Reviews tagging 'Drug abuse'

Suddenly a Murder by Lauren Muñoz

8 reviews

stitchbooks22's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

amief29's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.25

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Murder

Minor: Drug abuse and Alcohol

julienicole1106's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Deportation

teddie_valetine98's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

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

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Suicide, Murder, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Drug abuse and Infidelity

cboddie's review

mysterious medium-paced

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

3.0

9th & up

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, and Suicide

bekah1210's review against another edition

mysterious 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? Yes

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder

Moderate: Infidelity, Suicide, and Deportation

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, Death of parent, and Alcohol

vicwaltz's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious 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

4.25

A very fun, fast story! Similar in vibes to Five Survive but also entirely different. The seven teenagers are all so very teenaged and stupid but in the believable way that makes a reader want to throttle them but also tell them to sit down and have a cookie. Muñoz does an admirable job of creating seven distinct characters (more if you include the side characters) all with compelling friendships and situations. Our primary person, Isadora, is strikingly relatable and the more you learn about her the more you want her to be innocent (or maybe want her to be guilty, choosing violence is sometimes the way).

There are some pacing hiccups - the book starts slow but all the table setting pays off in the back half. Some of the characters really are annoying but again, they're teenagers and if I were also a teenager (the target demo for this) I think I wouldn't have noticed the annoyingness. If this is Muñoz's debut, I'm stoked to see where she goes. It takes a lot for a YA thriller to surprise me with an earned twist and this one definitely did.
--
Thanks to netgalley/Putnam for providing me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Deportation

Moderate: Drug abuse and Alcohol

It's a big plot twist but there is mention of an adult/minor relationship with the adult in a unquestionable position of power

starklinqs's review against another edition

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

4.0

Thank you to netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review! 

This book was a bit of a slow start for me but once it got started it was great! I think our cast of characters were likeable enough but in the way characters in Succession or The White Lotus or Knives Out are - they’re uber rich (save for our main!) and I don’t think I was really rooting for any of them, but I was also invested in their stories. While I figured out who committed the murder, I didn’t particularly love the end for that character? That and the dad reveal marked off a star for me personally, but overall this book was great! I had a fun time with this  murder mystery. 

I also adored the flashbacks. It gave us great insight into the characters and provided them their own POV (and motives). It was so much better than just hearing about them in their interviews or through Izzy’s eyes - this made the characters feel more fleshed out and helped me empathize with them each a bit more. I’d honestly love for more murder mysteries to work that way because it’s such a quick but effective way to make me more invested in an ensemble of characters. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Infidelity, Suicide, and Murder

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Drug abuse, and Drug use