Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

687 reviews

bookzplz's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense 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? Yes

4.5

“i’m just having a bit of trouble with my passport.”

i technically started this book in the winter of 2022 and for various reasons, put it down
shortly after bunny’s death
. i think it was a little overhyped and i wasn’t sure what to expect so i decided to leave it there. i’m glad i picked it back up. 

this book does an excellent job of showing the blinders people in academia frequently have on and how the isolation under the guise of supremacy can be detrimental. nobody was ever happy. they studied the classics because it was the thing to do, the only one who concluded their studies was richard because he financially had to and, of course,
was alive to do so
. for most of them, classics was something to study because they could and less so because they were actually interested in the subject. the book also expertly showed the favorite pastime of affluent white people, ignoring things they don’t want to deal with or “sweeping it under the rug”. these people, richard excluded, have no actual experience with dealing with their problems.
when bunny is essentially threatening to go forward with what he suspects about them, they never talk to him about it, they give into his extortion and when that gets too tiring they decide to murder him.
it’s less a secret history of what happened and more so outing the secret ways that the wealthy go about ignoring their problems and finding ways of not dealing with them.

i guarantee you i will read this book again. 

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ilsabelle's review

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challenging dark mysterious reflective tense
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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joslyn_cole's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

5.0


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deparme's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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ains_reads's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad slow-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

2.0


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mcosmic's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5


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idahol7221's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5


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schwambibambi's review

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

5.0


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romy_elizabeth13's review against another edition

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challenging 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? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

I was initially expecting to read a really meaningful, deep, emotional, relaxing-(ish) novel when I picked up Donna Tart’s The Secret History. It ended up being one of the most dark, shocking, twisted, intense books I’ve ever read and it was incredible, oh my word. After reading all these tearjerking, emotional books about love and loss and life, it was nice to have something that kept me hanging on the edge of my seat, while still being incredibly intellectual and offering many interesting perspectives on life. Just when I thought the plot twists would stop, they kept coming in an ever flowing stream and I loved that. The characters, while incredibly flawed were really well written and their personalities were delved deep into. 100% worth the read but if you are under 14/very mature 13 year old, I wouldn’t recommend reading this book just yet. Overall really incredible - something tiktok was right about.

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mary_do_12's review

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adventurous challenging emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

giving this book anything below 5 stars would be criminal.

the way donna tartt grazes the surface of emotions, never quite submerging in, yet letting the reader feel them fully, is truly mesmerizing, just as the way she creates characters and tells a story.

and yet i have some things that threw me off in this book.
i think this story is meant to kind of make you question your morals a little, which is why it features things that made me— uneasy. i always have a hard time distinguishing whether an author is simply writing about a certain topic, or if they are romanticizing it.
i mean murder— that‘s one thing. in fact, a common thing in literature.
however, incest??! uhm, idk. made me queasy. made me a little uncomfy. or well, you could say outright disgusted. the thing is, i really liked the twins, UNTIL I FOUND OUT THEY FUCKED ON A REGULAR BASIS??! like WHAT. are you guys okay? do you— do you need help?

and then richard casually mentioned getting the overwhelming urge to rape camilla while she’s just standing in his room? honey, i—? what? i liked you as well…

also — you gotta give this to the author — i was SHOOKETH. henry?? my poor baby boy?? AND THEN FRANCIS?? in the EPILOGUE? WHEN I THOUGHT THE DAMAGE WAS OVER??


i think i need help after reading about this, because i still feel the urge to throw up, and this is funny because you are reading this in a five star review. 

truly a piece that leaves you thinking for days. 

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