Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

32 reviews

baximus's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

2.25

I really wanted to like this book. 

If it was written by a man I would have found it voyeuristic and grim, but I found myself forgiving the content more when I reminded myself that from a female perspective, Atwood was commenting on the toxic male psyche that is a side effect of the oversaturation of violent and sexually explicit content on the web; and the potential for radicalisation borne from apathy about the modern world. I mean a male author could have done that too but I’d have found it ickier.

Don’t take the trigger warnings lightly, some parts deal with very difficult subjects in a very matter of fact way.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic

egganimates's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Alcoholism, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, and War

divazumaya's review against another edition

dark reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Gore, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Confinement, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

absolute_mess's review

challenging dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Abandonment

Minor: Alcohol

interrobang_1's review against another edition

challenging dark

3.5

This was an intense read. The characters think, talk and behave problematically throughout - and I know this is probably intended as a critique of our society, but it's uncomfortable; particularly the treatment and description of marginalised women and their bodies. That said, at it's core I found the storyline pretty gripping - and I do think dystopias can be used effectively to point out difficult truths and challenge us, but to me, this felt a little gratuitous at times. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Xenophobia, and Trafficking

Moderate: Colonisation and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Violence and Alcohol

emilianeyer's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad 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, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, and Alcohol

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Kidnapping, and Suicide attempt

angorarabbit's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious reflective relaxing 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? Yes

5.0

Context: I read MaddAddam around 2016, and The Year of the Flood in 2022. I normally don’t read series backwards, but there you have it. 

 

Oryx and Crake starts in such a similar place to MaddAddam that I had to go back to my copy of MaddAddam to make sure I indeed had not read Oryx ad Crake instead. I’m not sure how I would have felt about this novel if I had read the series in order, but read the way I did it was oddly comforting. Is it weird to think of a Margaret Atwood book as comforting? 

 

Anyway, this is all you can want in an Atwood book. Any science things are an extension of what was considered possible when the book was written. Human nature is human nature. The characters are in depth and believable, and are likeable and relatable despite their faults. There is the dry Atwood humour that pops up at the oddest time. Of course, it is well written with a complex but believable plot. There are shifting view points and flashbacks, though I did not find it difficult to keep track of where I was. 

 

And yes, I love the Crackers. They are a lot less creepy than The Snowman’s obsession about Oryx’s life before he met her. Or the monstrosity that Crake committed. I’ve read reviews where the writer though of the Crackers as the author’s idealised version of Indigenous people. To me they are the result of Crake’s idealised sentient species. I think by the end of the series it is obvious that Crake was delusional. Nevertheless the Crackers are funny and kind in an often cruel world. Maybe we should all be a bit more like the Crackers, without the turning blue part perhaps.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Trafficking, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

Child sex trafficking, pornorgraphy addiction.

jenna_justi2004's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This was the hardest book to read. It’s up there with 1984 and brave new world. Generally of worlds, I hope don’t become reality. I understand the message and it doesn’t make it any better. It’s actually so sad and essentially avoidable which is horrific. If you enjoy dystopian this is for you but this book genuinely made me sick at some points. Graphic accounts of CP and trafficking. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic

enbyejay's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and Alcohol

david_brent's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death

Moderate: Toxic friendship

Minor: Drug use, Pedophilia, Murder, and Alcohol