Reviews with content warning for Alcoholism - Arctic Sun

Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Arctic Sun by Annabeth Albert

7 reviews

lost_windsock's review against another edition

emotional 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

5.0

This book started out a little rough for me. I didn't love how quickly River seemed to have decided to go after Griffin, and I didn't like how Griffin was instantly attracted to River, ready to give in without much resistance. It felt really scripted and stereotypical. But as the book went on, they really developed such a deep connection and bared so much of their souls to one another, I did a complete turn around. I loved how River could get Griff to open up, to have some fun. And I loved how Griffin gave River that safe space to be able to be himself. There were definitely some issues that both of them needed to work through, but that needed to be part of their journey, too. Overall, this book ended up being really hard to put down, and I really enjoyed the emotional twists and turns in it.

Content Warnings

piperclover's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective slow-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

3.25

I'm not sure what went wrong with this for me because it hits all of the different plot beats and characterizations that I usually live for but it just fell flat for me. I can't name exactly what didn't work because when I think about the individual parts they all worked separately but for some reason when listening to the book together I just didn't care that much.

I really really enjoyed how Griffin and River have different personal health problems but they can understand each other because they are in similar situations. I like that they're not the same background and they're not even similar backgrounds but that they have similar experiences and emotions because of their different backgrounds that they can empathize with and ruminate on together anyway.

They both have good personal growth but River's is more impactable for me because it was about surrounding yourself with better people and acknowledging that his

Spoiler

eating disorder was not being handled they way he pretended in part because these friends were constantly dragging him down. Griffin struggles with his alcoholism were well done and I did enjoy that he spoke about how he thought he was recovered but its actually a process.

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I think that possibly in a different mental state or with a different set of favorite tropes, this could be somebody's 5 star and be absolutely great.

Content Warnings