Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray

12 reviews

annakh16's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

A fun continuation of the series. 

This part is less spooky than the last one but I personally preferred that. It‘s mainly concerned with developing characters and setting up mysteries for the next book. 

I did find that this less plot-focused nature made the book slightly too long/slow. It was somewhat compensated by the fact that the characters are an absolute strength of this series. They are very likeable, their relationships are heartwarming (found family!) and so hanging out with them is fun even when not too much happens. Ling was a great addition, though I was sad to see less of Memphis in this book. I also enjoyed Evie‘s character development in this

, and the discussions of how she copes with her trauma

. 

The „mystery“ was less interesting - I had guessed

the fact that Louis was dead

almost from the beginning, though not

the role of Wai-Mae as the veiled woman

. Bray‘s continued nuance and comprehensiveness in discussing the historical realities of racism in relation to the sleeping sickness made this more compelling however - and this approach in general, also looking at her discussion of homophobia, trade unionism etc., remains a strength of the series. 

I‘ll be very interested to see how the mysteries set up here develop in the next book. I do hope the pace picks up though. 

(Also January LaVoy is great as a narrator - drunk Evie was hilarious). 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Racism

Minor: Death, Trafficking, Police brutality, Alcohol, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, War, Homophobia, and Murder

sandsing7's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol and Violence

Minor: Sexual assault, Blood, War, and Trafficking

ashdawn's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This one was even better than the 1st book in the series!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Violence, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Rape, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Alcohol, Cursing, Death, and Outing

jashanac's review

4.5

Well damn - shit escalated! 

That was SO creepy and I probably would be terrified to watch a movie adaptation of this if it ever happened - haha

So far this series is just SO engrossing for me. It is like watching a movie a little bit -- the setting comes to life, the characters come to life... and the MYSTERY of it all! I'm absolutely hooked

I'm very much rooting for Evie and Sam to be endgame... and Memphis & Theta are SO ADORABLE oh my god I love them. And it looks like maybe Henry will get at least a blossoming romance? I hope so, because he wants love in his life and he deserves love in his life -- I adore him as a character. 

Ling was a great addition to this little ragtag crew also and I'm so interested to see how she fits in with everyone now that she has met everyone else. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Alcohol, Xenophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Body horror

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Murder, and Homophobia

Minor: Deportation and Sexual violence

maddiereadswords's review against another edition

5.0

 Oh, this one hits different in a post-Covid world. :) 

That being said, this is still my favorite book in the whole series, mostly because I would both kill and die for Ling Chan, disabled autistic ace-spec mean lesbian extraordinaire. <3 I literally don't even have coherent thoughts about this book, it's just so fucking good!! It's fun, spooky, and it both breaks and warms my heart at the same time, and I swear every time I read it those 600 pages feel even shorter. And that final meeting scene?? These angsty 1920s teenagers are my Avengers.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Racism, Trafficking, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Antisemitism, Confinement, Deportation, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, and Vomit

ellie_gonzalez's review against another edition

emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Racism, Trafficking, Xenophobia, and Alcohol

Moderate: Ableism, Antisemitism, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Deportation

jackierabbit's review against another edition

dark tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

This is the heftiest book in the series at 613 pages—and it’s obvious why. Bray immerses the plot in its surroundings. We don’t just see our characters deal with the sleeping sickness, we see people in nearby towns succumb to it, we see the treatment of Chinatown, we see the rise of the KKK and the beginning of popularized eugenics. 
Evie takes a backseat in this story to the lovely Henry and Ling, who’s friendship makes me feel like Gollum and his ring: preciousssss. However we do see Evie and co. and I hope Evie gets major character development because how she’s acting isn’t sustainable. Mabel deserves better, Sam is suave, Memphis & Theta are adorable, and Jericho…um…can walk off a cliff. 😁

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Body horror

Moderate: Ableism, Racism, and Alcohol

anntharai's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I put off reading #2 because I was worried it wouldn’t live up to how much I enjoyed #1, but I was happy to be proven wrong. 

The grasp the author has on horror is nuanced and subtle at times and palpably visceral at others. 

I love the cast of characters, the people are so rich and full that I feel like I’m friends with them. I want to read everything ever written by Memphis, dance with Theta to Henry’s songs. I adore the addition of Ling to the story, she’s such a wonderfully no BS character.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Trafficking, Death, Ableism, Alcohol, Xenophobia, Racism, and Hate crime

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gore, Animal death, Confinement, and Sexual content

kayleyc's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Ableism, Alcohol, Blood, and Hate crime

Minor: Addiction, Homophobia, and Trafficking

ellanarose's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Alcoholism, Xenophobia, Alcohol, and Violence

Moderate: Murder, Rape, Sexual content, Antisemitism, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Addiction, Drug use, Hate crime, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence