didn't feel engaged with any of the characters. Narrated by Jamie, a woman who is being monitored by the state of Florida after a crime involving stealing cash, fire, and rescuing a pelican from her former workplace, this is the story of Jamie's arrival at a privately-owned macaque rescue organization. It's clear from the outset that there are an awful lot of shady goings-on at this place that sounds more like a cult than a volunteer opportunity. The other women who run the organization are impossible for Jamie to understand, even when they embrace her and offer lip service to her inclusion in their community. Even the circumstances of Jamie being there when she could be in jail seem strange. This is kind of a zany book with a lot going on under the surface. It just didn't really engage. I would not read another by this author.
jillwerbisky's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
funsized327's review against another edition
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-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
3.75
pchb's review against another edition
5.0
So funny, absurd, and straight-up good. After a bizarre, only-in-Florida crime that makes headlines, Jamie narrowly escapes jail time by instead serving a sentence on house arrest at an isolated macaque sanctuary run by three beautiful, cult-y women.
Jamie is all too relatable, particularly her love of the women and the sanctuary even though she knows something feels off. This book made me realize how rarely I have read a book with a lesbian protagonist whose sexuality wasn't the basis of the plot. Hooray for Florida Woman, the perfect summer read.
I read an ARC that was sent to the bookstore I work at from the publisher.
Jamie is all too relatable, particularly her love of the women and the sanctuary even though she knows something feels off. This book made me realize how rarely I have read a book with a lesbian protagonist whose sexuality wasn't the basis of the plot. Hooray for Florida Woman, the perfect summer read.
I read an ARC that was sent to the bookstore I work at from the publisher.