CW: This book has a tragic trans angle. I won’t spoil how and while I think the writer handled it well enough, it still touches on some worn tropes that could be hard for some. Please be warned.
They say that if you like to write, write a book you’d want to read. I had no hand in writing Death of a Dancing Queen, obviously, but by-and-large this is a book I’d want to write: interesting PI character, well-described setting, villains of both the regular- and underworlds respectively. Throw in a plot that never loses momentum and this is a solid first novel.
I just started working in New Jersey this year and I don’t know it well so this was a bit of a tourist read for me. Kimberly G. Giarratano knows her space well (at least as far as I gather) and she really brings the suburban sprawl and first tier urbanism to life. She leans into the Jerseyness of it without it being over-the-top. The only other writer I’ve found who can do that effectively is Wallace Stroby.
While I did enjoy this greatly, the content note above gave me pause. I don’t want to dock it a star, I want it to be graceful. I also don’t know the author’s orientation; I’m assuming cis but idk. But if she is: can cis folk please just leave trans folk alone in literature? I get the very good intent of this book but still, the way it plays out leaves a lot to be desired.
At any rate, I’m trying not to let it spoil what was otherwise a fun mystery.
