Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Liar, Dreamer, Thief by Maria Dong

18 reviews

zedohee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional slow-paced

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

2.0

takes forever to get going (NEVER have i wanted a book to get to the point more in my life) and then once it does, shies away from the deranged intensity it teases—i was so curious and for that? deeply unserious—to give way to a convoluted, overstuffed, and unnecessarily dense read. why was i able to skip multiple chapters only to have the katrina in the exact same predicament all those pages forward. why was everyone but katrina either ornamental or an obnoxious parody. so many twists for twists sake when the narrative was already unspooling. there are a few moments where i could tell there was a carefully constructed story underneath the rambling but that version never quite materialized and definitely didn’t stick. a major let down that didn’t even have the nerve to be gay about it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Sexual assault and Toxic relationship

heydri's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Stalking, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Car accident

bookmarkie's review

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Stalking, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gaslighting

Minor: Racism, Confinement, and Vomit

curlyewe's review

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Mental illness, and Ableism

Minor: Stalking, Violence, Suicide, Cancer, Gun violence, and Kidnapping

femalewysteria's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness and Violence

asiamd's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book was absolutely INSANE but in an incredibly good way!! This is the second book I’ve read this month that was way out my comfort zone and I am once again happy that I decided to take the leap! The first part of this book will have you thinking you know who Katrina is and how this book is going to play out, but by the second half, you’re starting to be just as confused as her and I truly think that’s the best part of the book. If this was a movie, I’d have to compare to Gone Girl not because it’s about the same things but because the theme and feel of the book reminds me of it. 
The next thing I want to say is the portrayal of Katrina’s mental illness and how it was weaver into the story was actually incredible, I genuinely can’t explain it without giving spoilers but please read this book to find out. It’s the type of book that makes you want to reread it when you get to the end just so you can find all the clues that you missed in the beginning! Overall 10/10

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Medical content, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Violence, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Stalking

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Abandonment, and Gun violence

zombiezami's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

5.0

This was so amazingly written and constructed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Suicide attempt, Excrement, Blood, Mental illness, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Murder, Gaslighting, Grief, Stalking, and Suicide

Moderate: Abandonment, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Vomit, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Classism, and Gun violence

Minor: Car accident and Cancer

pisces1_1318's review

adventurous challenging dark 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

3.5

What did I just read? I don't know how I feel about this book. I agree with the other reviews on the first part of the book being slow. Once you get past the slow part it seems to go from 0 to 100 very quickly. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Mental illness

natalietan's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Blood, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Suicide, and Stalking

Minor: Car accident, Child death, Excrement, Cancer, and Sexual harassment

morethanmylupus's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

This book was so good. It’s billed as a thriller and it does have a thriller plot-line. However, what made me love this book was less about the plot and more about how Dong wrote Katrina’s character. Katrina shows elements of OCD as well as potentially some additional mental illnesses. I’m not a psychologist but this felt beautifully done to me. I loved reading her versions of the other world she sees overlaid over what’s around her. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness