Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

My Heart Is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones

25 reviews

flexolo's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Addiction, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, Death, Incest, and Suicidal thoughts

school_for_scandal's review

adventurous dark informative mysterious medium-paced

• 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: Alcohol and Addiction

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Racism, Self harm, Pedophilia, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, and Rape

squisheebee_'s review

challenging dark emotional funny sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

I absolutely loved the narration of this book. Jade stole my heart & maybe it biased my rating.🤷🏽‍♀️ 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Addiction, Body horror, Blood, Classism, and Mental illness

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Gore, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Suicide, and Self harm

Minor: Rape, Confinement, Sexual assault, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Panic attacks/disorders

strawbrifieldsforever's review

adventurous challenging dark funny 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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, and Blood

Minor: Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Vomit, and Incest

cottagecorecabbage's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Addiction

Minor: Bullying and Cultural appropriation

tesshersh's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

I’m not sure if I extra enjoyed this book because I’ve read so many BAD books lately, or if it really IS that good, so take this with a grain of salt. But WOW. One of my only gripes is that it touches on some themes that I’m not 100% sure I love being talked abt from a teenage girl’s perspective written by a male author, but I think it was respectfully done. 
Spoiler for my other complaint:

I wish that the conclusion/reveal of the killer DIDN’T have a supernatural element. I think the author’s point of regarding real life not being like a horror/slasher movie, about things like gentrification & colonization being a type of horror and violence of their own, was backtracked a bit by letting jade’s theory of a supernatural element be true at the end.

Also: cannot recommend the audio book enough, cara gee was amazing

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Abortion, Colonisation, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Death, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Body horror, Suicide, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Child death, Incest, and Gore

HUGE trigger warnings - not just in the gore/violence you would associate with a thriller but for other content as well, please check content warnings before reading

squrrlgrrl's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Murder, Self harm, Animal death, Body horror, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual harassment, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Colonisation, Suicide attempt, and Addiction

Minor: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Child abuse

warmerbones's review

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring 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

5.0

An alternate ending for all the girls that were never heard, My Heart is A Chainsaw is more than just a horror novel. The lake is deep, and full of unexpected twists that will keep the pages turning. My heart was broken, given hope, broken, and then given more hope. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Self harm, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Grief, Deadnaming, Child abuse, Addiction, Rape, Suicide attempt, Incest, Alcoholism, Adult/minor relationship, and Vomit

goblinghost_39's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

3.5

 

I think I benefited from listening to the audiobook for this one. Jade is a rambling mess, and it was much easier to just listen to her while I was working instead of taking the time to sit down and read. The actual plot that happens outside of her head was a bit of a letdown. I didn't really understand Letha at all.

HOWEVER. Jade herself was fascinating to get to know and, in a way, I could relate to her hyperfocus on something dark as a way to cope. I say "in a way" because I'm white and can't relate to her being Indian in what seems like a predominantly white town.

I did, though, have a parent who was both emotionally abusive and neglectful at the same time. So still not as traumatic as what Jade went through. But I was (and still kind of am deep down) an angry and emotionally distressed kid. Didn't really have any friends. Any adult ever saw me and basically shrugged. So I was left to my own devices without any of the tools to actually deal with...everything? Anything? So teenage me coped, with what was still probably the worst time of my life, by way of escapism. And that included horror. And also self-harm, but that feels like a whole different story that we don't need to get into right now. But let me tell you, regardless of what it is you get into that helps you cope, at that age that kind of internal isolation does some wonky shit to your brain. Jade comes off as kind of a loon. But it's not the slasher films. It's the fact that she's more-or-less been left alone for years while her brain is still developing.

So I 100% see you, Jade. I am also a bit of a loon due to some not-so-nice events and people. And it is that sole reason that this book gets 4 stars instead of the 3 I was considering.

Will definitely read more from this author. And since this is a trilogy, I'll be sure to check out the next one. I just hope we get to know Jade on an even deeper level that isn't just how many times she can reference Friday the 13th.

 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pedophilia, Gore, Murder, Body horror, Rape, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Incest, Classism, Gaslighting, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Cultural appropriation, Death, and Emotional abuse

catriona176's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Pedophilia, Murder, Gore, Sexual assault, Addiction, Classism, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, and Rape