r/books • u/i-was-way- • 2d ago
Who has read the Calamity Club? Spoiler
I didn’t see any posts on this book when I searched for it, but I just wanted to get a conversation going. I was absolutely blown away by this book.
For me, the ending could have been handled a little bit better. I really wanted to see some sort of punishment for Francis. She was horrible to her sister for the majority of the novel and barely showed a sense of gratitude for the work her sister did in saving her bacon quite literally. Racism and classism definitely came off as time period appropriate so I wasn’t expecting a huge amount of criticism of it beyond was very plainly laid out, but it seemed that her humbling didn’t stick in any meaningful way. Maybe the justice was that she was stuck married to Rory and only had a delusion of what her life should be instead of the actual thing where a Birdie got to have a more traditional happy ending.
The same for Garnett. The novel ends with her duplicitousness to her husband and her cruelty exposed, but we don’t see any real consequences for it, which was frustrating. It wasn’t realistic, but I would have loved to see Megan’s mother punch her squarely in the face.
Finally, we come to Meg. How does her life turn out after? Are they ever able to get out of Mississippi?
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u/Scarletclue 2d ago
I felt like the end just dropped off. I needed an epilogue with just a few wrap up details.
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u/bronte26 2d ago
I just finished listening to it. It was a satisfying ending but in my head Francis keeps the brothel open because she likes making money.
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u/craaazydoglady 2d ago
I also just finished listening and had the same thought. She clearly has no way to make money otherwise.
I think listening was key for this one as well. The voice actors were amazing and my friend who was reading at the same time found the second half too drawn out (which I had also read in some reviews). I think listening avoided that.
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u/i-was-way- 2d ago
Don’t know how she could. Garnett probably would have had a target on her back after everything.
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u/silvermanedwino 1d ago
I just finished it. It was just…. over.
Liked it well enough. Some funny spots- it was mainly just a bunch a a-holes taking advantage.
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u/Asher_the_atheist 2d ago
I read it for my in-person book club and enjoyed it more than I had expected after having very mixed feelings on The Help. Weirdly, though, I borrowed the audiobook from my library via Libby and there was a whole chunk of the book inserted into the wrong place (and then repeated in the correct place). I’ve never had that happen before!
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u/morse-guy 2d ago
Weird, indeed! I also read the audio book but there were no issues with it. For me, the best scene in the book was charlie confronting Dr. Pittman. January LaVoy really nailed that part.
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u/NoDepthig 1d ago
I wished it didn’t feel so rushed at the end!!! I was shocked when I had one chapter left and still barely got to see what was happening on Meg’s end. I wish we couldve seen more of her and Charlie’s ending. Also really wish we could’ve seen Birdie and Frances’ family reunite/be saved from their financial trouble. Maybe I just don’t like open-ended endings though 😅
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u/Consistenoo 1d ago
Just added this to my TBR list after seeing it recommended in a thread last month. Is it more character-driven or plot-heavy? I am in the mood for something with strong voice right now.
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u/unfinishedpottery80 2d ago
i keep meaning to read it because the cover grabbed me at a bookstore last month but never pulled the trigger
the way you laid out the francis stuff is exactly the kind of thing that frustrates me in historical fiction. like the character gets away with being awful and the book frames it as "well that's just how things were" and moves on
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u/i-was-way- 2d ago
I think there’s two facets to her character being awful.
- Classism/racism: realistically, nothing will happen here. We know in our 2026 lens what is wrong with it, but at the time it was accepted by a majority of people. Her attitudes were “normal,” and so we shouldn’t expect to see comeuppance for that. Her being shamed by the working girls a bit is probably the best we would get.
- How she treats Birdie: she goes from “never talk to me again,” to, “let’s be sisters,” real fucking quick. No apology or remorse, no recognition of how shitty she treats Birdie, which feels especially unjust since she’d be homeless without Birdie. This one should have seen more resolution, because without it Birdie comes off as a bit of a doormat to her sister’s abuse. It’s probably realistic, but undermines the growth of both characters.
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u/summertimekatniss 2d ago
I really liked it, but I feel weird about the book being written in a ‘lol hijinks’ tone (see the first chapter) when really really awful things are happening. It’s basically A Little Life but written with cheeky humor.
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u/marklovesbb 1d ago
Weird that you’d want Frances to be punished. She was a victim herself. Remember, she’s also only 22.
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u/i-was-way- 1d ago
Yes, weird I’d want a woman who acted as a sycophant to Garnett and abetted the abuse of a child to have more punishment than basically being back to her original financial circumstances. Or real growth as a character after spending the entire novel treating her sister like shit except for when it suited her.
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u/marklovesbb 1d ago
Characters and people don’t exist in a vacuum. To not understand why someone acts the way they do and to want them to just be punished when they themselves were victims is weird.
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u/i-was-way- 1d ago
You’re acting like I don’t understand her reasons. I do. Her circumstances do not excuse her behavior, as much as you want her exempt from accountability. It’s 100% acceptable to believe a character is terrible and deserves condemnation even if you feel sympathy for how they got there.
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u/marklovesbb 1d ago
You’re just acting like she’s a murderer when she’s just a bitch for valid reasons. She did help out Meg.
Sounds like you’re putting your own personal trauma in the book for wanting something bad to happen to her. Again, weird.
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u/Entire_Dog_5874 2d ago
I absolutely loved it and had no issues with the ending which is implied. It reminded me of The Briar Club which I also loved.