Deaths of Jocasta by J.M. RedmannMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Note: those with issues/problems with reading depictions of rape/rape-like/torture/abuse/etc. should not read this book.
Sex. Something of the main theme of my review for the first book in this series. I think I must have forgotten that this book here was a lot more 'drenched in' sex than the first. Plus - cheating. This is a messed up group of friends in a lot of ways. I think that two of the, I believe, six friends are borderline 99.9% sane, while the other four border on being . . . oh, kind of messed up - (I might be under or over counting -> in the 'messed up column': Danny, Micky, Joanne, Cordelia (least 'messed up'); 'sane-ish' - Elly (I think that's her name), Alex (again, think that's her name).
Danny spent a good deal of time in the first book, and a lot of time in this book taking every opportunity to make snide, smearing, awful comments about and to Micky (who, unless she's drunk, takes it as her due, because she knows she's garbage (which doesn't mean she won't lash back) (view spoiler)). Due entirely to the fact that the two women were lovers 8 years ago, and Micky freaked out when the relationship went super serious (what with Danny using the L word), and did everything she could to kill the relationship that would make herself look bad (i.e., fucking everything around her that was female, while drinking enough to selflessly keep several alcohol business in operation).
Micky – well, she’s the main character. Messed up childhood (I’d be more explicit, but spoilers), messed up relationships with her family (including abuse – both physical and mental), messed up adulthood – what with thinking of herself as garbage (bayou trash), drinking away her pain, and fucking everyone around her (I think there’s only one female friend Micky hasn’t slept with – of the six already listed, which I note since I’m leaving people like Emma off this specific list, for reasons). Well, of course the book starts with Micky attempting to better herself (two months sober and celibate), which isn’t helped by Danny still beating her up, and the others expecting Micky to be Micky – a drunken player.
Joanne has her own messed up childhood, has very . . . odd ideas about the word ‘love’ and the word ‘relationships’, as can be seen by her moving from being among the few women Micky hadn’t slept with to the thousands who have ((view spoiler)).
I do not really want to say why Cordelia is messed up for . . . reasons but . . .. She fools around with Micky (this occurring in the prior book), but then says she isn’t sure she can be with Micky, but give her time and she’ll be more definite yes or no . . . later. She’ll call. That was two months before the start of this story, and the first time Micky and Cordelia actually see each other again is at a party and Cordelia appears to arrive with a date (still without, you know, having ever let Micky know where she stands relationship wise with Cordelia). Cordelia plays a lot of games, creates a lot of drama, even though she gives off the vibe of being super serious and not being a drama-queen while at the same time leaping to conclusions – always going for the negative interpretation when Micky is involved.
Ah well. Weird mix of messed up adults.
The mystery? Quite an interesting mystery. Two part – someone is killing women through botched abortions – is it a sloppy doctor? Serial killer? Something else? The police, because of evidence so far gathered, strongly suspect Cordelia; second part – everyone at the shared clinic/community building Cordelia works at are being harassed by letter and/or phone (this is where Micky comes in – she’s hired to investigate part two; she looks into part one of the mystery because of the chief suspect and her lack of belief that Cordelia could be a murderer).
The romance? The Joanne-Micky-Alex triangle reads like it could fit in perfectly in a lesbian pulp book of the 1950s/60s. Heck, I think I even read this specific story-line in a book from then. First book didn’t really have a romance, and wasn’t a ‘romance’ but a mystery (other than the pursuit of Cordelia by Micky); second book, this one, is also a mystery not a romance. Though there was that love triangle mentioned, plus further pursuit of Cordelia by Micky. On a side note, I never really liked the Micky/Cordelia thingie, but whatever.
Mystery, romance, hmms . . . what else . . .. Family – you can’t choose your blood relatives, but you can chose your ‘family’ or something like that. That little saying doesn’t work here – her horrible family, i.e. Aunt Greta and Baynard aren’t actually blood relatives; and the chosen family, i.e., the Danny/Elly/Joanne/Cordelia/Alex/Micky friendship, is bloody messed up. Hell, even Torbin got on my last nerve in this book, and he was barely in it (the one ‘good’ ‘not-really-a-relative’ of Micky’s, a cousin).
As a mystery, I really enjoyed this book. As a ‘slice of life’, ‘people have fucked up lives’ . . . I also enjoyed this book. So, 4 instead of 5? Well, enjoyed, not loved. It’s hard to push this into a ‘love’ column when so many people are fucked up in this book.
Last point, tied into review for first book –once again I started a book roughly corresponding to previous read, as in Feb 18 2014 vs. Feb 19 2017. Again unplanned, that. Heh, just noticed it took me longer to read this book this time – just one day in 2014, 4 days this time. Though there was a three-day weekend that occurred – I read less on weekends. Let me see, using this as a theme, book three reread will occur . . . oh – I should have already read book three, what with how I appear to have read the book February 19 2014. Hmm. Oops.
February 22 2017
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