Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Penance by Eliza Clark

21 reviews

bethsreading's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Penance is a disturbing and macabre fictional true crime novel ‘written’ by a disgraced journalist about three girls murdering their schoolmate in a small seaside town. 

One of the novel’s focal points is exploring the ethics of the true crime genre, particularly the exploitative aspects. A true crime story is so easy to get pulled into, as it offers some of the most extreme and disturbing corners of humanity; but it is important to stop and think: how true is true? Having two writers of the book, Clark herself and the journalist in the story writing the book, adds an extra layer of authorial distortion, demanding you constantly question the legitimacy and trustworthiness of every word you consume.

I particularly love writing that refuses to sit idly within binaries and instead adventures around all the boundaries of a topic, and this book does that. From the subject matter, it seems like there would be an obvious right and wrong, and while there is in the grand scheme of things, the layers and nuances offer a much more complex story. Clark, in my opinion, is quite clear in her stances, but they are thoughtful, balanced opinions that filter in through the story while still leaving room for personal moral engagement as the reader. 

I think Clark also does a fantastic job of depicting teenage-hood, especially in the mid 2010s, and the involvement of the internet at the time. Tumblr basically being a main character really transported me back to what teenage life was like in 2015.  

I did feel like there was perhaps some unnecessary historical backstory to the town, which did enrich the story and make it feel like a real place, but felt somewhat too much at times and I think some parts could’ve been edited down to streamline things a little. 

Overall this was an incredible story and one I’ll be thinking about for a long time! As a warning though, please be sure to check the content warnings first as it covers some difficult topics (though I believe it handles them all well and with respect). 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Misogyny, Drug use, Torture, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Lesbophobia, Addiction, Alcohol, Grief, Murder, Sexual assault, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Toxic friendship, Violence, Suicide, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Animal cruelty, Body horror, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder and Vomit

zoebill96's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Torture, Murder, Rape, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Drug use, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Vomit, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Mass/school shootings, Addiction, Blood, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Bullying, Gun violence, and Pedophilia

matilda_holroyd_'s review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

2.75

Not my style of book dark and depressing and was hoping for a big twist that didn’t come. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, Addiction, Violence, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Self harm, Body horror, Gore, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Death, Hate crime, Body shaming, Drug use, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault

sarah984's review against another edition

dark funny medium-paced

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

3.0

This book was fine, it captured the voices of the teens and (most of) the internet culture of the era really well, but I do think it fell into its own trap a bit in over focusing on the perpetrators without a lot of self awareness, and a few things about the internet culture of the time are inaccurate in a way that annoyed me (especially the assertion about ao3 because I think the truth actually adds to the book's point). The twist is so obvious from pretty much the beginning that the epilogue feels like a joke.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Murder, Toxic friendship, Violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Classism, Gore, Body shaming, Vomit, Addiction, Alcohol, Kidnapping, and Medical content

Minor: Death of parent, Rape, Drug use, Racism, Eating disorder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Abortion, Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, and Confinement

lovelylilelle's review against another edition

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Toxic friendship, Mass/school shootings, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Rape, Murder, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Torture, Suicide, Body horror, Classism, Death, Drug use, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Fire/Fire injury, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Addiction

gia0203's review

challenging dark reflective tense slow-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

5.0

So engaging, so well-structured. At times I felt intimately connected to these characters. This has a lot to say about true crime as a genre - both as an exploitative, profit-led form of entertainment, but also as a source of comfort for young people. I found the narrator to be genuinely unsettling. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Bullying, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Animal death, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Self harm, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Mass/school shootings, Suicide, Violence, Body shaming, and Blood

Minor: Homophobia, Addiction, Fatphobia, Pedophilia, and Vomit

icarusandthesun's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

eliza clark is a bloody genius.
even though i'm not into true crime, not in the slightest actually, she was able to draw me in completely. this was a disturbing read, but also so much fun. from relatable sims 4 references to badly written school shooter fanfic, this had everything to properly entertain you.
 
