Reviews with content warning for Racial slurs - Blanche on the Lam

Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Blanche on the Lam by Barbara Neely

7 reviews

droggelbecher42's review against another edition

mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Really enjoyed this book, very quick fun read, found myself caring about Blanche more than I expected for such a short book. My first Blanche book I read and can definitely see myself checking out the other books or reread this one, to see what clues I missed in the beginning

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djreads's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

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skudiklier's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious reflective tense 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

4.75

I really enjoyed this! It's got a lot of the great parts about mysteries while also turning so many tropes and conventions on their heads. Blanche is a great protagonist and I hope to read more of this series at some point.

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clarahesler's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

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dark reflective medium-paced

3.75

Blanche on the Lam was a relatively quick read, a fast-paced murder mystery. But one that came with a very heavy dose of race relations. Class commentary too. Not a bad thing at all but it did sometimes feel a little heavy handed.

Sentenced to a spell in jail for passing bad cheques (only because an employer didn’t pay her) Blanche, a Black woman, manages to escape and then hides out by working as a housekeeper for a wealthy family in their summer house. All sorts of suspicious happenings take place. And then there are murders. That’s right. More than one. Thankfully Blanche is sassy, smart, and savvy - and not averse to a little snooping. Not only does she solve the case before the Sheriff is even aware there is a case to be solved, but she does so in a way that ends her “bad cheques and jail escapee” dilemma.

If you like southern gothic and are up for plenty of straightforward, no BS commentary when it comes to race this could be a book for you.

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aasplund's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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gracew's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

It's crazy to me that this book was written in the 90's because it feels so modern. There's aspects of it that are slightly dated but overall this book holds up so well. It takes awhile for the story to really get going and once the set up is out of the way and the actual mystery kicks up it goes by really quickly. I really liked how Blanche's character grows, I love the way that she is able to see others complexly while also not taking even a little bit of shit from them. Overall a really great story that is as relevant today as it was when it was written.

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