Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

The Power by Naomi Alderman

4 reviews

risaleel's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

Graphic: Torture, Murder, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Rape

Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism

riffmonkey's review

dark slow-paced

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

1.0

I hated it. First of all the whole premise and story is, I think, wrong already. The historical pieces supposedly found would say that this isn't a new thing. So then the whole patriarchy and all that should have already evolved and shaped differently. Also, the fact that this would result in reverse sexism is stupid, unrealistic and bad. Not to mention something I don't want to read about. 

The characters were boring and the worldbuilding was worse. This is trying so hard to make some sort of point and comparison to the real world that it just makes no fucking sense in the story. Choices that are made to show something supposedly meaningful but really it just makes no sense for the world and the characters. 

Conclusion; fuck this, fuck this world, reverse sexism would never happen and is stupid. I hated it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Kidnapping, and Misogyny

Minor: Rape

mikki_9's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, War, and Death of parent

Moderate: Abandonment, Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, and Mental illness

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Chronic illness, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Racism, and Transphobia

cutlet's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

The book's table of contents is a countdown, which immediately starts the story off with a high level of tension. The story unravels through different characters' eyes, and they slowly come together. I was fascinated by the decisions people made and the way events were portrayed. It was a bit challenging to read at times, due to parallels with the real world as it is now in early 2021. 

Specifically, when characters begin to realize that this is the new world, things have changed permanently and there is no going back to a previous "normal", that struck me as all too familiar. There was also a moment when a politician is projected to lose an election, and exit polls agreed with that prediction, only to find that they had inarguably won. I had to stop reading and look up when the book was published - October 27, 2016 - because it felt all too similar, but perhaps Alderman was just able to predict a few pieces of the future.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, and Trafficking