Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

All The Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby

34 reviews

throwback682's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I read this on a recommendation from a friend and dove in without checking the trigger warnings first. YIKES. 

So I was not prepared for the subject matter. It was also copaganda which isn’t up my alley. 

That being said, the narrator was excellent. The plot was really solid, the subplots were also good. The main character’s romantic relationships (past and present) were my least favorite part I think. 

This is a murder mystery/crime drama/serial killer story but it’s also about racism in the South, grief, family stuff, religious trauma, and more. I think the writer is talented and smart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Slavery, Police brutality, Stalking, and Car accident

Minor: Sexual content, Excrement, and Vomit

The plot involves a sheriff’s department looking for a killer who

kidnaps, sexually abuses, and ritually murders

Black teenagers.

faeriegodmutha's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.25

I rather enjoy a Christ-haunted psychological terror type novel and this was very solid. Great writing,plot, setting.... Very unsettling but beautifully written!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

catsinbooks's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, and Mass/school shootings

reddeddy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Slavery, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation

veronnie10's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

carriepond's review against another edition

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.75

The main character in All the Sinners Bleed is Titus Crown, who left a career with the FBI to return home and become the first Black sheriff in his Virginia hometown. A year into his new gig, Titus and his deputies respond to a shooting at the local high school. The shooter, whom two of his deputies kill as he leaves the school, was the troubled older son of a high school friend of Titus. The ensuing investigation uncovers something much more sinister, and Titus soon finds himself tracking down a serial killer.

I will start this review with the disclaimer that I don't read a ton of thrillers. I usually find myself annoyed if the plot is too predictable, especially because thrillers are often so plot-driven. I enjoyed this one more than I usually like thrillers.

Things I liked: Cosby does an excellent job with Titus's character. Many of the other characters are a little one-dimensional, but Titus is the star and he is a star. This kept me engaged even when there were some things I was quibbling with while I was reading (see below). The story also drew me in-- some of it was so disturbing, but ultimately I had to know how things would play out. There were also multiple side plots that I thought Cosby did a good job tying in and tying up, and it was a nice breather from the more grotesque aspects of the main murder plotline. Cosby also does a good job integrating the larger social critique into the story itself. 

Things I didn't like as much: I felt like I never really had time to wonder what would happen, if that makes sense. Almost as soon as a clue would appear, Titus would instantly figure out its significance or spring into action to move to the next puzzle piece. I like when I read a mystery and I'm given time to chew on how pieces fit together and here I felt like the wind kept being taken out of my sails. Maybe that's what makes it a thriller versus a mystery?

Despite that issue, I read through this really fast and thought it was a great thriller experience. I think folks who read a lot of thrillers would love this one. Definitely be warned though-- there's a lot in here that isn't for the faint of heart.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Torture, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Police brutality and Death of parent

Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Mass/school shootings

megmccreery's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

5.0

This was so dark and twisted but so layered. Definitely not for the faint of heart. I loved it and was genuinely creeped out. I would love to see this turned into a movie.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Stalking, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders

afriduss's review against another edition

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism

tracie_mcd's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense 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

5.0

This was my favorite of his books! It really was a propulsive thriller from start to finish! It had me on the edge of my seat. While it was graphic (as I’ve seen it described in other reviews), it didn’t seem more graphic than was necessary to build the suspense and terror in the story.  It was definitely gritty, and SA Cosby is a master at setting up the tension in the atmosphere as the two story lines collided so expertly at the end of the book. He is masterful and just keeps getting better and better with every book!! Highly recommend!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Racial slurs, and Slavery

wytnie's review against another edition

Not writing the book off i want to try again at another time but i think i just started it at a bad time for me. Also there was a surprise content wise and i wish there had a been a trigger warning page before the book started

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Pedophilia, and Blood

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Cursing, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual violence, and Medical content

Minor: Mass/school shootings and Death of parent