Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins

234 reviews

mconroy9137's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Classism, Gore, Body horror, Torture, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Police brutality, Blood, Child death, Medical content, Violence, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Deportation, Drug use, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Dementia, Animal death, Alcohol, Misogyny, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Colonisation, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Cannibalism

Minor: Vomit, Pregnancy, Cursing, Excrement, Miscarriage, and Eating disorder

ari_oreo's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? Yes

5.0

Poor Sejanus. Poor sensitive foolish Sejanus

I’m in actual pain but Suzanne Collins never disappoints. She rolls out banger after banger 
I don’t usually like prequels focusing on a villain but this? This was amazing. I would go higher than 5 stars if I could. This is a wonderful addition to The Hunger Games series not only for the character but for the worldwide lore. Amazing 

My favorite character died though. It was necessary like Finnicks or Prims death in the main trilogy. Still hurts. My poor boy Sejanus didn’t deserve that!! Katniss is Sejanus’s revenge

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, War, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal cruelty

Minor: Cannibalism, Misogyny, Grief, Sexism, Body shaming, Addiction, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, and Drug use

robbiehuman's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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: Death and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent, Police brutality, Toxic friendship, Vomit, Gun violence, Blood, Child death, and Death

fragrant_stars's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

I loved loved loved this goddamn book so much. I feel like it's an excellent portrayal of the ugly side of trauma and mental illness. It's tragic really how certain characters had every opportunity to make the right choice, and yet in the end made terrible choices instead. It's good, I think, to have sympathy for villains and understand how they became who they became. It's a good reminder that there is no biological or innate difference between us and the most terrible person in the world- it all comes down to choice in the end. Well done Suzanne, you have my heart.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Violence, Child death, Mental illness, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Death, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, Classism, War, Kidnapping, Gore, Drug use, Addiction, Animal death, and Blood

Minor: Bullying, Racism, Classism, Alcoholism, Medical content, Cannibalism, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Police brutality, Torture, Vomit, and Alcohol

the_pysselfia's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Body horror, Alcoholism, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Child abuse, Classism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child death, Classism, Medical trauma, Xenophobia, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Murder, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Police brutality, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Death of parent, Drug use, Gaslighting, Grief, Misogyny, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Addiction, Cannibalism, Colonisation, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, War, Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, Genocide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Bullying, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship

eerieatmosphere's review against another edition

dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Violence

Moderate: Toxic friendship, War, and Classism

Minor: Dementia, Death of parent, and Cannibalism

madflatt's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Violence, Torture, Outing, Gun violence, Grief, Blood, War, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Child death

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Classism, and Death of parent

Minor: Dementia

karly_ackley's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Murder, Blood, Alcohol, and Child death

Moderate: War, Police brutality, Addiction, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Death

kamrynkoble's review

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.0

Wow. I’ve attempted to finish this book multiple times, and I finally succeeded (after watching the movie—I know, I’m bad). The first part is still slow, but it swiftly picks up for parts 2 and 3.

I am both amazed and horrified. There was so much fascinating food for thought about the world and the Hunger Games, and it’s incredibly interesting to compare this time period to Katniss’s era.

Snow is . . . Something else entirely. I was regularly horrified by his inner monologue, and I wish the movie had a You-style voiceover, as the movie does not properly showcase how sick this man is. 

I don’t think I’ve met anyone else who’s as big a fan of the Hunger Games as me, but I’m a Katniss girl through-and-through, so I think that’s why I struggled with this one. But it’s brilliant, and I’m glad I read it. Now I want to reread the original trilogy for the ninth time. 

I did listen to the audiobook version, and the slam poetry/speak singing regularly had me cracking up. “La la, la la. La la la. La La, la la la. 😐” The music in the movie was so wonderful (all the callbacks to the trilogy? Genius, perfect, spectacular) so I wish they would find the budget to re-record, especially since the narrator can sing. But I know that’s never going to happen. 

I have a feeling I’m going to be still thinking about this book plenty months from now. Suzanne Collins is forever my favorite. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, and Child death

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Blood

marygg3's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I don't know what I expected of this book, but it certainly excelled. 
It was thoroughly enjoyable seeing Coriolanus slowly becoming Snow (I loved that detail in the epilogue, btw). The way his mind works was truly fascinating.
Top notch villain origin story. Except he's not really the villain here, at least not yet, but he's certainly one of the most interesting anti-heroes I've had the pleasure of reading.
I'm certainly going to recommend this book to anyone who'll listen. Plus, Santino Fontana's narration was 'chef's kiss'. I'm going to remember his voice for a long time, I'm sure.
I'll be careful to remember too, though, that "Snow lands on top"...

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Death, and Murder