Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

9 reviews

music_girl84's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Racism, Murder, Hate crime, Drug use, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Cursing, Death, Addiction, Alcohol, Grief, and Drug abuse

bg_oseman_fan's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective 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

4.75

I really liked the framing structure of the book and the way the narrator became part of the story. i liked the synergy between the past and present. i liked how the incident at the core of the story drove the characters and how it seeped into their life. perhaps the reason it’s not five stars is i felt that something’s could have been explored more explicitly in the story. i wish we could have seen more of Opal and Nev’s interactions with one another than we got in the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Hate crime, Pregnancy, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Infidelity, Death of parent, Addiction, Cursing, Death, Racial slurs, Drug use, and Police brutality

Minor: Grief

leonormsousa's review against another edition

dark emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Drug abuse, Racism, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Hate crime, Violence, Addiction, Gaslighting, Murder, and Police brutality

saara_ilona_muu's review against another edition

challenging inspiring reflective 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: Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Addiction, Cultural appropriation, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, Alcoholism, Drug use, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racism, and Violence

annabulkowski's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring 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: Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, Classism, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, Cursing, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Slavery, Xenophobia, Death, Misogyny, Drug use, Gaslighting, Grief, Addiction, Hate crime, Mental illness, and Racism

prettycloud's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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

This book is so compelling. So concise and yet with such gorgeous visuals and descriptions of music, so focused and yet so devoted to the nuances of the story and the supporting cast. It reads like a book written by a journalist, asking important questions and pushing the reader to think critically, but never dragging the way more self-indulgent literary books do. It focuses on racism, sexism, misogynoir, and the far-reaching effects of structural inequality and subcultural resistance, and yet it comes off emotionally real rather than preachy. If you liked "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo," you're likely to get a lot out of this one too.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs, Racism, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Police brutality, Sexism, Violence, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Alcoholism, Cancer, Chronic illness, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Blood, Cursing, and Addiction

Minor: Abortion, Car accident, Medical content, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Stalking, and Sexual harassment

This book is ultimately more adventurous than dark in tone, so though it shows racist violence and bigoted attitudes, it lingers more on subcultural connection, healing, and inspiration. The book centers around the death of the narrator's Black father during the riot that launched the eponymous band to stardom, and the narrator's ongoing quest to learn more about that night and its key players. One of the key players is at the time of narration dying of cancer. There is a twist related to that night, but no surprise violence or illness or anything.

amandas_bookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Self harm, Death of parent, Drug use, Hate crime, Infidelity, Alcohol, Death, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, and Addiction

Moderate: Homophobia

cait_reads_and_drinks's review against another edition

emotional tense slow-paced

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

2.5

I have to be honest and say that my initial desire to read this book stemmed solely from the fact that one of the main characters is named Nev, which also happens to be the name of my beloved obese cat. I heard this being compared to Daisy Jones & The Six a lot, and similar to Daisy Jones, this one just didn't do it for me.

The story is written in a journalistic/interview style that rehashes the story of Opal & Nev, former rock legends who have since gone their separate ways, leading up to a reunion show during a major music festival. This story of two underdogs who capitalized on a tragic situation is a slow build with lots of heavy character development that reads like a biography.

At the beginning, I got major Evelyn Hugo vibes with the style in how the book was written and had really high hopes. However, this was super hard for me to get into and I found myself trying to power through it just to be done with it. There is a bit of a twist in the story about halfway through but it was too little too late.

There are some very important themes brought up in this book, particularly regarding Black women and their struggles to succeed on the same level as white men, however these themes at times get lost with the rest of the plot points in the story. I would have liked to see it more streamlined on the story of Opal & Nev and their dynamic, rather than the connection of the "editor" to their story and her attempts to find answers to what caused the tragic situation that boosted them to stardom.

I would definitely recommend readers to check this one out and form their own opinion, especially as the themes that present themselves are so relevant in today's society. That being said I think this one may be better enjoyed listening on audio rather than the physical book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Violence

Minor: Alcoholism

irisheyz77's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Violence