Thank you to BookishFirst for sending me a free copy!
I have no idea how to review this, because part of me feels like I'm missing something, but the other part of me lost a bit of patience reading this. If there is a target audience for this book, it's definitely very niche, and I'm not part of it.
The murder mystery is definitely not the main focus of the story, which I expected going in, but what I didn't expect is what the author chose to focus on in lieu of the premise. Aside from the odd characters and the religious/philosophical discussions that permeated throughout the book, the story was rife with sex and graphic depictions of genitalia, as well as an unnecessary (in my opinion) focus on the female body. All of the women in this book are reduced to sex toys, which might have been problematic in and of itself, but the absurd tone throughout just makes me question what the point of it all was.
The mystery itself was also solved extremely slowly, with so many ill-placed clues and red herrings (that were so weird and insignificant that they meant nothing until the end -- and even then, not in a lasting way). The solution to the death was also convoluted, while also being cliche and boring. Lastly, I tried to give the book a chance, and even dedicated extra time and headspace for it, but had to give up midway after the scene of the protagonist being f-ed by a dog. I just skimmed and skipped after that.
I have no idea how to review this, because part of me feels like I'm missing something, but the other part of me lost a bit of patience reading this. If there is a target audience for this book, it's definitely very niche, and I'm not part of it.
The murder mystery is definitely not the main focus of the story, which I expected going in, but what I didn't expect is what the author chose to focus on in lieu of the premise. Aside from the odd characters and the religious/philosophical discussions that permeated throughout the book, the story was rife with sex and graphic depictions of genitalia, as well as an unnecessary (in my opinion) focus on the female body. All of the women in this book are reduced to sex toys, which might have been problematic in and of itself, but the absurd tone throughout just makes me question what the point of it all was.
The mystery itself was also solved extremely slowly, with so many ill-placed clues and red herrings (that were so weird and insignificant that they meant nothing until the end -- and even then, not in a lasting way). The solution to the death was also convoluted, while also being cliche and boring. Lastly, I tried to give the book a chance, and even dedicated extra time and headspace for it, but had to give up midway after the scene of the protagonist being f-ed by a dog. I just skimmed and skipped after that.