Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Brutes by Dizz Tate

8 reviews

seventhswan's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I've seen other reviewers describe this as a "no plot, just vibes" book, but I thought there was actually a very clear storyline! It was creative and nuanced, reminding me of Stewart O'Nan's Ocean State and, as was clearly intended, The Virgin Suicides. That's not to say the vibes weren't immaculate - a sort of "pretty horror" - and Tate is an extremely talented descriptive writer who made my skin crawl at times with her imagery. I thought the shared narration worked extremely well throughout, but especially in making the conclusion of the novel extremely impactful. I cried multiple times. 

This would have been the perfect book for me, ticking all the boxes - well-written, evocative, personally meaningful, distinctive characters - had it not then relied on

the existence of an actual monster

at the end... magical realism strikes again. Sex traffickers and child neglect are monstrous enough! Introducing fantastical elements cheapened these very real issues a little for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Alcohol, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Body shaming, Toxic friendship, and Body horror

orlagal's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Excrement, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Classism, Death, Racism, Sexual assault, Vomit, Alcohol, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Stalking, Abandonment, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Chronic illness, Pedophilia, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

flavi's review

mysterious reflective slow-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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Blood, Cursing, Mental illness, Sexism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Misogyny, and Sexual assault

geophony's review against another edition

4.0

Still processing (it gets kind of confusing, especially towards the end) but I loved the writing style, I loved the first-person plural narration, and the motifs of stones and doors are really intriguing.

I think I like the confusion/surreality. It's the sort of book where I think I'd get a lot out of a re-read. I should have checked the content warnings before reading but that's on me!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Pregnancy and Suicide

miiikaaaylaaa's review

dark funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

I LOVED this book. Ate it right up! And then… the ending bombed for me. It started a little slow but picked up quickly during the middle. I was unsure of the plural first person perspective, but it quickly grew on me. I thought there were some very “quotable” discussions of girlhood - the good, the weird, the bad, and the ugly. Will definitely give it some time and revisit for a second read. The magical realism got a little too theoretical for me and I had to check Reddit/TikTok/GoodReads for some others’ opinions and analyses. Overall - it was good and I enjoyed it up to the very end. Don’t think I would recommend for most though!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Sexual content

Minor: Classism, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Pregnancy

lv00009's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Miscarriage, and Alcohol

annadrinksmilk's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

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

4.5

the amount of times i annotated “WHAT” “???” or “WHAT THE HELL” in this book really says a lot

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Gore and Alcohol

mzymcmln's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol and Death of parent

Minor: Pedophilia and Sexual assault