Reviews tagging 'Gaslighting'

Mad Man by Onley James

2 reviews

wii3rdo's review

adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-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

4.0

i’m not sure why, but this book just didn’t hit for me the same way the others did in the series. i think it’s the way Felix’s character was presented. I LOVE HIM! he’s definitely the black cat to Avi’s golden retriever, but his constant self-sabotaging in the beginning really put me off from enjoying his story for a bit.

that’s not to say that i didn’t enjoy the story overall, though. it was just so hard for me to focus on liking the way the relationship was progressing when it kept stalling because of Felix’s insecurities. NOW, i don’t hate how vulnerable his character was. i actually loved that Avi’s character was crafted in a way to cater to Felix’s needs perfectly, BUT i didn’t like the feeling that Felix was always ready to run away. it never went away for me, even at the end.

NOW, despite all that, i liked the change of scenery compared to the other books. i think putting this chaotic whirlwind of a couple in the middle of nowhere for the majority of the story was beneficial to really seeing these characters develop individually and together. especially since back home they’re surrounded by people, so being in the middle of buttfuck nowhere really made me focus on how focused they were on each other. 💗

THAT’S ALL I’LL SAY ABOUT THAT 🙂‍↕️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Sexual content, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Body horror, Classism, Physical abuse, Torture, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Gore, Kidnapping, and Misogyny

frantic_vampire's review

adventurous dark emotional funny 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? It's complicated

5.0

I know I’ve said it before, but I love this series so much! Each book keeps getting better and better. And adds more layers to the Mulvaney universe that I want to dive right into.

I loved Avi and Felix! They had such good banter and they would argue, tease, and snipe at each other at every given opportunity. I also loved the fact that everyone around them could see that they were into each other before they did. And I totally agree, Felix is a barbed wire wrapped marshmallow and Avi is a murderous golden retriever. They just fit together so well! Another thing I loved about this book was the little peek we got at Zane and Felix’s queerplatonic relationship. And I can’t leave Aiden out! It was so nice to have his presence more firmly rooted in this book. I can’t wait to see how things turn out for him and Thomas. Mad Man is getting five stars!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gaslighting, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Murder, Vomit, and Death

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Kidnapping, Grief, Sexual assault, and Gun violence

Minor: Terminal illness