Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn

25 reviews

writteninmagic's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

I was fascinated by the synopsis. I hadn't heard of Senior Sergeant Mila Pavlichenko before, so I found the story to be fascinating. The intense battles and stakeouts from Mila's perspective were really well-written. Throughout Mila's life in the Russian army, she faces sexism from nearly all her fellow soldiers and higher-in-commands, but her skills earn respect from her platoon. They underestimated her based on her appearance and for being a woman, but she showed them how deadly she could be.

Although I did enjoy the book, I thought some parts could have flowed better. Some battle scenes were set starting with the words "watch now as—" which I thought was unnecessary and disrupted the action. There were also the chapters with Mila and the unnamed sniper, with sudden perspective shifts between the two of them from one person's perspective in one paragraph to the next paragraph being from the other character's perspective; it made reading it at times confusing because I would read the next paragraph and then realize it was from the other character's perspective.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Misogyny, Emotional abuse, War, Sexism, Death, Drug use, and Alcohol

ka_ke's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative medium-paced

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

3.0

My thoughts and feelings regarding the Diamond Eye are difficult to explain. 

On the one hand, I chose one hell of a time to pick it up seeing as Russia has cruelly invaded Ukraine and they have been at war for 1.5 years at this point. Therefore, I find myself unable to sympathize with Lady Death and the Russian people as they struggled through Nazi invasion. 

On the other hand, the Diamond Eye is an excellent lesson in the theory of intersectionality and my understanding/belief in it. 

Lyudmila is a Russian woman, a student majoring in history, a single mother whose husband abandoned their family. She is then forced to become an infamous sniper for the Russian army.

So while I can support a woman doing what she feels is right and proper to protect herself and her country, I am torn by my disgust at the present day uncalled-for actions of Russia against the citizens of Ukraine. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Body horror, Classism, Blood, Death, Grief, Violence, War, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Murder, Sexual content, Abandonment, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual harassment

mverickson's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, and Gun violence

mtnest's review against another edition

adventurous challenging sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, War, and Gun violence

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Sexism, Medical content, and Sexual content

Minor: Racism, Rape, and Vomit

genieoneil's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective 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: War

Minor: Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Blood, Genocide, and Racial slurs

bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition

dark hopeful 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, Blood, Gun violence, Stalking, War, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Medical trauma, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Rape and Abandonment

Minor: Racism

katekatiekait's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Grief, Blood, Gore, and War

Moderate: Sexism and Alcohol

Minor: Rape and Sexual content

smkelly1997's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, Medical content, Violence, War, Abandonment, Death, and Gaslighting

This was a good book not a great one! I would say the story is fascinating and I am sad I have never heard of this character before

bandysbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.5

I am quite the lover of historical fiction, but somehow have never read a book by Kate Quinn. I finally decided to remedy this problem by digging into The Diamond Eye. The concept of a bookworm turning into history's deadliest female sniper sounded so promising! Wow, did this book deliver.

One of my favorite things in the historical fiction genre is when an author takes an obscure piece of history and explores it in great detail. This is exactly what this book does. The book centers on Mila, who at the beginning is a young, single mother, dealing with a gaslighting ex, dreaming of getting an education, and trying to figure out how to be the best role-model for her eight year old son. She's still trying to find herself, but decides to become an expert marksmen after her ex accuses her of being incapable of being tough enough to raise a son. When WW2 comes to the Russian front, she finds herself at war and eventually becomes the most deadly female sniper in history. PERIOD. You would think this would make her hard to relate to, but I found her to be so realistic and easy to understand. Her motivations are always clear and her responses to things felt correct.

Minor Spoiler - Will not ruin the ending or entire story, but is a part of the plot progression.

 
 Eventually, Mila is removed from the war front and sent to the USA on a tour of Russian war heroes to drum up support for America to join the European front to the war. I had no idea that this ever happened, but after a quick google search found it to be true...even the part about Mila's friendship with the First Lady. It was infuriating seeing how the American media treated Mila, but also completely realistic. I imagine that even in this day and age, they would be just as intrusive and condescending.

All in all, I think this book was remarkably good. The character is so rich and real. The plot and settings come to life. And best of all, I learned about a piece of history that I was unaware of. I'll be continuing my research into it further because it was so fascinating. I will definitely be reading more of Kate Quinn's writing in the future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, War, Blood, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Gun violence, Medical content, Misogyny, Sexism, and Violence

ninjamuse's review against another edition

adventurous reflective 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexual harassment, War, Gun violence, Violence, Medical content, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcohol, Suicide attempt, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Adult/minor relationship