Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Quiet and the Loud by Helena Fox

3 reviews

transcendent's review

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.25

After loving Fox's debut and having it be my highest rated book for a good bit, I had some high hopes for The Quiet and the Loud however it felt like such a muddy, mish mash of different things the author wanted to state their contention on as quickly as they physically could. 

I genuinely despised the best friend in this book and felt like whatever message was being broadcast through her storyline (which was blurry at best) was overshadowed by her name taking up most of my page- ALTHOUGH I UNDERSTAND ITS SUPPOSED TO! I just don't think I'm meant to have this much disdain for a fictional pregnant person.
 
The general messages that were being put out were also so insane, like I had to remind myself if it was about the Australian government's lack of care for the climate, abortion rights/pregnancy rights, the harrowing subjects of domestic abuse/violence, family abuse/violence, addiction and how it's normalised in the context of the Australian home, being part of the LGBTQIA community as an adult and a youth

(?)(which. felt so performative at a certain point)

, being a POC in the protest space and the freaking class divide in Sydney.

I have no final thoughts I'm going to go watch a tv show to get rid of Tess's insane plotline out of my head. It will be a talking point over coffee with my friends. Like would I have enjoyed this book more without the best friend.... Yes, probably! I'm so mad.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Car accident, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

Minor: Animal cruelty and Physical abuse

elliott_the_clementine's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Physical abuse and Violence

Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence

telepathyjmin's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-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

5.0

An absolutely incredible book. I previously read her previous book "How it Feels to Float", and as soon as i found out about this being released, i know i had to read it. Helena's writing style never fails to amaze me. I loved seeing the character development over the course of this book.

As someone who has dealt with a parent who has been an alcoholic, seeing the relationship between George and her father hit very close to home and honestly made me tear up at times.

The way that George's emotions are described throughout the entirety of the book is incredible. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Alcohol

Moderate: Grief and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Car accident, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting