I read Blood Noir (I started it last month and set it aside). I was very disappointed in the book. I accept the direction LKH has gone in, it's fine although I don't agree that it's erotica, the sex isn't well written enough to have the story center on it. But overall, I thought the plot was weak. Generally, everything, every feeling, every concept, every conversation, had to be repeated four times. It was aimless for the most part when in fact, it could have been really dark if she'd focused on the whole Marmee Noir thing but she never gives it the page space it deserves and I don't know why. She's got the chops to do it justice.
MILD SPOILERS BELOW:
The sex was brutal and disgusting in one place in particular - the hotel "rape" scene. The level of detail in the aftermath was sickening and also while marginally emotional, yet antoher fight with Richard and an extraneous pregnancy scare just took away from the scene. I felt it was TOTALLY unnecessary. It did nothing but add yet more characters and yet another story thread that got left dangling and left us with yet another scene with Richard that is a virtual carbon copy of the last eight of them.
The stuff with Jason wasn't bad but I thought the beginning scene where she has a safe word with Nathaniel and he ignored it to be irresponsible.
The thing is, I think LKH has an interesting world, I just don't know why she continues to stuff it full of characters that add nothing and simply make the story hard to follow. I'm sorry to say Blood Noir was not a hit for me at all.
Lauren Dane
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