Reviews with content warning for Drug abuse - Infamous

I had to remind myself constantly that Eddie was 22 and not younger for the way she thought and acted, which could be chalked up to being sheltered and naive, but for her age it truly went far beyond any reasonable parameter. Which also gave me a strong ick for Nash I couldn’t shake. I wasn’t convinced of him as a love interest from the beginning, being married aside. His behaviorisms would be considered grooming and predatory as he takes full advantage of the power dynamic between himself and Eddie, which in the end was the whole reason of his character and very predictable—without going into too much detail—and I was not shocked at all by the ending considering the emotional, sexual, and drug abuse he inflicted upon Eddie continuously.

Lastly, I strongly suggest a trigger warning for themes of Sexual Assault, Emotional Abuse, and Drug Abuse be added to this book, and I’m deeply disappointed there isn’t already. I like to think I’m hard to shake despite my life experiences but I was deeply unsettled by these themes and how nonchalantly they were written out and shrugged off. These are very accurate and real depictions without any sort of warning to prospective readers.

Content Warnings

fictionalportal's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted tense medium-paced

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

4.0

A fun read for the most part, though the protagonist Eddie is very difficult to stick with after a point. It's worth mentioning a few major content warnings, since the tone of the book shifts very abruptly in the third act. Spoilers below.

The way Eddie speak to her love interest, Rose, is rather lacking in empathy and a touch manipulative at times, which makes it hard to get into their relationship at first. This dynamic does shift over the course of the book, fortunately. Early on, Eddie often says things like "You don't feel this way, do you?" rather than asking a straightforward question. I understand that she's relatively young, but her voice read more consistently like a sixteen year old than a twenty-two year old in terms of emotional maturity.

Massive content warning for multiple instances of non-consensual sexual advances and attempted sexual assault. There's also a very confusing sequence fueled by hallucinogenic mushrooms that really ruined the last part of the book for me. In short, the main character is coerced into doing shrooms, and then it's unclear whether she hallucinates being assaulted or if she's actually assaulted. Then she hallucinates the man who tried to assault her shooting someone who interfered during the incident. Tonally, it didn't fit at all with the rest of the book, and honestly it was a very upsetting turn for an otherwise very lighthearted and fun story.

Overall, I enjoyed this book up until the last 80 or so pages, including the lackluster epilogue. The book is very well written, the dialogue is compelling, and the characters have really strong voices, but it seemed like the author ran out of ideas for plot and needed to contrive a way to raise the stakes at the end. While there was character- and plot-based setup for the events that occurred in those last 80 pages, it didn't feel necessary to go that direction, and it really tarnished an otherwise very enjoyable read for me.

Content Warnings

celisabell's review against another edition

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challenging funny 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

Couldn't stop reading it. I loved both of Lex's novels.

Content Warnings

achingallover's review against another edition

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emotional funny fast-paced

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

2.5

Content Warnings

emmacat13's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted medium-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

5.0

Lex has hit out of the park again: I inhaled this book over two days. The writing is so funny, I felt so invested in the characters and the explorations of sexuality and gender felt so natural.
Lex once said of this book (I may be paraphrasing slightly) "if there's a choice between historical accuracy and a good joke, I'm going for the joke", personally I believe they make the right choice every time.

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