Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo

43 reviews

imaginaryalchemist's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.5

As soon as I finished Ninth House I knew I had to read the sequel, and it didn't disappoint!

One of my favorite aspects is the characters. They all play off each very well in my opinion. It's always entertaining to see Alex banter with everyone, I love how much of a smart ass she is. My favorite character would probably have to be Mercy, I'm glad she got more screen time and development in this novel.

I am curious to see how she handles everything moving forward, if she'll try to distance herself from Lethe and Alex.

I also enjoyed the murder mystery aspect, just like I did in Ninth House, and how it blended in with the overall story. I do wish the societies had played more of a role, they're very interesting and I'd like to know more about them.

I'll be eagerly awaiting the third installment in the Alex Stern series, and I plan on checking out Leigh Bardugo's YA series. I enjoy her writing style

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Sexism, Violence, Addiction, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Misogyny and Sexism

There are frequent mentions of rituals that often involve body horror. Murder is a major plot point. The main character's past, (which involves drugs, an abusive relationship, death, s*xual assault, forced institutionalization, and murder) is frequently brought up.

wayside's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Drug abuse, Cursing, Addiction, Death, and Animal death

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Rape, Classism, Murder, Racism, Police brutality, Grief, Alcohol, Blood, Violence, and Stalking

hannahcstocks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious reflective 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Death, Cannibalism, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Blood, Stalking, and Animal death

Moderate: Death of parent, Vomit, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, and Gun violence

Minor: Toxic relationship, Torture, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Abandonment, Misogyny, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, and Drug use

samreadssometimes's review against another edition

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 against another edition

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

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 against another edition

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 against another edition

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 against another edition

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