it explored the depths of the internet and school life from the perspectives of a couple of very different people from very different backgrounds.
it was perfect. (but perhaps i'm also just a little biased because most of the references in this book just made so much sense to me as someone who used to spend - and still does - way too much time on the internet). an incredible read.

literally the only thing i didn't quite enjoy was the length and extensity. there were lots of chapters about the history of crow-on-sea and it was necessary, of course, and didn't feel like it was irrelevant at all, but personally, i just found that a little boring.

also, as i've mentioned before, i'm not really into true crime, so this was already a little bit of meh-territory you know.

but f- it, i still had a blast.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Bullying, Alcohol, Child death, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Child abuse, Torture, Drug use, Suicide, Toxic friendship, and Violence

Minor: Death of parent, Addiction, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, and Rape

iheartm4m's review

dark emotional funny sad tense 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

5.0

As a tumblr trawler of 2013-2016, this book hit home so hard. I knew girls like this, and now i dont have to imagine what would have happened to them if they took it too far. Great use of media from this decade, im obsessed with clarks use of the darkest parts of the internet that are teenage girls blog posts. Fantastic and fascinating and chilling. Could not put it down. As a person the same age as the characters, f*** me is this accurate!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Violence, Mass/school shootings, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Drug use, Blood, Gun violence, Murder, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Addiction, Kidnapping, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Police brutality, Rape, Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, and Vomit

danidamico's review

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.0

Me gustó, empecemos por eso. Pero tengo que admitir que Penance, mi lanzamiento literario más anticipado de 2023, no cumplió con mis expectativas. Boy Parts, la primera novela de la autora británica Eliza Clark, es una de mis lecturas favoritas de los últimos años, me encantó, por eso esperaba con mucho entusiasmo esta segunda novela. Penance es la crónica de un crimen ficcional, el asesinato de la adolescente Joan Wilson en manos de tres compañeras del colegio en un pueblo costero de Inglaterra. Clark construye un narrador que juega el rol de escritor de la crónica, con guiños a A sangre fría de Truman Capote y a la cultura del true crime. Sé que no debería comparar, pero es inevitable; este libro difiere muchísimo del debut de la autora, que era una narración en primera persona super visceral, vertiginosa y llena de personalidad. Era una bomba. Penance es un texto mucho más distante y fríamente calculado, extrañé todas las cualidades explosivas que había encontrado en Boy Parts, cuya dedicatoria decía algo así como "papá y mamá, no lean este libro". En cambio, en la sección de agradecimientos de Penance, Clark dice "este sí lo pueden leer". Creo que eso resume bastante bien las diferencias entre las dos obras.

La novela me pareció interesante, en su mayor parte me atrapó bastante y llegué hasta el final sin problema, pero sí creo que hay instancias en las que la escritura cae en un detallismo excesivo que ralentiza demasiado el relato. Tengo que decirlo, hubo varios pasajes que me salteé porque sinceramente no aportaban mucho a la historia más que un efecto de realismo. Es cierto que todo está muy bien construido y el verosímil funciona a la perfección, el pueblo aparece como un personaje más, pero no sentí necesaria la descripción tan detallada de la vida de personajes irrelevantes o del pasado del lugar. En ese sentido, hubo momentos de la lectura en los que me aburrí un poco y el ritmo no se mantuvo. También pasó que el libro me recordó a textos de otros autores (por ejemplo, Matt Wesolowski) y no lo percibí tan original como algunas personas señalaron en redes. No sé, creo que puse a Clark en un pedestal y eso hizo que fuese muy difícil cumplir con lo que esperaba en mi cabeza. Claramente la novela no me disgustó, por algo la estoy puntuando con 4 estrellas, pero bueno, me gusta documentar mis reacciones y sentimientos, que en este caso tuvieron algo de decepción. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Self harm

milesjmoran's review

dark funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Drug use, Fatphobia, Gore, Grief, Sexual assault, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Ableism, Addiction, Alcohol, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Torture, Toxic friendship, and Violence