Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

68 reviews

thetearex's review

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious sad 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

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Classism, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Mental illness, Rape, Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Infertility, Islamophobia, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual violence, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide, and Violence

banana_hutch's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful tense fast-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

4.25

This book was such a thrill-ride. Once the action started, it did NOT stop. At no point was I ready for the thing that happened next. This book does such a wonderful job portraying the lives of these women and the rules they're bound by, mixing humor with devastation and cruelty. I loved this one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, and Blood

Minor: Addiction

mgudaval's review

dark fast-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Sexual assault

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Addiction

mkreads's review against another edition

challenging dark funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

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

5.0

I loved this. The characters are well drawn and interesting. The status quo of how thier lives function is sometimes bad and sometimes horrendous. This book manages to deal with difficult subjects with a dark humour and clever insight. These ladies do awful things for good reasons. The characters often ask each other difficult questions and examine thier actions. The humour is woven into the story wonderfully. It illustrates the characters personalities without being mocking or degrading. A super enjoyable read.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Addiction, and Rape

notanniewarren's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

I was wondering what makes a five star read for me. I've read some good books this year but not given our any 5-stars yet, even though I've read some things I can't really fault and massively enjoyed. I was thinking, what really is a 5-star book for me, then? Maybe I'll never rate a book 5/5. I've also been reading a lot of audiobooks and I was wondering if that's having an impact on how much I enjoy books, that maybe I'll never LOVE a fiction audiobook.

THEN THIS BOOK CAME ALONG.

TEN OUT OF TEN FIVE STARS NO NOTES. SOMEONE MAKE THIS GORGEOUS, HILARIOUS, HEARTBREAKING, BEAUTIFUL BOOK INTO A FILM RIGHT NOW!!!!!

This just blew me away. It's GENUINELY funny, not the kind of smile-to-yourself amusing that I usually mean when I call a book funny. It's so warm and tender, especially on female friendship, whilst also touching on some really big, difficult, dark issues like racism, caste, domestic abuse and rape. I felt like I learned a lot about India (or at least, a certain part of India) and had a rollicking good time while I was at it. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Murder, Racism, Violence, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Sexual assault, Blood, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Animal cruelty

meimayy's review against another edition

dark funny fast-paced

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

4.5

An excellent tale of what it means to be a woman, with the nuances of a rural Indian village setting but reflective of women around the world. The character growth and female friendship is what I adore most!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, Addiction, Domestic abuse, and Gaslighting

Minor: Rape and Sexual assault

camillesim's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Murder, Body horror, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Death, and Addiction

marymacb's review

challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring 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

4.5

Informative, with humor, which makes it easier to bear some of the difficult choices faced by these women. A well written story with a satisfying ending. I learned a lot about the caste system in Northern India. Make sure to read the author's note at the end about the real Bandit Queen. Very good. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Murder, Violence, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, and Physical abuse

s_lorenz's review

dark emotional funny lighthearted 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: Gun violence, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Rape, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Infertility, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

radtj's review

funny inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Bullying, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Murder, Suicide, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Classism, and Fatphobia