Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

40 reviews

samreadssometimes's review

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

i really liked this book. there were multiple plot twists i didn't expect but could have figured out if i paid more attention and didn't read this over four months. despite being a fun fantasy novel, it touched on important real world issues in an amazingly sensitive way. please write another!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Drug use, Violence, Cursing, Death, Self harm, Addiction, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Panic attacks/disorders

christinereads1823's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Another excellent book from Bardugo; I couldn't put it down. 
However. There are a number of new plot threads that seemed unnecessary at times, and I am honestly not sure how they will be tied up in a probable-but-not-yet-confirmed Book 3... or if they even can be. There is also more gore;

the continual references and visuals of the mangled dead rabbit

were viscerally uncomfortable for me. 
I enjoyed the theoretical aspects; the themes of good, evil, and what you have to do to survive; and the found family and forging of relationships. Who wouldn't go to hell and back for their friends and loved ones? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Vomit, Death, Drug use, Gore, Grief, Physical abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Gun violence, Drug use, Cursing, and Suicide attempt

chronicacademia'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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, and Racism

Minor: Alcohol, Cancer, Cannibalism, Medical content, Stalking, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

cfoley's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexism, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Murder, Police brutality, Sexual content, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Drug use, Drug abuse, Self harm, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Gun violence, and Grief

Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Animal death, Sexual assault, Alcohol, and Abandonment

cowardlyteaman's review

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Very good book! I definitely enjoyed reading this.

North was my favourite in Ninth House, but since he wasn't here, I'd say my Hell Bent favourite is Darlington. I really like his whole obsessive-knowledge-seeker thing, and although he's kinda cliché, that's kinda the point.

... and I won't pretend that him being a sexy demon-thing wasn't a factor, either. I'm only human.

I don't really have much bad about it to say other than that it was pretty predictable. There was never an «Oh, shit,»-moment, and I really missed it.
The prologue caught my attention immediately, and I just couldn't wait to know what happened next, but I never really got that same feeling throughout the rest of the book.

However, finishing off with a positive comment, it is an interesting story, with interesting characters, and an interesting setting nonetheless. I love how Bardugo depicted demons, vampires, and probably most of all: ghosts.

I recommend this to anyone who's interested in reading a dark academia, mystery, urban fantasy type story with an fantastic take on ghosts.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Animal death, Blood, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual content, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Racism, and Misogyny

Minor: Grief, Bullying, and Alcohol

suchsweetsorrow89's review

dark funny mysterious 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

3.5 really, but I thought the book was fun so it gets bumped a star. overall, compared to her last, I think this one is slightly better in the sense that I felt there were fewer random/unnecessary moments than in the first book (especially in moments that deal with heavy gender-based cases of abuse and assault). however, one of the negatives is the pacing of the book. I often found that the descriptions were a bit heavy at times and I felt that there was not as much connection and genuine interactions with the characters as there was in the first book, so the chemistry, while not feeling forced, just fell flat. 

there are some specific things within this that I will spoil below, but all in all, I think this is a really fun read when you're looking to pass the time. in addition, I think the serious moments and reflections in this book are really stunning and you can tell how much leigh as evolved as a writer, philosopher, and world-builder.

- I would have liked to see more of dawes' backstory! while alex's story is special, it's also the story we have heard before. I thought one of the strongest aspects of ninth house was darlington's story, and I would have loved something similar for dawes, especially since she plays a more prominent role.

- on that note on darlington, I wish there were more of him. while I understand that's the 'point', I thought he fell way flatter than usual in his own thoughts and in his interactions with everyone after being rescued. it really did feel like he took more of a secondary/unnecessary role after his rescue, and it left me feeling uncomfortable in the wrong way (almost like it was defamation to all that his character was built up to be in the first book). I'm also not really buying that he would just surrender to alex, to his role, and to lethe as easily as he did.

- the twist was... just fine. maybe it's because I'm older, but I thought that this twist was a bit more expected than the first and just was not a page-turner in the way the other was.

- unfortunately, the ending did not make me really excited for the third book, since this new plotline just felt like a weird grab all while the one for the first book just made more sense? idk idk

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Torture, Child death, Blood, Gore, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Drug use, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Vomit, and Police brutality

Minor: Animal cruelty, Police brutality, Body shaming, Forced institutionalization, and Panic attacks/disorders

krisalexcole's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence

Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Animal death, Death of parent, Gore, Sexual assault, Vomit, Drug abuse, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Drug use, Animal cruelty, and Blood

Minor: Racism, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Fatphobia, Slavery, Suicide attempt, and Body shaming

litliz's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Violence, Cursing, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Death, Vomit, Blood, Body horror, Confinement, and Grief

Moderate: Racism, Torture, and Mental illness

Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide attempt, Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, Addiction, Cancer, Police brutality, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Drug use, Slavery, Alcohol, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault

locajohanna's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Violence, Body horror, Bullying, Drug abuse, Drug use, Murder, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Addiction, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Racism

cady_sass's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

Struggling to put together the words to express my disappointment. The second installment lacks all of the dark academia, secret societies, and cult vibes that I loved about Ninth House. Of course they are still AT Yale, but there is little actual school content, there’s even less discussion about the actual Lethe work and the other 8 houses and the rituals, which is the content I want. 

The entirety of this novel is about Darlington, which, as I said in my review of Ninth House, we don’t know nearly enough about nor did we spend enough time with him in the first book to actually care about him. Everything else about the world they built falls away and the only thing that matters is finding Darlington and bringing him home, and the hell that comes along with it (pun intended). To that point, it’s completely nonsensical and out of character for any of these characters to care about Darlington too, except for Pam who is by far the best part of the whole book. Tucker has no reason to join them in their endeavors. The friend (I literally already forget his name) has no reason to risk his life here. ALEX has no real reason here either- they make a point, over and over again, to tell us how she feels nothing and everything she does is self serving. NONSENSE, all of it. 

I get that this might do it for some people but for me it’s a let down. I’m sorry, I just don’t care about Darlington. Give me more secret society shady dealings and unsanctioned rituals and detective work and leave the hell portals at home. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Death of parent, Murder, Death, Animal cruelty, Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Vomit, Abandonment, Body horror, Classism, Kidnapping, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Misogyny