Reviews tagging 'Toxic friendship'

The Collective by Alison Gaylin

10 reviews

sharkgirl45's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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: Murder, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Child death, and Grief

Moderate: Gaslighting, Gun violence, Gore, Rape, Panic attacks/disorders, and Pandemic/Epidemic

chasingpages1's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicide, Torture, Child death, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Grief, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Sexism, Death of parent, Medical content, Murder, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Car accident, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Self harm, Bullying, Gun violence, and Police brutality

esemple's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Toxic friendship, Rape, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Grief, Death, Car accident, Sexual assault, Child death, and Bullying

micaelamariem's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

This was a disappointing read. I had heard good things about it and it had such an interesting premise--mothers getting revenge. But the one thing I couldn't push past--and forgive the kindergarten language here--was how stupid the main character was. I get that for part of it, she was probably just in denial, but denial can only go so far. I don't expect main characters to make all the right decisions but oh my goodness, it seemed like the author expected us to be as dumb as the mc! Aside from one plot twist, the book was predictable and it was lacking in depth. I was expecting there to be some lesson on how to cope with grief or how to avoid becoming a monster when facing other monsters. But there was no lesson, no moral. The theme seemed to be that everyone sucks and nothing gets better. Also, the ending was just wholly unsatisfying. 
I will say however, in the beginning the themes of grief and loss were interesting and gave me hope to see that grow (too bad that hope was misplaced), the one plot twist had me lurching, and I liked the ties to Greek mythology

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Violence, Classism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Bullying, Cursing, and Sexism

Minor: Cancer and Racism

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective 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

i liked this book a lot until the plot twist and ending. the plot twist was not what i expected and felt a little misleading and anticlimactic. if not for that i think i would’ve enjoyed this much more. otherwise, i really liked the concept and the relationships between the characters! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Child death, Death, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Transphobia, Grief, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, and Violence

carrasreadsandthings's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

4.0

I've never read a Thriller before and I'm glad this was my first. Boy were there a lot of plot twists! I loved it and my head is spinning!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Drug use, Death, Murder, and Alcohol

Moderate: Trafficking, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Toxic friendship, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Bullying, Murder, Kidnapping, Transphobia, Torture, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Self harm, Rape, Gun violence, Grief, Drug use, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Gaslighting, Death, Car accident, Child death, Cancer, Blood, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Addiction, and Abandonment

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

What a ride! This book was such a whirlwind. I definitely did not expect the ending. It was mysterious, sad, and full of suspense. The premise of the book was new and different from most mystery/thrillers. I can imagine this scenario being real even as it seems so unrealistic. I can’t wait to read more by this author. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Car accident, Torture, Bullying, Child death, Rape, Suicide attempt, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Death, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Alcohol, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Stalking, and Suicidal thoughts

loafyn's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Violence

Moderate: Child death and Sexual assault

Minor: Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Transphobia

kimveach's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

4.25

This twisty story was a quick read.  I was surprised by the ending, which is always a bonus for a thriller.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, and Violence

hayleyvharrington's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Self harm, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic friendship, and Violence

Moderate: Car accident and Gun violence