Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey

4 reviews

noraestelle's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Lately, I’ve been doing two things differently. I’ve been using a structured rating system to get my star count and I’ve been waiting a handful of days before rating/reviewing the book I’ve read. I feel like doing this helps me figure out if the book really impacted me/stuck with me. I’m able to get my thoughts in order. This book has passed the test. I’ve been thinking about it since I’ve finished it. I think it’s a wonderful look into what women had to go through in the past and how it sadly hasn’t changed much now. If someone ever doesn’t understand WHY women are so terrified daily, this is a perfect read for them. It’s like a coming of age story mixed with mystery with potentially very hard topics. The ending warmed my heart and I don’t know. I can’t put into enough words how special this book is! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

jadynnotsmith's review

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

The quarry…. Girls. Yes girls. Stupid stupid cops. Dumb dumb men cops. Cops in the 70’s EVEN WORSE. Wait small town men cops in the 70’s?! WAAh i can’t take this anymore!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

k1mar1e11's review

emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Kidnapping

Minor: Alcoholism

rosesofthespring's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I'm so happy that this was the book I started the new year with.

Jess Lourey writes with an anger that demands answers. Why are men allowed to act with violence in response to the same injuries that women are expected to swallow and smile through? Why are the hopes, futures, and very lives of girls an acceptable loss in the face of men's desires?

"Does that sound like the kind of guy who would abduct a girl?"

If your answer is no, what would it take to change it to a yes?

I didn't grow up in the 70s, when this book is set, but the echoes of a midwest girlhood resound through the decades. Parties you know you shouldn't go to. Friends pressured and stifled simultaneously, growing up way too fast. Men and boys who think you owe them something. This is an absolute powerhouse of fiction.

If I had one genuine criticism of this story, it would be that everything wraps up a little too cleanly. However, given what Lourey has been through in her life -and what she puts the reader through in her book- maybe that's a catharsis we both deserve.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Vomit, Trafficking, Stalking, and Gaslighting

Here I'll try to expand on cases where the content is explicit, but does not take up that much page space. With regards to pedophilia:

Adult men are revealed to be coercing underage girls into sexual contact. The youngest girl we see on-page is 16, but there's evidence of girls potentially as young as 12 being in the same situation.

With regards to police brutality:

The top cop in the area is essentially trafficking girls. He's found to be using the authority of the badge to trade sexual favors for expunging juvenile offenses. While this isn't "violent" in the sense of a physical attack, it's certainly sexual brutalization.