Reviews with content warning for Forced institutionalization - White Trash Warlock

Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

White Trash Warlock by David R. Slayton

31 reviews

jareadforfilth's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense 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? No

4.5

I loved this book, the plot was great, the twists were good, the characters were so lovable and the pace was awesome! I’m excited to continue reading this series!! Narration wasn’t my fave but the story still shines

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gooseturnover's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad 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

4.0

Was not expecting the twist with Bobby and Tilla murdering the dad like that. Based off the end I don't think he stayed dead for long though...

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pvbobrien's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious 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

3.25

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wardenred's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Knowledge. Power. Asshole elves.

The thing I loved the most about this novel is the setting. The author pulls a lot from actual witchcraft traditions while adding plenty of inventive fantastical elements of his own making to weave a truly exciting world. I loved the entire spirit realm, the Reapers, the magical races, the way Tarot cards were baked into it, all the beauties and the dangers. Even if I didn't like any of the other things about the story, I would probably want to keep reading the series just to hang around this world some more.

Fortunately, I did like a lot of the other things, so continuing the series will be even more fun. :) Adam was a great character to follow: flawed but with an unshakable core of goodness, relatable, and generally interesting to be around. Pretty much everybody else in the main cast was great to spend time with, as well. I liked what a big role family played in the story, and how we got to see so many different family dynamics: Adam's family, Vic's family, the sibling relationship between the two elves, Argent and Silver, and their complicated bond with their father. It was also great to see how all these different characters interacted with each other and how their relationships evolved throughout the book. Also, I really liked Bobby's chapters—I feel like they added a lot to the flow of the narrative.

In terms of the plot, for the most part it was exciting and tense and I appreciated how the theme of humans being pawns in the immortals' grand long game was handled. I do feel, however, that the way the main puppeteer was revealed was... not ideal. That twist just came very much out of the left field; we haven't had a lot of time with that character, they weren't involved in the plot short of one vague scene far in the beginning, I don't know, it just didn't feel natural. Once the character's agenda was unveiled and their involvement in other parts of the Binders' family story became clearer, yes, I felt I could buy it. But I think there needed to be more lead-up to the initial twist.

One thing I wasn't a fan of was the love triangle, or rather, the storyline that kept trying to be a love triangle even though ti would have worked better if it was more, "here's my ex I'm letting go of while needing to work together for a common cause, and here's the new person I'm getting fond of." I can appreciate love triangles when they represent a broader choice the character has to make between two philosophies, two approaches to life, etc. This triangle kind of hints at being like that, but it doesn't work. If it was supposed to be a choice between the supernatural and the human, certain plot developments erased that possibility rather fast. If it was supposed to be a choice between doing one's duty and doing what's actually right, one look at Adam tells you it's never been a choice at all. So it felt kind of almost useless, just a way to add tension in the one part of the plot that mostly lacked it, because Vic is just... so good and clearly so good for Adam? Honestly, I really love how he just accepted Adam and his feelings for Adam with no drama, even in the middle of all the life-changing weirdness. But I've got to say that I love Silver, too, and I think I'll enjoy following his arc in the subsequent installments. I just like him for who he is, not as a part of any romantic entanglement.

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aplpaca's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious 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

4.5

Finally got around to reading this after getting it for Chrismas and super glad I did bc Bruh. Bruh. Bruh. Characters and their dynamics were really interesting to me. Pacing was really nice and had a good amount of mystery while still taking a lot of time to delve into "smaller" characterization and emotional-exploration scenes and stuff. One of the reveals at the end fucking floored me. I'm personally not the biggest fan of one of the major characters being a cop cause the treatment felt a bit copaganda-y to me, but I still enjoy the character and am interested in seeing where his stuff goes. Already ordered the rest of the series so I guess I'll just die for a bit until they get here. Bruh.

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zoeyzebra's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Generally kept me entertained, but I could have done without the copaganda, and sometimes the pacing vacillated between quite fast and rather slow.

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tkhenry99's review against another edition

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3.0

pretty much exactly what i was expecting—a silly little fantasy book with solidly mediocre writing. easy read in between more complex books.

some parts of this book gave me the ick but the dialogue was occasionally funny. all the relationships are very superficial and underdeveloped, but there’s a lot of potential with these characters. would be interested in reading the next book to see where things go.

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espiargrant's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I have mixed feelings about this book. I really enjoyed the premise and the world, and for the most part I liked the MC. However, there were several things that kept me from loving the book as much as I wanted to. I felt that Adam was far too wishy-washy with his feelings toward people; he was constantly going back and forth, loving and hating all of his family members, and not in a way that felt natural. Other characters were perhaps a bit underdeveloped, like Vic, Tilla, and Argent.

In terms of the plot, I liked where the story went, but it seemed like there were a lot of unnecessary detours (literally). There was a lot of driving/traveling back and forth between locations to the point where it became irritating and repetitive.

And then there was the queer romance, which was the main reason I wanted to read this.

A Love Triangle? WHY? IMO, this is something a book NEVER needs. And it seemed that Adam having 2 love interests only served to ruin the development of either relationship. Adam's relationship with Vic seemed quite forced, and developed way too quickly for me. Yet, I still preferred their relationship to Adam+Silver which just acted like an obstacle to Adam+Vic, though felt a bit more natural.

So in that regard I was disappointed, but the queer romance was still presented better than most that I've read, so I plan to continue the series because at this point I'm absolutely desperate for a book with a solid, happy romance between men. Hopefully the trilogy improves in the 2nd and 3rd books.

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waterwitch70's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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creativechaos's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

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