Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

The Stranger Times by Caimh McDonnell, C.K. McDonnell

10 reviews

thequiltyreader's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful mysterious 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

4.0

Although the villain and the overall plot felt a bit flat at times, the main characters were built well and I look forward to seeing them develop through the series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

natashaleighton_'s review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious 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

4.0

Weird, witty and hilariously addictive! The Stranger Times is a Neil Gaiman/Terry Pratchett-esque paranormal Fantasy that I had soo much fun reading. 

The prose was incredibly engaging with plenty of laugh out banter and the magic system was really intriguing. I loved the little newspaper articles that begin each chapter, an enjoyably immersive element that brought The Stranger Times newspaper (and employees) to life. 

The pacing was a bit slow at first but as we get further into the story (alternating between the shadowy dealings of our mysterious villain & protagonist Hannah as she embarks on her new job at The Stranger Times) the action and page-turning mystery really amps up. 

But it wasn’t just the action and intrigue that had me soo invested. I also really liked the cast of eccentric but loveable characters, each of whom had their own unique personalities, motivations and secrets that kept me fully invested and eager to know more about them. Especially Manny who, though not in very many scenes, was easily one of my favourite characters (along with Banecroft, Stella, Hannah and Grace.)

Though, I have to say for a book as humorous as this, I was rather impressed with the nuance and emotion that C.K. McDonnell skilfully weaves into the lives of soo many characters. Divorce, death, grief (and even the desperate attempts of a parent trying to save their child) all play a role in propelling the narrative and giving us a deeper understanding of what made each character tick. 

I genuinely loved every second and cannot believe it took me soo long the finally read this—it’s AMAZING! 

Overall, an incredibly strong series starter that has me super excited to read the rest of the series. If you love misfit-esque, found family dynamics and tons of humour with your mystery —then I highly recommend picking this up.

Also, a huge thank you to Transworld for the finished PB copy. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, and Alcohol

Moderate: Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Kidnapping

Minor: Cancer, Gun violence, Toxic relationship, and Murder

mondmaunz's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious 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? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Grief and Murder

sebsjazzclub's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism

Moderate: Terminal illness

ophycore's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Gun violence, Racism, Xenophobia, Police brutality, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Cancer, Drug use, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship

raichou's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious 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? No

4.0

Auf Empfehlung einer Freundin habe ich das Buch gelesen und wurde nicht enttäuscht. 

Die gesamte Geschichte ist sehr humorvoll geschrieben. Die Charaktere sind alle ein wenig stereotypisch und dramatisch, aber das macht sie auf eine Weise sehr sympathisch. 

Die Art wie das Übernatürliche in der Welt vorkommt, ist meine Meinung nach sehr realistisch. Die "normalen" Menschen würden durch drehen, wenn sie merken, dass es noch andere Wesen als sie selbst auf der Erde gibt. Da ist die beste Möglichkeit wirklich versteckt/verdeckt halten.

Alles in allem ein lustiger, sich selbst nicht zu ernst nehmeder Serienstart. Ich bin schon sehr gespannt auf den zweiten Teil und was dort noch alles offenbart wird.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood

tessamcevan's review against another edition

funny mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Kidnapping, and Alcohol

Minor: Cancer, Gun violence, Torture, Police brutality, Medical content, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

refrejarator's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

Very fun to read - comedy is definitely this author's forte.
Provided a spin on several fantasy creatures and myths - I'd love to learn more about this world! There's also a bunch of free short stories by C.K. available online which I'll definitely be reading.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism and Alcohol

Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Blood, and Police brutality

jemmabrown's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Gaslighting

abbuckley13's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I bought this book excited by the premise of the newspaper itself. but, after I started this book i was determined not to like it (i hate comedy that relies on it's 'britishness' as a selling point) but as the book went on i got completely hooked in by the plot. Stella was by far my favourite of the Stranger Times bunch.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide and Violence

Moderate: Alcoholism

Minor: Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Toxic relationship