Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Les Apparences by Gillian Flynn

69 reviews

thereaderfriend's review against another edition

dark 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

4.75

Loved the suspense, the tension, the unreliability and many plot twists. Even liked the use of unlikable and unredeemable characters in this. Just felt the ending was off so I'm knocking my score for it but it's probably the best thriller I've read. Definitely read the trigger warnings before reading the book. There were a lot. Take heed with them. Tried to get them all but may have missed a few.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Rape, Blood, and Infidelity

Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Self harm, Sexism, Alcohol, Body horror, Confinement, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Dementia, Pregnancy, Stalking, Vomit, Gaslighting, Infertility, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders

cammiem8's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective 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

4.75

The “cool girl” excerpt and the about face turn of the reveal at the half way point of this novel are some of the most brilliant bits of writing I’ve ever experienced in the thriller genre. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Cursing

Moderate: Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Stalking, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Vomit, Toxic friendship, Rape, Domestic abuse, Self harm, and Death of parent

Minor: Body shaming and Incest

None of these characters are good people, and as such they do terrible things to one another.

bonchoix's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Murder, Rape, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Suicide attempt, Stalking, Self harm, Bullying, Vomit, and Blood

sarah984'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

4.0

I didn't know how this book would hold up going into it having already seen the movie, but I had fun. Each (awful) character has a unique voice, and going into it already knowing what's going to happen made me appreciate the careful way the first section was crafted. Unfortunately, after the "reveal" the book drags most of the way through the middle section (way too much mundane day-to-day stuff), and parts of the final third were a little too convenient for me, but I thought the ending was great. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Infidelity, Dementia, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Stalking, Blood, Death, Vomit, Alcohol, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness

Minor: Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Classism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, and Incest

Incest is alluded to several times but does not actually take place in the story.

singalana's review against another edition

dark reflective slow-paced

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

1.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Murder, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Dementia, Vomit, Death, Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Misogyny

Minor: Vomit, Toxic friendship, and Suicidal thoughts

ellelockley's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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

4.0

Gone Girl is a dark, tense and psychological thriller that isn't for the faint hearted. It follows the characters of Nick Dunne and Amy Elliott. It starts on the morning of their fifth wedding anniversary, and she has vanished. He's now under pressure from the police department and social media, but his portrayal of a happy marriage begins to fall to pieces as a lot of new information is revealed. I was pretty much terrified the entire time reading this book, the plot twists, the character development, the tension build up was all written flawlessly. The character aren't loveable per se however they are some of the best characters I've ever read. The only issue I have with this book is that it took me a while to get through as I felt that it was too slow at the start. I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves psychological thrillers or dark books in general.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Gaslighting, and Pregnancy

Minor: Miscarriage, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Vomit

becca_w_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Classism, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Fatphobia and Pedophilia

Minor: Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, and Kidnapping

strange's review against another edition

dark 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

2.0

Eh… i can see why people would like this, but it just really didn’t click with me. Not by any means a bad book, just nothing that surprised me or stood out to me as good. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Infidelity

Moderate: Blood, Infertility, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Rape

Minor: Vomit, Alcohol, and Cancer

dinahn's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Infertility, Infidelity, Violence, Sexual violence, and Rape

Minor: Abortion, Vomit, Violence, Stalking, and Pregnancy

sleepysadpoet'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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Suicide

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexism

Minor: Alcohol, Infidelity, and Abandonment