Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Family of Liars by E. Lockhart

29 reviews

viselik's review against another edition

3.0

I much preferred We Were Liars but this one was alright I guess. All of the like bits I loved in We Were Liars was not in this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Drug abuse, Death, Murder, Medical trauma, Infidelity, Grief, and Drug use

fulltime_movieaddict's review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Addiction, Child death, Medical trauma, Murder, Rape, Sexual content, Transphobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, and Infidelity

books_hay's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Lesbophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Rape

_eleanorgreen8_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

4.25

I really enjoyed this book - much more than We Were Liars. It was a good holiday read and incredibly absorbing, but also pretty dark and troubling. E Lockhart's writing so skilfully conjures emotions and a sense of place, and the use of description and listing is so satisfying. I felt totally involved in the narrator's world, as her thoughts and emotions were constantly being expressed and explained. The one thing I liked less about the book was the plot twist at the end - I felt it didn't make sense and wasn't really necessary, though i guess it did add another layer to the story. Overall, this book was gripping and thought provoking and I definitely would recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Rape, and Grief

stitchbooks22's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

2.0

This was garbage, but still not the worst thing I’ve ever read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Body horror, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Medical content, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Child death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, and Sexual harassment

jenna_justi2004's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Racism, Antisemitism, Child death, Colonisation, Blood, Classism, Lesbophobia, Religious bigotry, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Cultural appropriation, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Toxic friendship

kccool12255's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Though I was a bit apprehensive about Carrie being the star of our story, I believe that this prequel absolutely lives up to the original novel. Cadence has a very unique voice, easy to follow along with, and Carrie’s has much of that same tone. I enjoyed the boys in the story

(except for Pfeff, of course)

. I love the plot, and didn’t expect any of the plot twists that came. I DO think that Bess could’ve been included more,

and the whole Pfeff-Penny-r*pe storyline made me uncomfortable . And sorry, but I don’t think that Penny’s bi (if she stuffed it down, fine, but I just don’t think it fits up with her character, sorry)

. Ending could’ve been better. Overall though, an amazing experience. 

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys the first book, and murder mysteries.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Child death, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Death, Sexual assault, Biphobia, and Infidelity

Minor: Cursing, Blood, and Vomit

corabookworm's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

I think I actually enjoyed this book a little more than the first, at times. The random bits of poetry were a bit distracting and unnecessary (the writing was prose-like enough already), but E. Lockhart is an amazing author who wrote this mysterious, drama-infused, family-focused story in a gorgeous way. I loved how this book talked about family, and some of the moments between them all (especially towards the end) were absolutely adorable. Highly recommend if you enjoyed the first one or any books like it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Sexual assault, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Body shaming and Murder

Minor: Child death, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Suicide, Rape, Homophobia, and Self harm

mororke's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child death, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Classism, Addiction, Murder, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Cursing

kibberbl's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Death, Drug abuse, Alcohol, and Grief

Moderate: Body shaming, Homophobia, and Misogyny

Minor: Slavery, Antisemitism, and Suicide