Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

This Town Sleeps by Dennis E. Staples

12 reviews

cph3lps's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism and Addiction

forrestalexander's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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: Alcoholism

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Violence, Sexual content, and Grief

bruisedtigers's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Contrary to a lot of reviews I've seen, I really enjoyed the splitting of perspectives towards the end of the novel. The shift carried the feeling of a trauma that engulfed a community. Overall, I really enjoyed what this story was: haunting and hopeful all at once. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Alcoholism, and Racism

Minor: Rape

badmom's review

dark emotional informative mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, and Sexual content

Moderate: Colonisation, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual violence, and Violence

Minor: Abandonment, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Miscarriage

caseythereader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Child death, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Grief, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Bullying, Colonisation, Rape, and Suicidal thoughts

ashlitas's review

dark mysterious 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Sexual content and Murder

Minor: Sexual assault

keatynbergsten's review

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Drug use, and Sexual content

drchronicallyreading's review

emotional reflective sad slow-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

While I enjoyed this book, I wish it would have had more of a build overall. The main character was really well developed. Maybe I’m too used to reading 400 page books now!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, and Homophobia

yavin_iv's review

emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism and Child death

Moderate: Addiction, Physical abuse, Violence, and Grief

Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, and Miscarriage

phoebe_phorreal's review

emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 Alright, I'm aware that this book is convoluted despite being short, but I'm going to go along with other reviewers and say that it's still easily readable despite that. Also, I'm a fan of books that make my brain hurt, so maybe the convoluted storylines and lack of focus was actually a plus for me?

This story follows two gay men, but I feel like the summary doesn't quite do it justice. There's a lot of moving back and forth between generations, and the themes of things like toxic masculinity, grief, and the byproducts of oppression combine to make a poignant novel that feels longer than its-barely 200 pages in a good way. The themes and their exploration absolutely make this a five-star book for me, and even if Marion may not always be the most engaging character, there are plenty of other intriguing characters which we get a glimpse of, such as Marion's mother, Hazel.

Tommy Orange, in his review of this book, called it "the dream that is this novel," and I felt that this pretty much summed up the feeling. At certain points chilling and at others filled with biting wit, the way Staples plays with time and Marion's ambivalence at points of the story (he's often pulled along by the plot) combine to create a dreamlike feeling befitting the title, one where past melds with present. This style of writing and the choices made by Staples may not appeal to all readers, but they certainly appeal to me. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism and Homophobia