Reply To: TBC: What did you think of The Briar Club and why?
Definitely enjoyed it and I did not initially expect to! It had all of the elements I enjoy.
First, a great plot. I did not see the ending coming but it absolutely fit. All along, I was certain that Grace was the first murder victim. It was only when I read the comment about her mistake allowing herself to be photographed that I began to understand there was more to her character than the competent woman who takes care of people, takes principled stands and gets things done.
Each of the characters was human and multi-layered, even Arlene who I would happily have shaken until her teeth rattled. Reka reminded me on many levels of the Ruth of Three Pines, an artist, a bit of a curmudgeon, living on the edge. But, each woman and the men they brought to their home were fascinating.
And, I enjoyed the setting. I could picture the city and the area. Foggy Bottom is now the home of The Watergate and Kennedy Center but it is also, like much of the District, a collection of neighborhoods, people and the places where they live and eat.
This story was set in the history of the McCarthy era but I found some of the similarities to autocratic and arbitrary current government actions chilling!
