Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Final Revival of Opal & Nev by Dawnie Walton

107 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

wellreadmegs's review against another edition

challenging emotional medium-paced

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

5.0

First of all let's start with the fact that everyone compares this to Daisy Jones & The Six - which I also loved but besides the time period and the style in which this book is written, that's where the comparison stops. I believe both books can really stand out on their own & this one respectfully has a lot more substance & I had to google so many times to convince myself this wasn't a real story because it felt like it. 

The way Walton incorporated real references and storylines (especially in the footnotes) with such detail - it felt impossible that it wasn't based on a true story. On top of that, add the personal layer of why Sunny wanted to interview and write this book in the first place, and I was convinced it was real life. 

There are so many layers to this book and the perfect microcosm of society not only in the 60s & 70s but as the book references in 2016. The intersectionality of race, politics, & music were all touched in this book. 

I listened to the audiobook while reading along and I simply cannot recommend the audiobook enough. It was done by a full cast & even some of the songs were sung instead of just reading the lyrics. It made for such an impactful and immersive read. I cannot recommend it enough. 

I will say there were a few slow parts in the beginning and keeping the characters straight at first was confusing but mid-way through you understood everyone's role. I think that's also what helps with the audiobook - to distinguish voices and accents. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Racial slurs

Moderate: Cursing

Minor: Xenophobia

mysteryspouse's review against another edition

challenging inspiring reflective tense slow-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Death, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Addiction, Sexual harassment, Body horror, Hate crime, Sexism, Murder, Racism, and Violence

bethyj's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Cursing, Racism, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Hate crime, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual harassment and Police brutality

Minor: Sexism and Self harm

goldbs's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny 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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism

Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Hate crime, and Murder

elsaschuster's review against another edition

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

4.75

This book is everything you love about Taylor Jenkins-Reid’s recent work, with all of the social awareness that comes from being on the internet in the 2020s. And it’s her debut???

Please excuse me while I sign up for Dawnie Walton’s mailing list

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, and Violence

zelephante's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs

Minor: Violence

oceanwriter's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-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

3.5

I was drawn to this book because of the similarities to Daisy Jones & The Six. While the setup is the same and it’s set in a similar era, the story is much different.

The book is an interview with Opal and Nev (and others) for an upcoming book on their lives and time on stage. The interviews alternate all while telling a continuous story.

I was much more interested in Opal and Pearl’s childhood/upbringing story than I was with the rest of the book which surprised me given how much I loved the music scene in Daisy Jones & The Six. Fewer characters certainly made it easier to follow for which I was appreciative. I found this the more powerful story of the two books, and yet, it just hasn’t stuck with me outside of a few annotations. I suppose a large part of that could be how much time I spent comparing the book rather than reading it as its own. That one’s on me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Addiction and Drug abuse

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