Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

75 reviews

carrooooolll's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

2.75

This book had a not so good ending, throwing everything together at once, but still a good book.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, and Child abuse

thenovelbookshelf's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-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? No

3.75

A really great psychological thriller that uses mythology to heighten the suspense.
  
Group psychotherapist, Mariana, is pulled back into Cambridge University, where her neice Zoe is studying, and where, she herself and late husband met.
  
When one student dies, Mariana is quick to see connections that the police can't. To protect and help Zoe, she agrees to stay and ask questions, after all, asking never harmed anyone, right?
  
The dazzling Professor Fosca tops Mariana's list. His alibi's should rule him out after the second tragic student death, but both were in the Professor's secret study group and links him even more to the deaths.
  
Alex Michaelides draws you back into the world of psychotherapy, using Greek myths to disguise what's lurking in the shadows and culminates in a twist.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Child abuse, and Physical abuse

Minor: Drug use, Grief, Abandonment, Animal death, Stalking, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Death, Mental illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

abbs15norm's review

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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Death, Gaslighting, Infertility, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, and Suicidal thoughts

alomie's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

I really enjoyed this whodunnit. I did not see the ending coming and it kept things interesting. 
Some of the "origin stories" were a bit harrowing, and it's not easy going in that respect, however, as we are trying to understand the motives of a serial killer it makes sense contextually. These messed up childhoods absolutely might create a serial killer. 
Kept me guessing right to the end and was actually quite gripping. 
Found this to be a slow start but really picked up in the third act and personally I could have done with a bit more pace, potentially this is an audio-book issue rather than a book issue. I liked it overall but I don't think I would go back to it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Mental illness, and Injury/Injury detail

Warning Re the Dog

The dad kills the lovely dog, it's really horrid.

erinlaura's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Self harm, Stalking, and Violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship and Infidelity

Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, Drug abuse, Drug use, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide attempt, and Car accident

crosberg's review against another edition

dark sad slow-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

2.0

Another disappointing thriller/mystery.  The book is only 330 pages and there's only one core mystery with several murders and acts of violence so I don't know how the author managed to make it feel slow, but he did.  Without spoilers or going too much into detail, the overwhelming feeling of this book is that the author really doesn't like women, and his male characters are showing exactly how.  The main character was a female therapist, and she did have a few female colleagues/mentors to rely on, plus all of the victims were female.  But somehow the only people who had any personality were all men and most of them treated the women in their lives callously at best, abusively at worst.  Gaslighting and "there, there dear let the men handle it" patronizing is rampant with all but one of the male characters, who the main character seems to fall in love with after he's simply kind to her for about 30 seconds.  I was so distracted by the absolutely flat, passive women and the terrible, violent men that I became utterly disinterested in the actual mystery.  What's worse is that the author treats sexual assault, child abuse, and trauma with a casualness that made my skin crawl.  Forget the actual murderer, I'd be uncomfortable interacting with the author.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Murder, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Death, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Alcohol, and Adult/minor relationship

se6500's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

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

1.75

I felt that up until the last quarter of the book, it was just about Mariana's grief and not the thriller I was here for. I predicted the killer, but I was still surprised and that did make finishing the book worth it, even though I skimmed through a lot of it

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, and Stalking

Minor: Sexual content

nykolereads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Alcohol

anisyrah's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense 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? It's complicated

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body horror, Death, Stalking, Murder, and Gore

Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Self harm, Suicide, Mental illness, and Gaslighting

Minor: Drug abuse, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Forced institutionalization, and Emotional abuse

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

4.0

I found this book difficult to put down, even though it is outside of my typical genre. Well-written, with loads of twists and turns, my brain kept flipping back and forth on who I thought the killer was. While I did think the person who was the killer could’ve been a suspect, the reason they ended up being a killer was shocking. This book is a quick read, with short chapters, and a great twist! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Infidelity, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship