Reviews tagging 'Drug abuse'

The Merciless by Danielle Vega

4 reviews

bashsbooks's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.75

To be honest, The Merciless was not what I would call a great book. I started it three or four times before I finally committed to finishing it - and the only reason I felt compelled to do that is because I impulse-bought the entire series at Barnes & Noble six or so years ago. This is billed as a teen horror on par with Stephen King, which is a laughable comparison. The plot twists were predictable and boring, and not much actually happened, despite Vega's desperate attempts to make it seem like there was a lot going on. It was just a slog through a nothing burger. Also, gore and grossness alone don't make a piece of media good horror. They have to serve a particular theme or plot in an interesting way. This book had so much potential, too, in its premise - a teen mil brat moves to a new town and gets embroiled with religion? That's a great premise. But it was rushed and it was nothing. Disappointing.

I may eventually read the other three books... but only because they're sitting on my shelf collecting dust.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Vomit, Blood, and Death

Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Drug use, Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, and Animal death

-Graphic descriptions of insects (specifically cockroaches) -Religious trauma

anfabu_2002's review

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Toxic friendship, Physical abuse, Murder, Gore, Death, Cursing, and Blood

Moderate: Bullying and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Kidnapping, Drug abuse, and Drug use

ilaxaria's review

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Death, Toxic friendship, Physical abuse, Torture, Animal death, Alcohol, Violence, Animal cruelty, Religious bigotry, Blood, Gaslighting, Bullying, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Self harm, Drug abuse, and Vomit

Minor: Sexual harassment and Infidelity

maryshelleys's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

3.75

i can't remember any time where i was able to sit down with a book and read it front to back like i did with this book. i know it's just trashy mean girls like other reviewers have said, but i'll be damned (no pun intended) if i wasn't entertained from beginning to end.

there's a lot that could have been explored more and i'll admit that the plot was a bit messy, but since this is the first in a series, i'm willing to let that slide a little bit for the fact that i was entranced the entire time. i can't wait to get my hands on the rest of this series.

Spoiler

also, brooklyn having been possessed the whole time? it opens so many doors for the sequels, and i'm so excited to see where this goes!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Gore, and Torture

Moderate: Drug abuse

Minor: Animal death and Animal cruelty