Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - Yes, Daddy

This book was fast, enthralling, and very difficult to read. Check all CWs. However, it all felt real. The unlikeability of the character who made every wrong decisions again and again and again was on point. I agree with others that there was a loss in not learning more about the other harmed characters, but it that lack of information tracks with the flippancy-turned-trauma written into the main character. Will not forget this book.

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forrestalexander's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense 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

3.0

Warning: SPOILERS

I have mixed feelings about this book. I didn't know what to expect and I like the concept, but in my opinion, it didn't follow through.

As someone else said, the book is too short to properly address the multitude of issues it presented.

The book touches on:

a gay main character with unaccepting parents
religious trauma
conversion therapy and the resulting trauma
domestic abuse, toxic and abusive relationships
manipulation and general abuse
rape, sexual assault, and casual sexual harassment
drug abuse
suicide, suicidal thoughts

& more. There aren't enough pages in the book to have us become invested in the characters and touch on all of the above topics and do them justice - instead, it half touches on all of them and is just busy and feels cluttered. It is trying to do too much at once.

Because it was trying to cram so much into each page, I wasn't invested in the characters and it made me care less about the story overall.

Also, coming from a queer man living in bushwick from somewhat similar circumstances, I hated the main character. He relied on everyone else and did nothing but pity and feel bad for himself instead of trying to do anything to change his life. He was selfish and self-centered, and how he acted in court destroyed the lives of others to the point of no return. How I am supposed to feel any level of empathy for him, or happiness when he finally sort of gets his shit together at the end, is beyond me.

The religious trauma was a bit trite for a gay character, and I understand the second half was supposed to set it apart from other stories with similar themes - but the second half felt forced, strange, and left me weirded out. I am still not sure what the message was supposed to be, it didn't translate.

With all of that being said, I think if a few of the themes were left out and the author focused on one or two things, it could have been great. For that reason, I have no doubt the author has potential - but I hope in his next book, it feels less crammed.

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foxmulders's review

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challenging dark tense 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

2.75

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kwarnimont's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

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

2.5

This was a hard read. 100% check the content warnings before giving it a go. I thought it was well written and (unfortunately) very easy to visualize what's going on. Tons of great conversation about consent and classism that unfortunately didn't have a satisfying ending. Just heartbreak after heartbreak after heartbreak.

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bells_shelves's review

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-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

3.5

The first half of this book was absolutely incredible. I read the first two hundred pages in one sitting. However, after the trial, a lot of the plot began to grow unbelievable and unconvincing. Some things that happened were outside of one’s character traits, or just didn’t make sense, and that pulled me out of the story. I still enjoyed it, and I think a lot of the themes and overall messages discussed in the Q&A session are especially important in reading this book, especially when it comes to understanding trauma and survivorship.

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