Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

30 reviews

jkar7's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.5

This book really said "Oh you want toxic? Well strap on your hazmat suit!"
I don't think I really liked a single character in this book, but I loved to hate them. Emily and Mari were tolerable, but not sure why Emily didn't also

"let" Chess drown too.

.
A nice easy read, would be a great beach read! Maybe don't read it if you're planning a trip to a remote Italian town and staying in an old villa though. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Drug abuse, Suicide, Murder, Child death, Infidelity, Drug use, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Alcoholism, and Alcohol

Minor: Chronic illness, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Stalking

hannah_and_her_stories's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Grief, Alcohol, Death, Violence, Murder, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, and Child death

Minor: Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Suicide, Pregnancy, Drug use, Abortion, Blood, Vomit, and Murder

mariavdl's review

fast-paced

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

1.75

 A bit cringey. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship and Child death

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Violence, Suicide, Miscarriage, Alcohol, Blood, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, and Infidelity

emmehooks's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Infidelity

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Child death, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Drug use, Alcohol, and Grief

Minor: Pregnancy, Abortion, Terminal illness, Suicide, Sexual content, Miscarriage, and Panic attacks/disorders

minimicropup's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Inquisitive, ghoulish, contemplative

We follow characters from two timepoints - the '70s and present day. Both timePOVs are set in a Villa on the outskirts of Orvieto, Italy. The present day characters (a cozy mystery author and wellness influencer) are working on their slightly estranged friendship and are enticed by the history of the villa. In the 1970s a platinum album was composed and a classic horror novel written at the villa.

Growls, Howls, and Tail Wags 🐺🐕: 

• I liked the depth of character development and how the hint of campiness slowly escalated through a realistic slow burn mystery
• Bit of grown-up Goosebumps energy with discovering the history of the Villa and what went down by decoding hints in the author's horror novel
• The setting was immersive and kind of evolved into its own entity in the story
• If you're in this just for the sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll you may be disappointed. It's in the plot, but isn't the main focus. I liked how it was worked into the plot naturally and seemed realistic.

Cred Rating 👌: Realistic with just a touch of campy

Mood Reading Match Up: 

• Friendship and sibling dramas with bits of 'cattiness', jealousy, scheming, and competition + heartwarming and empathetic moments
• Slowly unraveling murder mysteries and blackmail 
• Elements of "good for her" revenge
• Summer vacation vibes, nostalgic 1970s vibes

Content Heads-Up: Good childfree-by-choice rep (female). Gaslighting and emotional abuse. Drug and alcohol use. Death of a baby.

Format: Scribd Digital and Audio

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Murder, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Child death, Death, and Infidelity

Minor: Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment

Sexual content is with consent. Adult/minor relationship is early 20s with 15-16 year olds running away from family together.

theonlybaillie's review

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

The pacing was so off on this one for me. I was bored the entire book and then drawn in the last 50 or so pages.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, and Suicide

Minor: Grief, Terminal illness, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Pregnancy, Self harm, and Vomit

ruthypoo2's review against another edition

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This is a very good story about the good and bad sides of relationships and the lengths for which people will go to protect themselves and others… and what price they may pay to guard their secrets. There are two women staying at an Italian vacation property for a working holiday and chance to reinvigorate their friendship. But this villa has a colorful history because of a murder that took place there decades earlier. The friends become fascinated with learning more about this murder that occurred in the midst of tensions among friends, created by passion and rivalry.

I loved the way the story unraveled over two timelines and multiple points of view to reveal what really happened at the Villa in the past, as well as how the modern-day friendship is being affected. All characters end up being more complex as the story progresses, and they’re thoughtfully written.

I enjoyed this book as a mixed genre of mystery and romance. The relationships were dynamic and fluid. Though not especially lovable, the characters were very interesting and quite unpredictable. The author, Rachel Hawkins, has written a twisty tale that had this reader guessing right up to the satisfying conclusion.

I listened to the audiobook and felt the narrators, Julia Whelan, Kimberly M. Wetherell, and Shiromi Arserio, did a superb job creating distinctive voices for their respective characters. This is particularly helpful when the story jumps between differing timelines that both involve multiple personalities.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Miscarriage, Infidelity, and Murder

Minor: Alcohol

nickoliver's review

mysterious fast-paced

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

3.5

This wasn't very original, most things were very easily predictable - though admittedly, the very last chapter did take me a bit by surprise, and it did add a bit of a dark, tragic twist. Also, it was very fast-paced, and once I really sat down to read, the pages flew quickly. I just wished the loose ends hadn't stayed so loose; I felt like there were certain plot points that alluded to things that never actually ended up happening.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Child death, Death, Grief, Murder, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug use, Infidelity, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Violence and Suicide

Minor: Cancer and Miscarriage

ohennui's review

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol

Minor: Death, Drug use, Suicide, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Grief, and Miscarriage

tamara_joy's review

dark sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Grief, Alcohol, Drug use, Infidelity, and Death

Minor: Child death, Classism, Vomit, Adult/minor relationship, and Chronic illness