majkf's review against another edition
4.0
what an absolute joy to read, really made me Feel Things in the best way
yetanothersusan's review against another edition
4.0
Starting off like a gumshoe detective story at the beginning, the book quickly became a fictionalized account of the harrassment of the LGBT community in San Francisco in the late 50s / early 60s.
Josie/Joe has come to town to find out why her brother did not contact her in her birthday. She learns about corruption in the police force and a strong loving community of gays, lesbians, etc.
I enjoyed the story and the writing. I think a bit more knowledge of the gay community would have helped me understand a few things but that didn't ruin the book.
Josie/Joe has come to town to find out why her brother did not contact her in her birthday. She learns about corruption in the police force and a strong loving community of gays, lesbians, etc.
I enjoyed the story and the writing. I think a bit more knowledge of the gay community would have helped me understand a few things but that didn't ruin the book.
telepathicseagull's review against another edition
5.0
While it took a chapter or so to really get into the novel, once I got past the first chapter, I was obsessed. So wonder, very accurate. Makes you laugh, cry, and wish there were more books like it.
kitnotmarlowe's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? No
3.0
if i were rating simply the prose, and if every character didn't insist on speaking solely in meandering page-long monologues every single time a piece of I formation needed to be conveyed, i probably would have given this five stars. and if i were rating simply the sections where josie talks about being butch and/or god, then this would be five stars. however a book is more than the best parts of it, and i have to admit that the plot takes a long time to get going and when it was going,it didn't really go anyway. instead it sort of fizzled out without any real tension about who the blackmailer was, aka the thread holding the plot together, until its' rather lackluster reveal. while i enjoyed both the illustrations and the cast of characters, i didn't think the illustrations were completely necessary (though they were lovely) and the characters were so numerous i almost wanted to make a chart like this was a russian novel.
the most absolutely buckwild thing to happen in this book is that there's a shout-out to thee archetypal pulp butch BEEBO BRINKER and i fully left my body laughing
the most absolutely buckwild thing to happen in this book is that there's a shout-out to thee archetypal pulp butch BEEBO BRINKER and i fully left my body laughing
shelley_pearson's review against another edition
5.0
This was really good! I was expecting something a little lighter, because I usually read cozy mysteries, and this was kind of dark. I recommend it highly to queer mystery lovers and queer history lovers. So many memorable characters.
axmed's review
challenging
dark
funny
informative
reflective
sad
medium-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? No
4.5
inkyteacups's review against another edition
4.0
A very well written and beautiful book. But also sad.
wildeflower's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I listened to this book on Audible, and found it fairly enjoyable. There is a huge cast of characters with a wide range of LGBTQIAP+ identities being represented. The story takes place in San Francisco in 1951, and it definitely feels like you're watching a black and white noir mystery film because the narration is spot-on, and Gilmartin has clearly done a lot of research about what life was like during that time period. A few things that I didn't like (and this can probably be contributed to the fact that I was listening to the book instead of reading it) were that that sometimes I would get confused during a flashback, and felt that it didn't relate too well to the plot. Other times, I would also get characters mixed up, or it felt like they didn't really contribute to the plot. However, I would ultimately recommend reading this book because it's enjoyable, and because it tells a kind of queer story that one does not get to see very often.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual content, Stalking, and Violence
Moderate: Drug abuse, Sexism, and Suicide
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault