Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Fury by Alex Michaelides

45 reviews

kelshenka's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.0

Challenging characters (plus unreliable narrator) ricochet off one another, unraveling the story like the threads of a scarf tugged loose by cold fingers of wind. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Infidelity, Murder, Misogyny, Bullying, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Blood, Cursing, and Toxic friendship

a_novel_craving's review against another edition

funny mysterious tense medium-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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Death, Murder, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, and Sexual content

kris386's review against another edition

slow-paced

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Mental illness, Bullying, Murder, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Alcohol, Infidelity, Drug use, and Gun violence

Moderate: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Child abuse, and Blood

april_a_q's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

Every moment when I thought I had this book figured out, it threw me for yet another twist. Now I am left just utterly baffled, confused, and speechless, but in the best way. Alex Michaelides is slowly becoming an author that I will read anything he has ever published and anything he will ever publish. These characters are downright horrendous but in the best of ways. Even Leo, and I wasn’t thinking about him in that way at first, but even Leo was not innocent in this story. This is psychopathy and obsession at its ugliest and its finest.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Drug use, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Alcohol, Gun violence, Mental illness, Death, and Addiction

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Rape

katiecummings1981's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol and Mental illness

Moderate: Drug use, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Classism and Gun violence

annaavian's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

2.0

While this book had the potential to be great, I found it's heavy reliance on dramatic elements for shock value rather disappointing and tiring. 

The flow of the story often felt unbalanced. Some scenes tended to drag on longer than necessary, while other key moments were rushed through or not fully developed. This unevenness in the pacing detracted from the overall enjoyment I had while reading.
I also felt there was a lack of credibility and common sense throughout, which prevented me from fully enjoying it. The characters' choices often came across as being poorly thought out. 
And while Elliott may not have been the most likable or believable narrator, it would have added depth to the story if his past had been more fully developed. 

Overall, this book felt like a shallow imitation of an Agatha Christie novel, lacking the depth, complexity and attention to detail that made her novels so captivating. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Infidelity, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: Domestic abuse, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Bullying, Drug use, and Stalking

kerireadsbooks's review against another edition

mysterious reflective 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

2.5

I was so excited to read this one after loving The Silent Patient, but it just fell flat for me. For a thriller, it’s pretty slow-paced. I typically like an unreliable narrator, but this one just really grated on my nerves. Almost DNF’d it because it was hard for me to get into and I didn’t feel attached to a single character. 

However, I always love how Michaelides includes Greek culture and psychoanalysis into his novels. It’s always special to see parts of an author in their work. I will definitely still be reading The Maidens, and still am a fan of Michaelides, for sure. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Murder

Moderate: Death, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, and Cursing

soobooksalot's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

If you like your narrators to be reliable, step away from The Fury.
 I, however, love the classic unreliable narrator and this book was 100% it!
 Thank you so much to Celadon Books for my gifted ARC for review.
 Whew, what a ride. As a fan of The Silent Patient, I was thrilled to receive Alex Michaelides' newest.
 The Fury is a classic locked-room thriller, with a private Greek island as the setting.
 I loved the character of Elliott Chase as narrator. His version of events in the infamous murder of actress Lana Farrar created a gritty and glamorous atmosphere that I was totally swept up in.
 I was left with a few unanswered questions by the end, likely by design, but that's the only element that kept The Fury from being a five-star read for me.
 Definitely recommended!
 For release in one week, Jan. 16.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Murder, Drug use, Gun violence, and Infidelity

allisonisbooked's review

dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.0

At no point did I know where this book was going and how or when it was going to end, in the best way possible. I listened to this audiobook in one sitting because I just had to know where this story was going. 

Michaelideas has a way of letting readers think they know everything and nothing at the same time. His twists and turns never disappoint. 

The narrative style in this novel is not like anything I have read before. The narrator is the narrator, a character, and omniscient all at the same time, which I found to be a fascinating read. 

Michaelides has proved himself to have a specific writing style and he's sticking to it because it works so well for him. Definitely a must read for thriller fans. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Stalking, Alcohol, Murder, and Toxic friendship

shesflippinpages's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious 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

I had high hopes for this book as I really enjoyed The Silent Patient; unfortunately I found that this one fell flat. I really didn’t enjoy it due to the slow pace, unlikeable narrator and underwhelming plot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Stalking, and Violence

Minor: Alcohol, Bullying, Mental illness, Animal death, Blood, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting