Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

24 reviews

lmy612's review against another edition

lighthearted 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

Not my favourite by Ali Hazelwood and that’s a shame because I was so excited to read this!

MFC, Elsie, is the dumbest smart person out of all of Ali’s novels. She doesn’t speak up for herself. Ever. With anyone. She moulds herself into whoever she thinks the person she’s speaking with wants her to be—dates, her mother, best friend, mentor, coworkers, her students, random people she’s meeting for the first time. This is her personality and I guess her idea of survival mode in academia? But it is cringy to read. 

Elsie and MMC, Jack, have a major height difference which is such a common trope I’m beyond tired of it. She needs to crane her neck to look up at him. She needs to stand on her tippy toes and pull his face towards her to kiss. His pen!s pokes her in the stomach. She’s a small-average height woman and he’s a giant. We get it. 

Elsie’s interactions with her mother felt forced. Phone calls with and memories of mommy dearest are added sporadically throughout the book. Mom calls and expects Elsie to break up fights between her two older brothers—who are  adults. We never meet the mother or the brothers so, even though their  interactions give examples of Elsie putting up with a lot of garbage from a lot of people, they felt like unnecessary characters. 

Elsie and her best friend/roommate have an odd cheese obsession. This is focused on so much it is actually a character trait. Cheese is one of the few things they have in common, but they make it work. 

Elsie does grow throughout the book with Jack’s help. She starts to tell people what she thinks and how she feels which made me proud. One of Elsie‘s dislikes is her best friend ’s taste in movies. But even though Elsie starts voicing her opinions by the end of the book, in the epilogue she’s sitting through yet another movie she doesn’t  want to be watching. Furthermore, the person she’s watching this movie with told her earlier in the book that they would never watch her favourite movies with her ever again. So Elsie is expected to compromise for their tastes, but they won’t compromise their’s for her? Eww. No thank you

The ending was meh for me. It didn’t feel as climatic as it could have been. 

Sorry. This storyline and the characters just really weren’t for me.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Misogyny, Abandonment, Acephobia/Arophobia, Death of parent, Medical content, Outing, and Sexism

chasingpages1's review against another edition

emotional funny informative lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, and Medical content

Moderate: Outing, Death of parent, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Grief, Acephobia/Arophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Mental illness

Minor: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Ableism, Classism, Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Drug use

notmollie's review against another edition

funny lighthearted relaxing 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Cursing, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Gaslighting

Minor: Abandonment, Acephobia/Arophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, and Toxic relationship

geagleson9's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing

Moderate: Death of parent and Misogyny

Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia, Sexual harassment, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Alcohol, and Mental illness

eleek0609's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual content, Chronic illness, and Cursing

Minor: Misogyny, Drug use, and Alcohol

maggiekate's review against another edition

emotional funny relaxing 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol

Moderate: Chronic illness and Death of parent

av0universe's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring 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

4.5

Musically, I should hire a tuba to follow me around.

Elsie is so effortlessly hilarious, I love her. Also loved the Olive and Adam's cameo. Don't tell them that possibly I love this book more than I did theirs oops-

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Misogyny, Abandonment, Cursing, Sexual content, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Alcohol, Abandonment, Outing, and Mental illness

kimveach's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

5.0

Another great novel by Ali Hazelwood.  In the author's own words, this is "a love story set against the backdrop of academic politics."  It also talks clearly about the misery of a person with a Ph.D. trying to get a decent-paying job with benefits.

Once again, her books follow the standard romantic trope, but that is not what most of the book is about.  It's what makes her romance books stand out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Ableism, Medical content, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Chronic illness

Moderate: Death of parent

tigerkind's review

emotional inspiring lighthearted reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

I’ve previously been kind of “meh” about Hazelwood’s books but I feel like this might’ve been her best one yet. Likeable, relatable characters for the most part, a realistic story arc and actual real-life issues? Great stuff. Not amazing-life changing, but very solid. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Chronic illness, Vomit, Sexual content, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Classism, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Mental illness, and Alcohol

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Misogyny, Outing, Bullying, and Vomit

serendipity421's review against another edition

emotional informative lighthearted medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Misogyny, Alcohol, and Death of parent