jayvall reviewed Great Escape by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Review of 'Great Escape' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
I didn't hate this but there was enough going on that annoyed me greatly.
My biggest point of annoyance with this book was naming the lone black character, the only one who's not dead, Toby. I just don't understand why, if SEP could have a whole tangent where one white character lectures another white character on why it's offensive for him to be calling Toby "boy" (though it would have rang more true if Toby wasn't actually still a boy - at least make him a teenager), then how could SEP be so racially insensitive as to name him Toby in the first place? That's just as offensive, ESPECIALLY since there's a mention in the story of Toby and Bree watching Roots together.
I also thought it was insensitive to have Lucy think a passionate kiss between two lesbians was "icky" when, again, there was a whole tangent about Temple …
I didn't hate this but there was enough going on that annoyed me greatly.
My biggest point of annoyance with this book was naming the lone black character, the only one who's not dead, Toby. I just don't understand why, if SEP could have a whole tangent where one white character lectures another white character on why it's offensive for him to be calling Toby "boy" (though it would have rang more true if Toby wasn't actually still a boy - at least make him a teenager), then how could SEP be so racially insensitive as to name him Toby in the first place? That's just as offensive, ESPECIALLY since there's a mention in the story of Toby and Bree watching Roots together.
I also thought it was insensitive to have Lucy think a passionate kiss between two lesbians was "icky" when, again, there was a whole tangent about Temple not wanting to come out of the closet for fear of being judged. I can forgive an editor for not picking up on the Toby thing, but how did no one say, hey, maybe you could have Lucy just look away without the kiss having to be "icky" as well?
I'll still read SEP, and by the end of the book I was into but, those two things really did annoy me. I enjoyed Call Me Irresistable and was looking forward to this because I like coupled books that cover the same timespan, but this wasn't SEP's best effort.
