Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Yes, Daddy by Jonathan Parks-Ramage

46 reviews

porchrailreads's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

First book of #pride month reading done and oh boy is it a doozy. #YesDaddy by @jprampage is an easy contender for the best book I’ve read in 2021.
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Yes, Daddy is a first person narrative told from Jonah Keller’s perspective. Jonah has moved to NYC with dreams of becoming a playwright only to find himself living in a rundown sublet, working extra hours as a waiter to make rent, and completely alone. After coming across a photo of Richard Shriver, an accomplished playwright with a proclivity for younger men, Jonah hatches a plan to meet and seduce him.
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Richard invites Jonah to spend the summer with him in the Hamptons in his iron fence enclosed compound, schmoozing industry big shots and living the life of kept man. What follows instead is the summer from hell, filled with violence and plots of revenge.
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This book is seriously f@%€ed. Trigger warnings: rape and sexual assault, violence, abuse, drug use, forced drug use, conversion therapy, trauma, abandonment. With so many trigger warnings you may be asking why Yes, Daddy has become a front runner for best book of the year for me. Well, that’s because it’s honest in its discussions on each topic. While I personally have not experienced the things Jonah has gone through, predation by older, wealthier men is all too common within the gay community. Further, though the #metoo movement has dwindled some, sexual assault within the lgbt community is often under discussed and under represented.
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Yes, Daddy is a difficult book to read, but even more difficult to put down. Jonah’s story is raw but well crafted. The writing style is unique and purposeful. It is at once a deeply moving account of trauma, a thriller focused on sex and violence, and a warning about the treachery of powerful men.
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Without a doubt, the only star rating I can give it is...
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Rape, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Homophobia

Moderate: Drug use

bookishlybrief's review

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-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

This book is being marketed in confusing and deceiving ways. Initially described as a gay ‘Get Out’ it is most certainly not that and in fact has a clear agenda perpetrated by the author that comes out in the later half of the book. 

The first half of the book were compelling and hard to read. It flails in the second half where the protagonist is reckoning with trauma and how to deal with it. The end was disappointing for sure given the promise of the front half.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Grief, Fatphobia, Emotional abuse, Drug use, and Domestic abuse

stayathomereader's review

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Vomit, and Animal death

caidyn's review

dark emotional reflective 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

Wow. I devoured this book and I almost can't believe it. When I heard about this title, I wasn't sure what to think. It sounded fantastic and a great queer take on a common trope that we see in straight mysteries/thrillers. But this book developed into so much more. It's a hard read. It's a very hard one to stomach at times, if you can tell by all the things I marked for CWs. The story features a lot of sexual violence and, at times, blurred the lines. In that way, it reminded me a lot of Docile by K.M. Szpara, minus the futuristic/sci-fi storyline. This book is familiar to those of us who have read the stories about the #MeToo movement. It's all about how powerful people use that power and privilege to do whatever they want, harming people along the way. It's one of my favorites from the year, no matter how difficult the subject matter was at times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Alcoholism, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Toxic relationship

pageturningaj's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

First I would like to give a BIG THANK YOU to the author Jonathan Parks-Ramage for sending me a copy of his book! I would also like to thank NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt as well for approving me after I had received my copy. 

CW/TW: This book features scenes of sexual assault, conversion therapy, abuse, drug use, and suicide. I would advise against reading if any of those topics are triggering. 

Snapshot: Jonah Keller is a young aspiring writer living in New York struggling to make ends meet. When he has the great idea to “set up” a meeting with Richard Shriver, the devilishly handsome, successful playwright Jonah wishes to be with. A very tumultuous relationship ensues and things go south very quickly for Jonah. 

Thoughts: Whoa, this book was very raw and DARK. It was way heavier and filled with more emotions than the fun book cover portrays. I flew through this book and read it in 8 hours. That is not something I usually do with a book, but I could not set this one down. I was rooting for Jonah the whole way through his sad story. 

It’s a somber reality, but this book really dove headfirst into the world of powerful men getting what they want from unsuspecting victims. It was at times, uncomfortable and explicit but important in the age of the #metoo movement, especially in the LGBTQ+ community. In his debut novel, Jonathan Parks-Ramage brings to the table what a lot of other authors fail to bring. This book will stay with me for a long time for its no-nonsense topic and writing. The story is an attention grabber and it definitely captivated me from the moment I started reading it. Bravo Jonathan, you’ve got me hooked and I can’t wait to see what you come out with next!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Drug abuse, Drug use, Suicide, and Sexual assault

whatsjessreading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Suicide

Minor: Vomit and Grief