Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide by Rupert Holmes
8 reviews
nabecker13's review
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual harassment, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Violence, Terminal illness, Death, Gaslighting, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Misogyny, and Suicide
jillselwyn's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
The first in a new, witty thriller series by Rupert Holmes, Murder Your Employer sets the tone - from the writing style, to the type of humor, to the "in world book" set up it boasts. Throughout my reading, I had to pause an absurd amount of times to either take a picture of a page due to the hilarity of a scene - to send to a friend or family member - or to turn to a coworker and fully read the scene out loud to them. (I work at my university library and yes I did actually bring this book to work...) and very nearly accidentally created an entire book club based on those selected scenes.
When I was asked about the genre of the book, after I'd mention it as a mystery thriller, I'd add that it was specifically British literature. Except that for some reason I'd always trip over the word literature and accidentally say "witerature" so now I've made a completely separate genre in my friend group called Brit Wit. Early on, and throughout, I even found myself comparing the writing style to that of Neil Gaiman's witty style in some of his books - and was promptly told that it was specific to British writing, a sort of dry wit.
As for the story itself, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't just a murder school story, but that the book didn't even just end with the characters leaving to complete their "finals" but that a good chunk of the book was dedicated to Gemma, Doria, and Cliff's elaborate planning and , for lack of a better term, execution of those plans - and finally, their deletions. Each one shockingly creative and well thought out, the book is tied up perfectly with an extremely satisfying close, and an exciting promise to look forward to more of this exquisite writing in book two - Murder Your Mate (not listed on Goodreads so far but it was confirmed that he was working on a second volume of that title in an interview article).
When I was asked about the genre of the book, after I'd mention it as a mystery thriller, I'd add that it was specifically British literature. Except that for some reason I'd always trip over the word literature and accidentally say "witerature" so now I've made a completely separate genre in my friend group called Brit Wit. Early on, and throughout, I even found myself comparing the writing style to that of Neil Gaiman's witty style in some of his books - and was promptly told that it was specific to British writing, a sort of dry wit.
As for the story itself, I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't just a murder school story, but that the book didn't even just end with the characters leaving to complete their "finals" but that a good chunk of the book was dedicated to Gemma, Doria, and Cliff's elaborate planning and , for lack of a better term, execution of those plans - and finally, their deletions. Each one shockingly creative and well thought out, the book is tied up perfectly with an extremely satisfying close, and an exciting promise to look forward to more of this exquisite writing in book two - Murder Your Mate (not listed on Goodreads so far but it was confirmed that he was working on a second volume of that title in an interview article).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Suicide
cozyscones's review against another edition
dark
funny
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide, Sexual harassment, Homophobia, and Misogyny
Minor: Racism and Transphobia
toffishay's review
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-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
3.25
I liked this book well-enough, but I definitely wanted to like it more. The premise is so fun: a school that teaches you how to murder is ripe for puns and gags and you definitely get plenty of those. It still has adult subject matter though, so you get the vibes of a Series of Unfortunate Events or Truly, Devious, but with a mature element that really serves as a strong suit. The pacing is a little off for me. <SPOILER> The first part of the book centers around getting us acclimated to McMasters Academy, but then in the middle of the book the characters leave to carry out their "theses". At that point things slow down a lot of the three characters that we follow end up being so spread out that it can be a little bit of a slog to get through. I think that this isn't helped by the fact that even though we are following three main characters, the stories of Gemma and Dulci/Dorie felt way underdeveloped compared to Cliff's. Gemma is portrayed in a very middling way that makes you sympathetic to her, but she isn't very interesting to follow. Dulcie/Dorie is more interesting, but her ending falls so flat that it feels like the narrative is trying to punish her in a way that it isn't doing with Gemma and Cliff. And in both the cases of Gemma and Dulcie/Dorie, there endings feel rushed and incomplete, like all the attention was on Cliff and then the author remembers that they have to wrap up the other stories too. The romance between Cliff and Gemma felt weird too. He spends all of their interactions idolizing her for seeming nicer than other students and also being upset with her for her assignment with another character, Jud, because she is spending time with a man. And then at the end, it picks back up insinuating that they will get togehter? It feels underdeveloped. Ultimately, I think that this books could have been better served by focusing on Cliff's story, since that is the one that the author seemed the most attached too. <END SPOILER> I only have so much to say because I really wanted to love this book! It does hit on a lot of things that I like with a fun tongue-in-cheek framing, interesting mystery elements, a anti-hero stance that sides with the underdogs. All of that is great. But the characters, the length, and the division of the action/plot really drag this one down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Suicide, Violence, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexism, Alcohol, Homophobia, Death of parent, Transphobia, Classism, Racism, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, and Gun violence
In addition to listed content warnings, story also contains mention of "Gambling/Gambling Addiction"madamenovelist's review
adventurous
dark
funny
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gun violence, Misogyny, Violence, Suicide, and Death
Moderate: Transphobia, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Sexual content, and Homophobia
chris_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Very good whimsical fun. The narration was cheeky and full of deadly euphemisms. The 1950s academic setting really worked here. The characters were surprisingly sympathetic given their field of study. The murders and methods were creative and complex. And I especially loved the audiobook performance.
There was one aspect that kind of bothered me: That being a side character using a cross-dresser, though fictitious, as the scapegoat for their plans. While it's certainly a unique means of execution, I don't like the implications. Though I don't think we're meant to particularly like this character or agree with her, so I can't speak to any underlying bias of the author.
There was one aspect that kind of bothered me: That being a side character using a cross-dresser, though fictitious, as the scapegoat for their plans. While it's certainly a unique means of execution, I don't like the implications. Though I don't think we're meant to particularly like this character or agree with her, so I can't speak to any underlying bias of the author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Misogyny and Suicide
Minor: Transphobia, Alcohol, Death of parent, Rape, and Body shaming
workplace harassmentkat1105's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Classism, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, and Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Misogyny
homebodywitch's review
adventurous
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Kidnapping, Murder, and Suicide
More...