Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Haunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton

87 reviews

dmackreads's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

3.5

I’m not really sure what I expected out of this book but I definitely expected it to be more wrapped around the main characters and their “relationship” and I expected it to evolve more at some point. I had a hard time with the blatant non consent between the two also and many times I caught myself thinking the characters were just idiotic. There was way too much r@pe, assault, child sacrifice involved. I get that it’s the plot around which one of the main characters “works” but this book was just crazy. It did keep me intrigued and wanting to know what happens next. That’s about all it has going for it for me. I already have book 2 and still want to know what happens next so I plan to read it but I’m very conflicted on this rating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Rape, and Sexual content

Minor: Car accident and Drug use

sammers9774's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Gore, Rape, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Violence

asyakilic23's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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, Child abuse, Cannibalism, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, Blood, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Drug abuse, Sexism, Child death, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Body horror, Drug use, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Murder, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Slavery, Deadnaming, Stalking, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

catherine_aster's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual assault, Death, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Child death, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Stalking, Hate crime, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Trafficking

max_lovesreading's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Violence, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Gore, Stalking, Torture, Death, Gaslighting, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Pedophilia

georgina1306's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking, Sexual assault, Slavery, Murder, Death, Violence, Torture, Kidnapping, Confinement, Sexual violence, Stalking, Rape, Drug use, and Suicidal thoughts

meganlaza's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Body horror, Classism, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Medical content, Murder, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Child death, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Gore, Rape, Alcohol, Death, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Sexism, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Mental illness, and Physical abuse

kat_reads26's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Haunting Adeline is one part dark erotica, one part action-thriller and a sprinkling of Nancy Drew style mystery. Despite how it may be categorized at your local bookstore, is not a romance. This is a NC/CNC Erotic Thriller that isn't for any readers who are easily affected by triggers such as stalking, NC sex, CNC sex, abuse, and mentions of pedophilia. If any of that puts you off, don't bother reading. 

With that said, Haunting Adeline started strong and then became a chore to read. The idea of a sexy-stalker-CNC romance with a spooky setting was very intriguing. I'd heard good things from Booktok about this one, including how heavily "spicy" it was. While there is graphic sex scenes depicted here, I have definitely read better. What's worse is that the book is so plot heavy that you have to read through several chapters of our FMC playing detective in her house and our MMC playing "good guy" mercenary with maybe 10 spicy scenes in a 500+ page book. 

Speaking of our MMC, he's a complete hypocrite. The chapters from his POV are all about how he wants to save women and children from trafficking and take down pedophile rings/the skin trade and how disgusted he is by the sexual abuse that takes place. And yet he is a textbook definition stalker that has set his sights on the FMC for no discernable reason besides beauty and sexually assaults her again and again. The author does her best to convince us that its not as bad as it is because our FMC is aroused by fear and mystery. That while she "knows its wrong" her body "can't help it." The MMC is clearly told no to his advances over and over again throughout the span of the story (with a few CNC moments nearer to the end) but he persists, claiming it's a game and that he's turned on by her fear and by the chase. The author insists the stalker needs to be redeemable and likable so she has essentially made him the batman of sex trafficking rings.

The sex scenes we do get (albeit rape for most of the book) are padded with multiple chapters of our MMC being the hero of an action movie no one signed on for, as well as an ongoing (and insufferable) added plot of the FMC solving her Great Grandmother's murder. I mean, I guess Adeline needed SOMETHING to do when she's not getting assaulted by the MMC.

If you were hoping to get a dark/taboo sexy love story to get off to while you read... this isn't gonna be it.

I'm not kidding when I tell you that 95% of the sex scenes in this book are non consensual. The FMC is more or less Stockholm syndromed into falling for her stalker via his magic penis. I'm not saying this story wasn't worth reading...but I am saying I probably won't read the next one.

This story ends on a cliffhanger. I'm fine with not knowing what happens next.

Trigger Warnings with Spoilers:

There is a scene where the female main character is made to masturbate with a gun, 50% of the story is about sex trafficking rings, child abuse, child torture, and pedophilia, the relationship between the main characters is non consensual for most of the book, then it is CNC for the rest

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Trafficking, Child abuse, Stalking, Murder, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Mental illness, and Cursing

Minor: Cannibalism and Drug use

There is a scene where the female main character is made to masturbate with a gun, 50% of the story is about sex trafficking rings, child abuse, child torture, and pedophilia, the relationship between the main characters is non consensual for most of the book, then it is CNC for the rest

nholdenarendt's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Rape, Violence, Antisemitism, Drug use, Kidnapping, Child death, Death, Torture, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

raspberryjelly's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.75

It’s ok, the spice is good but that’s really it, plus the scenes are hard to imagine, like the way they are described.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Trafficking, Car accident, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Torture, Death, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Cursing, and Sexual harassment