Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

44 reviews

memoirsofabooklover's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective fast-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

this was by far my favourite ali hazelwood book that i’ve read. i loved jack with my whole entire heart. i saw a lot of myself in elsie and her struggles internally. jack’s patience and unwavering need to see the real her and learn to say how she truly feels and ask for what she wants is the what we all really want in a partner. 
it brought up a lot (for me as well i’m sure it did for others too) who have been in relationships (romantic and otherwise) where they make themselves what they think others want them to be until we can’t tell who we are and what we want apart from who we pretend to be.
i hate insta love and miscommunication trope usually but jack’s unrequited love for elsie throughout the book had me in a choke hold, it didn’t feel cheesy it just felt right. the miscommunication was done well enough that it didn’t feel dumb as they usually are, there was some genuine reason behind it, that no one would have realised in that situation.
i also loved sole aroace rep, it’s the one of the most forgotten about members of the lgbtq+ community and even though there wasn’t much about it, because it wasn’t the main characters, i think it was handled really beautifully, not overly-dramatised or glossed over.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Cursing, Terminal illness, Outing, and Alcohol

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

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

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

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

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

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: Chronic illness, Cursing, and Sexual content

Moderate: Gaslighting

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

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: Cursing and Sexual content

Moderate: Misogyny and Death of parent

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

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

Minor: Drug use, Misogyny, 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: Chronic illness, Cursing, Misogyny, Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Moderate: Mental illness, Outing, Abandonment, and Alcohol

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

Moderate: Death of parent

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

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

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