witchofottawacounty's review against another edition
4.0
I think this book could have acceptably been 200 pages longer. The "flash back" proteins seemed too short, and I longer for more.
Clearly it was good, though, since I wanted so much more from it!
Clearly it was good, though, since I wanted so much more from it!
jamiezaccaria's review against another edition
4.0
This was a very interesting book, in a good way. It was unique and beautifully written and richly weaving together important ideas and women throughout history. I think the end lost me a bit to be honest but overall, well done.
sapphickris's review against another edition
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sapphosgirlfriend's review against another edition
3.0
So I loved this concept, but the book didn't work that well for me. I really did like how the author brought women from history to life, but I wasn't that keen on the main character. I found her to be a little biphobic at times, and I didn't particularly see why she was portrayed as 'such an amazing woman'. It was still a pretty enjoyable book though, and I do love a good lesbian science fiction story as that is rare!
sapphic's review against another edition
3.0
So I loved this concept, but the book didn't work that well for me. I really did like how the author brought women from history to life, but I wasn't that keen on the main character. I found her to be a little biphobic at times, and I didn't particularly see why she was portrayed as 'such an amazing woman'. It was still a pretty enjoyable book though, and I do love a good lesbian science fiction story as that is rare!
blaze_o_glory's review
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I appreciate what this book was trying to do and that is why I'm mad that its not good. There needs to be more literature about the women in this book. I learned a lot of really cool things about lesbians throughout history. Or rather, I learned a little bit about a lot of historic lesbians. Unfortunately, The author bit off more than she could chew. This book would have been a much more cohesive story if she had picked one or two of the historic figures to focus on. Each chapter could have been its own book. Instead, we got what is essentially a series of twelve short stories, eleven of which have the exact same plot.
The last chapter, however, is too short to even be called a short story and especially disappointing because of that. It feels very much like it was shoehorned in so that the author could end the book with a "cliffhanger." It's not a cliffhanger. It's a non sequitur. I almost didn't include this last bit because of the "no spoilers" reminder in this section of the review page, but the more I thought about it, the less I considered it to be an actual spoiler. Its totally irrelevant to the rest of the book. The last sentence of the book is "I know where Amelia is." Because I read this book on my kindle, I was able to search the book for the name Amelia. Its only appearance is in the last sentence of the book. I do not care about Amelia because I have no idea who she is. The protagonist (Hannah) was not looking for Amelia. She had never even mentioned her before. I'm not even convinced that Hannah knows who this person is. Yet the mysterious, time traveling bar tender makes a point of telling Hannah that she knows where she is.
It breaks my heart that this book was so disappointing because I truly believe that the premise of a Women's history professor that gets transported back in time by mysterious means has boundless potential.
The last chapter, however, is too short to even be called a short story and especially disappointing because of that. It feels very much like it was shoehorned in so that the author could end the book with a "cliffhanger." It's not a cliffhanger. It's a non sequitur. I almost didn't include this last bit because of the "no spoilers" reminder in this section of the review page, but the more I thought about it, the less I considered it to be an actual spoiler. Its totally irrelevant to the rest of the book. The last sentence of the book is "I know where Amelia is." Because I read this book on my kindle, I was able to search the book for the name Amelia. Its only appearance is in the last sentence of the book. I do not care about Amelia because I have no idea who she is. The protagonist (Hannah) was not looking for Amelia. She had never even mentioned her before. I'm not even convinced that Hannah knows who this person is. Yet the mysterious, time traveling bar tender makes a point of telling Hannah that she knows where she is.
It breaks my heart that this book was so disappointing because I truly believe that the premise of a Women's history professor that gets transported back in time by mysterious means has boundless potential.
synth's review
1.0
I DNFd around half-way through bc... honestly, I don't really know, it was boring and self-centered? We're told by everyone but her (bc she has self-confidence issues apparently?) that the MC is this amazing woman, and I just could not see it.
But what really made me stop was the fact that, despite the MC's mentions of adding women of color to her teachings and being appalled at the lesbian community's racism (which now of course feel more than perfunctory), the book, half-way through that I got, never mentioned any woman of color, apart from a Greek Sappho, which does not exactly count, and a whitewashed ("olive skin" and "a strong Jewish nose") Miriam (Moses' sister). You cannot have your character deplore anti-semitism and racism (amongst others) in one breath and have the entire story be racist and whitewash Jewish history with all your other breaths...
But what really made me stop was the fact that, despite the MC's mentions of adding women of color to her teachings and being appalled at the lesbian community's racism (which now of course feel more than perfunctory), the book, half-way through that I got, never mentioned any woman of color, apart from a Greek Sappho, which does not exactly count, and a whitewashed ("olive skin" and "a strong Jewish nose") Miriam (Moses' sister). You cannot have your character deplore anti-semitism and racism (amongst others) in one breath and have the entire story be racist and whitewash Jewish history with all your other breaths...
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