Reviews tagging 'Addiction'

Gold Diggers, by Sanjena Sathian

19 reviews

elykeepthefaith's review

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Every single piece of this book was well thought out and masterfully executed. When you start the book it feels like you several different stories are being told and then Sathian discreetly weaves all these different plot points together to create this emotional and raw telling of the immigrant story. The story dissects so many facets of the American Dream and what that means to the South Asian community. One of the things that really sets this book apart is the use of magical realism. If you are going into this book expecting a full blown fantasy, the magic element will not satisfy. The “alchemy” aspect of the book is a thread in the larger plot of the book. I loved it from begin to end!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Suicide

Moderate: Bullying and Gun violence

mandkips's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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: Suicide, Drug abuse, and Addiction

Moderate: Sexual content, Bullying, and Drug use

eli_is_trying's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Drug use, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, Addiction, Death, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Alcohol, Bullying, Misogyny, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Toxic friendship, and Physical abuse

kdrummonds's review against another edition

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Addiction, and Toxic relationship

anu_wil's review against another edition

funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Might be my favorite Desi diaspora book, with a perfect combination of comical wit and poignant analysis. I was biased by some interviews with the author in terms of what themes to look for, but seeing South Asian diaspora fiction go beyond the family and the past to roots that are simultaneously ours and not ours is a rare thing I hope to see more. And this is the first time I’ve seen a diaspora novel include mysticism and magic as an embraced part of our lives, rather than a silly falsehood to be rejected and scorned by the American-born second generation; it’s a welcome breath of fresh air

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Drug use

Moderate: Chronic illness and Addiction

abookandaspotoftea's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Grief, Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, and Toxic relationship

bites_of_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative mysterious reflective sad 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

4.0

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian took me by surprise. In this book we follow Neil (Neeraj) from his teenage years to his adulthood. As a child of immigrants he is feeling the pressure to succeed academically and make his family proud, their sacrifices "worth it". So, when he discovers that his neighbor, Anita, and her mom, are making a magical lemonade that grants ambition and the focus to succeed on whatever you put your mind to, he is hooked.
The book delves deep into the dark side of ambition, the way that immigrants, especially but not exclusively, can be pressured to achieve things whether we want to or not. A danger of being the best can mean that we lose our true selves in the process.
Overall a good representation of what a lot of immigrant children (and adults) face when trying to meet the ideals presented by a new country.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction

Moderate: Suicide

egmamaril's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Sexual content, Domestic abuse, and Racism

Minor: Infidelity

kinomatica's review against another edition

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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Drug abuse, Dysphoria, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Colonisation, Drug use, and Child death

Moderate: Addiction, Dementia, Eating disorder, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, and Grief

Minor: Gun violence

Spoiler

accidentally poisoning

kayteslibrary's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Addiction, Death, and Drug use

Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Eating disorder