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tangodiva's review against another edition
4.0
I really want to give this five stars but unfortunately there's a little too much repetition of certain words (a habit I dislike) and the plot and ancillary characters are....nebulous at best. This is not a book about plot.
What I did like: The three-character breakdown of the book (one part for each) was distinct and gave the old Rashomon-style perspective. The world-building and atmosphere was top-notch.
But it's more what this book is ABOUT, which slowly unfolds, that make me give it 4 stars. It was quite a high wire act but I think the author pulled it off. The last chapter, which I have read three times now, is perhaps one of the most devastating I have ever read.
Highly reccommended.
What I did like: The three-character breakdown of the book (one part for each) was distinct and gave the old Rashomon-style perspective. The world-building and atmosphere was top-notch.
But it's more what this book is ABOUT, which slowly unfolds, that make me give it 4 stars. It was quite a high wire act but I think the author pulled it off. The last chapter, which I have read three times now, is perhaps one of the most devastating I have ever read.
Highly reccommended.
peazerria's review against another edition
3.0
im gonna tbh i got lost alot while reading this book bc of the writing style esp at the start but the lore was interesting the characters were interesting and i liked the overall character arc of pea as well as some of the prose so like 3.7 stars for me
jalynnesque's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
mitskacir's review against another edition
2.0
I was so disconnected from this book I’m not even sure what to say. Perhaps I should have read the hard copy instead of listening to the audiobook - the readers had these terrible old-timey accents that really didn’t do it for me. But at the same time, the story was so meandering and didn’t end up going anywhere, I didn’t feel any particular attachment to any characters, and the commentary on race was either simplistic or went over my head, so I don’t think it was all the audio narrators’ fault. There were also a lot of random sex scenes, which felt very unnecessary.
hckilgour's review
I dnf’ed at 42%
I just couldn’t find the story. Or the will to continue on. Like it started off interesting then just slowly lost my attention.
The world and relationships are very well fleshed out. But the magic made no sense and there was very little exposition on it. Or use.
The pov also switched from Phyllis to Dev at about 40% which I didnt get why.
I just couldn’t find the story. Or the will to continue on. Like it started off interesting then just slowly lost my attention.
The world and relationships are very well fleshed out. But the magic made no sense and there was very little exposition on it. Or use.
The pov also switched from Phyllis to Dev at about 40% which I didnt get why.
joannemiro1948's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
prncssbeara3's review
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
enesven's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
honnari_hannya's review against another edition
5.0
Truly, what can I say about this book? It's unflinching, gorgeously written, deeply nuanced and deeply felt. Alaya Dawn Johnson has prose that reads like poetry, and a talent for breaking your heart.
Set in 1940s New York, TROUBLE THE SAINTS is divided into three sections that follow three different—but deeply interconnected—characters. Phyllis LeBlanc is an assassin, an angel of justice, for the biggest mob boss in the city. Devajyoti is her barkeep-informant ex-lover. Tamara is his ex-lover, and her best friend. The three of them are blessed with certain talents, believed to be God-given or its exact opposite, and the each of them must reconcile how they've made use of said talents—what true purpose those gifts might serve, and if they have done enough to deserve them. The stakes are high from the beginning, and with each section, they keep rising.
If this plot sounds confusing or vague, it's because it is. This isn't really a book with a clear end game, so I don't recommend going into it with that kind of mindset. Rather, it is a more philosophical book that meanders between the choices these three characters make, or are forced to make, and how they carry those choices with them through to their bitter end.
This book is not a happy one, as you may have well guessed from the subject matter—the characters in this book are mobsters and assassins, who are on the darker end of morally gray, and they get the kinds of endings that one might expect from that life. Johnson doesn't pull punches about the kinds of violence that exists in this world, and moreover the kinds of violence that exists in the world in general for people who aren't white. This is a book about power and trauma, about the endless cycles of violence that people suffer—and sometimes, that they choose in order to feel like something other than the victims. This is a book about how history has a long and bloody reach, one that cannot be outrun or rejected, only embraced.
Johnson doesn't hold your hand through this novel. Her writing is incredibly immersive and opaque, with worldbuilding so tightly woven into a plot that the reader is just dropped into with no real footing. That might put some readers off, but I urge you to slow down and continue, because it is definitely worth it. I think it really captures the ways in which our cultural histories, their stories and their legacies, are so deeply embedded in how we live our lives that it can't be explained except through the act of living them.
If I could give this more than 5 stars, I would. I honestly think the comps are way off—this is not really a book for readers of Erin Morgenstern, who I also love, but is a little more fluffy in terms of the topics she tackles. Johnson has written something more gritty and raw, not to be taken lightly.
Highly recommended for fans of Catherynne M. Valente's DEATHLESS, Lara Elena Donnelly's AMBERLOUGH Dossier, Carmen Maria Machado's HER BODY AND OTHER PARTIES, or River Solomon's THE DEEP. Dark and dazzling, and full of very cool vibes. Literally could not recommend enough.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for a free e-copy of this ARC.
Set in 1940s New York, TROUBLE THE SAINTS is divided into three sections that follow three different—but deeply interconnected—characters. Phyllis LeBlanc is an assassin, an angel of justice, for the biggest mob boss in the city. Devajyoti is her barkeep-informant ex-lover. Tamara is his ex-lover, and her best friend. The three of them are blessed with certain talents, believed to be God-given or its exact opposite, and the each of them must reconcile how they've made use of said talents—what true purpose those gifts might serve, and if they have done enough to deserve them. The stakes are high from the beginning, and with each section, they keep rising.
If this plot sounds confusing or vague, it's because it is. This isn't really a book with a clear end game, so I don't recommend going into it with that kind of mindset. Rather, it is a more philosophical book that meanders between the choices these three characters make, or are forced to make, and how they carry those choices with them through to their bitter end.
This book is not a happy one, as you may have well guessed from the subject matter—the characters in this book are mobsters and assassins, who are on the darker end of morally gray, and they get the kinds of endings that one might expect from that life. Johnson doesn't pull punches about the kinds of violence that exists in this world, and moreover the kinds of violence that exists in the world in general for people who aren't white. This is a book about power and trauma, about the endless cycles of violence that people suffer—and sometimes, that they choose in order to feel like something other than the victims. This is a book about how history has a long and bloody reach, one that cannot be outrun or rejected, only embraced.
Johnson doesn't hold your hand through this novel. Her writing is incredibly immersive and opaque, with worldbuilding so tightly woven into a plot that the reader is just dropped into with no real footing. That might put some readers off, but I urge you to slow down and continue, because it is definitely worth it. I think it really captures the ways in which our cultural histories, their stories and their legacies, are so deeply embedded in how we live our lives that it can't be explained except through the act of living them.
If I could give this more than 5 stars, I would. I honestly think the comps are way off—this is not really a book for readers of Erin Morgenstern, who I also love, but is a little more fluffy in terms of the topics she tackles. Johnson has written something more gritty and raw, not to be taken lightly.
Highly recommended for fans of Catherynne M. Valente's DEATHLESS, Lara Elena Donnelly's AMBERLOUGH Dossier, Carmen Maria Machado's HER BODY AND OTHER PARTIES, or River Solomon's THE DEEP. Dark and dazzling, and full of very cool vibes. Literally could not recommend enough.
Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Books for a free e-copy of this ARC.