Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Godshot by Chelsea Bieker

11 reviews

apriless's review

dark emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I only wanted to read this because I am from the area where the author set this story and grew up adjacent to before becoming involved in familiar religious circles.

Themes around true believers, gifts/acts of the spirit, girlhood, puberty, sexuality and assignments for women around long-suffering hit the hardest. The god glitter was a fun mention. There's this way that Lacey May does/does not engage the world that felt super familiar. She at once wants to feel chosen by those around her yet also "wanted a different world. One that did not exist." She is, afterall, a young girl, and I do not believe in any judgment against her for simply surviving. Sometimes you survive by seeking affirmations. Sometimes you survive by dreaming of new worlds. And sometimes too, you survive by making friends with the witchy, gothy women who lean into having been cast out from the beginning. I probably related too hard to be objective about anything, but I welcome this story in my own after-life where I try to make sense of my childhood from far away.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Grief, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

sarahholliday's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad 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

4.25

Godshot is one of those books that I can't say I enjoyed...but it's stuck with me, and I that can be more meaningful in the long run when it comes to stories.

If I had to describe the story in a single word, it'd be: BLEAK. A relentless study in just how gross and awful humans can be, there's also the added weight of climate change, broken-down familial relationships, and an oppressive sense of hopelessness. 

But that might be why the ending (I won't spoil anything here, don't worry) is so beautiful. There are no "easy" answers or perfect happily-ever-afters, but there is hope. Bieker forces readers to sit in the truly miserable, to face the realities experienced by so many, in order to point out the ability of love, kindness, and beauty to exist in the most unlikely of places. There's no sentimentality in that idea, either. Just a simple yet deeply-rooted conviction that things can be truly awful and occasionally wonderful all at the same time. 

This is definitely not a book for everyone, but it'll go on my recommendation list nevertheless and I'll be waiting to run across the right reader.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Incest, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol

supertaylormoon's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, and Alcohol

luberseed's review

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

eeeeva's review

challenging dark emotional sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Suicide, Excrement, Vomit, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

lycheejelly's review

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Grief, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Cancer, Cursing, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Car accident, Abortion, and Fire/Fire injury

mohradventurous's review

challenging dark emotional funny reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I don't think I've left a book this emotionally devastated since Room. Which is to say I loved it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Incest and Rape

whatskatiereading's review

medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, and Alcohol

rileyharrell's review

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

2.5

 WARN SOMEONE NEXT TIME...

Okay I did not NOT like this book, but I did not LIKE this book either. I am unsure about my feelings for this book. This story contains so many trigger warnings that I feel like it isn't the best forum here on Goodreads to even list them all. Anyways this has such a unique writing style that it took me a minute to get into. However, once I did, it went pretty smoothly. Some of the characters were hard to read and follow, so not really sure where their story went. I didn't feel that it was very character-driven or developed, and I felt that it wasn't necessarily plot-driven either? All of the characters, including Lacey May felt really underdeveloped and this book didn't really give them any room to grow. You could tell Bieker really wanted them to grown and definitely gave them an opportunity to do so, but it fell short in the writing of developed characters for sure.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

zookie_b's review

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

2.0

I’m sure there are people out there who would love this book, but I am not one of them. Mainly because I just don’t vibe with books that just torture girls for the whole time in the name of “character development.” This book is a certified bummer. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Alcohol

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Abandonment

Minor: Pedophilia, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, and Suicide attempt