Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Junkies by Melvin Burgess

9 reviews

questingnotcoasting's review against another edition

dark sad fast-paced

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

3.0

I would never have read this if it wasn't a book club pick and while it's not really my kind of book, I am glad read it. It's a bleak read and the characters are extremely frustrating but I did like the writing and the effective use of multiple POVs. Melvin Burgess is an author I never read as a teenager but somehow the style felt familiar to me, maybe because I read other 1990s YA.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Blood

leahisdudish's review against another edition

2.75

not the easiest read - i think it’s hugely important but not something enjoyable

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse

Moderate: Death, Classism, Child abuse, Sexual content, Self harm, and Domestic abuse

maireada21's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Abortion, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

kshertz's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

This book is like A Little Life but written in the 90s. It’s UK teenagers that run away from home and the romantic gesture turns into a genuine hell. They are unhoused and have no money. It devolves into drugs and worse. I was in a good headspace for it but had to take it slow. It was just so sad. But important as a viewpoint to understand more about what people need that end up in these situations.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Addiction, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

dustandstarlight's review against another edition

challenging dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Addiction, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Pregnancy

sofiajearally's review against another edition

dark medium-paced

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

3.0

I gave this book 3 stars but I would have probably rated it better had I read it when I was a teenager (I think it's perfect for teens between 14 and 19).
It started kinda slow and I gotta say I disliked Gemma a great deal, couldn't relate to her, while I related to Nico and thought he should be protected at all cost. Melvin Burgess did a great job writing complex characters and turning things around (at least for me) and, by the end of the story, Gemma's character arc was inspiring and I ended up being very proud of her. Nico indeed suffered from prior, serious issues, so it's logical that his path went differently. It was sad but it wasn't surprising, even though I was rooting for him until the very last chapters...
The moment I started not being able to wait before picking up the book  was around the middle of the story, when the subject of heroin is introduced and it just gets grimmer and grimmer. From that moment on, it was a real page-turner with powerful writing, until the very end (Nico's father's chapter stirred me).
I loved that the story covered the before, during and the after of heroin addiction, without going - I think - overboard, nor glossing over dark themes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Pedophilia, Pregnancy, and Sexual content

Minor: Mental illness and Vomit

amelievasilia's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gaslighting, Addiction, Abandonment, Classism, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide

blakeney_clark's review against another edition

challenging dark tense fast-paced

4.5

One of the most real feeling books I've ever read. Not even in the subject matter so much as the characters who are complicated and flawed and easy to hate yet impossible not to root for. Everything about this book was unexpected and hard hitting, and there was something so refreshing in its utter refusal to shy away from difficult subjects and show them as they are, rather than in the neat recovery arcs with a side serving of moral didacticism. The characters and their journeys speak for themselves, ultimately exploring the way, no matter how hard we try, we fail to be different from our parents. A tough read but a good one.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Violence, Cursing, and Alcoholism

gembaskerville's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, and Domestic abuse