Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

26 reviews

bringmybooks's review against another edition

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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

Bring | Borrow | ✨Bypass✨

Review: Most important thing to say here is please READ OTHER REVIEWS and don't rely on just mine because I seem to be so far in the minority on this one ... but this felt very meh :(

I liked the idea of all the flashbacks leading us to present day Evie, but eventually I kinda forgot where we were and why we were there (and why I cared). The slog during the middle was real, y'all. 

The writing wasn't bad and I definitely would pick up another thriller by this author, but with all the thrillers you can pick up in bookstores these days, this one would not be my recommendation.

Overall Rating: ★★★★ / 3.25
 
Rating each element of the book out of 5★ 
Characters ★★★
Atmosphere ★★★ 
Writing ★★★ 
Plot ★★★
Intrigue ★★★★ 
Logic ★★★ 
Enjoyment ★★ 
Pacing ★★ 
Dialogue ★★★ 

★ did not like / ★★ it was okay / ★★★ liked it / ★★★★ really liked it / ★★★★★ loved it

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Stalking, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

ksilvio's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Cancer, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Chronic illness, and Classism

kshertz's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This was a great mystery book! I love an unreliable narrator and everyone is very unreliable. I’m not really sure who to root for. I don’t know who will come out on top. There are twists! It was really enjoyable to follow along with them. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Violence, Addiction, Death, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Murder, and Alcohol

heresyourletter's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

I would describe this as a "cozy thriller", much like the style of Hallmark movies. It was an easy read and enjoyable for the most part, with lots of plot twists. However, I found it hard to sympathize with some of the characters' decisions.

Devon was the only character I liked and I kept wanting the main character to end up with him instead.

I also find it hard to believe that someone who spent the entire book wanting to "get out" of her line of work and have a nice quiet life in a home of her own would then become a spy boss at the end.

. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, Death, Cancer, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Murder, Sexual content, Blood, Classism, and Infidelity

Despite being a thriller, the descriptions of violence are very toned down. It's more about the threat of violence than actual violence. One character is briefly incarcerated and questioned about a crime by police. One character drinks heavily over the course of several days (and drives home after). One very brief "closed door" sex scene. Very brief mention of a character's interest in BDSM.

The main character's mother dies of cancer before the book begins. There are a couple of flashbacks to show her suffering with her terminal illness. Two characters die in a car accident after the car is tampered with. Several prominent politicians/judges are filmed in a hotel room with a group of women who are implied to be either exotic dancers or sex workers. One character threatens to cut off the fingers of another character. Brief description of a character setting fire to a hotel bed. One character falls and hits their head on the floor. Brief mention of blood. It is mentioned that all spies (except 2) were killed by their boss after a mission. One character is implied to have been killed by an organized crime boss.

nikkib4e's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Misogyny

machenn's review against another edition

mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Car accident, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Murder

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

While I think this book was a little overhyped on TikTok, I still found the premise and the story arc interesting. It was a little different than most thriller/murder mysteries I’ve read in the past. The narrator is unreliable yet likeable. There were a lot of twists and turns, some expected and others unexpected. The ending is a little bit of a cliffhanger which is fun and leaves the reader wanting more. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Murder, Stalking, Sexism, Violence, Death of parent, Alcohol, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

shesflippinpages's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Terminal illness, Stalking, Cancer, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gaslighting, and Murder

mj_86's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcohol, Car accident, and Murder

Minor: Car accident and Addiction

ofarkas's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Death, Alcohol, and Car accident

Moderate: Murder

Minor: Addiction