Reviews tagging 'Drug abuse'

Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter

345 reviews

mcathreads's review against another edition

This is a very slow moving book with a lot of details.   Several women are tortured, raped and killed.  there was unnecessary repetition of related details.  This could have been a good book with 100+ fewer pages and a more deft hand with violence.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Stalking, and Murder

Moderate: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Grief

igroswell's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

So, to me, this was everything I want in a thriller. Never knew where it was going, plot twist after plot twist that I couldn’t predict. Absolutely fabulous writing. I loved the way the author described things, it really helped you picture what was going on. There are heavy themes in this book, and some of it very graphic. I definitely recommend reading the content warnings before starting it, but if you are okay with the content and love mysteries/thrillers, you’ll love this. It also presents strong female characters which I always love to see. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

Minor: Vomit and Dementia

juliaiversen's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Drug abuse

marisabenn's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

I typically don't like thrillers because I can guess everything right away. This one did a great job at revealing the killer right away, but growing the story and expanding the mystery. The last chapter felt a little bit rushed, but that's okay for a tense and thick story before. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

authorkristenelizabeth's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Wow. This was an experience. Listening to the audiobook was a whirlwind. I did not expect where everything was going - and that's good in my opinion. The twists and turns were done at just the right time. WARNING! This book is VERY graphic of its violent scenes. There is a lot to unpack emotionally throughout the entire novel. A small part of me was hoping for redemption and a more justice-like conclusion, but overall I'm satisfied with what transpired. It's a great book if you're into high-stakes true crime that happens in the moment.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

The content in this book is HEAVY. You need to be prepared for graphic descriptions of violence and body gore. There is a lot of emotions going on as well so if you're not ready to handle a whole lot of bad things, I would suggest not reading.

hannuhbookish's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

The story was compelling, but should’ve been trimmed down more. It was also much, much more gruesome and violent than I anticipated. Over and over and over. Could’ve done with less of that. I did come to really feel for the main characters, and it made me want to see how things ended for them.

This is not a light read. Take note of the trigger warnings and probably pick up something else if you aren’t prepared to feel a lot heavier.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

bookcucumber's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

marniecole's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

holycowmomma's review against another edition

dark 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

5.0

Oh crikey! This book neatly broke me. I had so many staying at the wall, WTF happened there moments. I had to keep having a break to watch people making biscuits on YouTube while I gathered myself and was reminded of the good mundane things in life. An absolute emotional rollercoaster for me. If you want your IBS to flare up and your nerves to be shredded, this is a book for you. 
Loved the characters and the plot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

alycejanine's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Torture

Moderate: Drug abuse