Tag Archives: Drug Use & Abuse

This page lists books that contain trigger warnings for the depiction of both recreational drug use and drug abuse.

See also Overdose and Alcohol consumption. For drug addiction, see Substance addiction and Alcoholism. For involuntary drug use, see Drugging

My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier

My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier

Seventeen-year-old Aussie Che Taylor loves his younger sister, Rosa. But he’s also certain that she’s a psychopath–clinically, threateningly, dangerously. Recently Rosa has been making trouble, hurting things. Che is the only one who knows; he’s the only one his sister trusts. Rosa is smart, talented, pretty, and very good at hiding what she is and the manipulation she’s capable of. Their parents, whose business takes the family from place to place, brush off the warning signs as Rosa’s -acting out.- Now that they have moved again–from Bangkok to New York City… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Alcohol consumption
  • Recreational drug use
  • Anaphylactic shock
  • Death of a pet guinea pig

Me by Elton John

Me: Elton John Official Autobiography by John Elton

Christened Reginald Dwight, he was a shy boy with Buddy Holly glasses who grew up in the London suburb of Pinner and dreamed of becoming a pop star. By the age of twenty-three, he was on his first tour of America, facing an astonished audience in his tight silver hotpants, bare legs, and a T-shirt with ROCK AND ROLL emblazoned across it in sequins. Elton John had arrived and the music world would never be the same again. His life has been full of drama, from the early rejection of his work with songwriting partner Bernie Taupin to spinning out of control as a chart-topping superstar; from half-heartedly trying to drown him… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Cheating
  • Domestic violence
  • Attempted suicide
  • Disordered eating
  • Alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption & abuse
  • Substance addiction
  • Drug use & abuse
  • AIDS/HIV epidemic
  • Prostate cancer

People Like Us by Dana Mele

People Like Us by Dana Mele

Kay Donovan may have skeletons in her closet, but the past is past, and she’s reinvented herself entirely. Now she’s a star soccer player whose group of gorgeous friends run their private school with effortless popularity and acerbic wit. But when a girl’s body is found in the lake, Kay’s carefully constructed life begins to topple. The dead girl has left Kay a computer-coded scavenger hunt, which, as it unravels, begins to implicate suspect after suspect, until Kay herself is in the crosshairs of a murder investigation… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism
  • Classism
  • Teacher-student relationship
  • Parent with depression mentioned
  • Suicide, recounted & on-page
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Recreational drug use & doping mentioned
  • Dead body
  • Death of a friend, recounted & on-page
  • Death of a brother recounted
  • Murder
  • Drowning
  • Death of a pet cat
  • Bullying

Burning Roses by SL Huang

Burning Roses by S.L. Huang

Rosa, also known as Red Riding Hood, is done with wolves and woods. Hou Yi the Archer is tired, and knows she’s past her prime. They would both rather just be retired, but that’s not what the world has ready for them. When deadly sunbirds begin to ravage the countryside, threatening everything they’ve both grown to love, the two must join forces. Now blessed and burdened with the hindsight of middle age, they begin a quest that’s a reckoning of sacrifices made and mistakes mourned, of choices and family and the quest for immortality. 

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Smoking
  • Starvation
  • Burn scars mentioned
  • Murder of a grandmother mentioned
  • Gun violence
  • Fire, on-page
  • Animal attack
  • Animal death

Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner 

Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner

When Cassie Klein goes to an off-campus bar to escape her school’s Family Weekend, she isn’t looking for a hookup—it just happens. Buying a drink for a stranger turns into what should be an uncomplicated, amazing one-night stand. But then the next morning rolls around and her friend drags her along to meet her mom—the hot, older woman Cassie slept with. Erin Bennett came to Family Weekend to get closer to her daughter, not have a one-night stand with a a college senior. In her defense, she hadn’t known Cassie was a student when they’d met. To make things worse, Erin’s daughter brings Cassie to breakfast the next… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Cheating recounted
  • Parent with alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Recreational drug use
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With or Without You by Caroline Leavitt

With or Without You by Caroline Leavitt

Stella is a nurse who has long suppressed her own needs and desires to nurture the dreams of her partner, Simon, the bass player for a rock band that has started to lose its edge. But when Stella gets unexpectedly ill and falls into a coma just as Simon is preparing to fly with his band to Los Angeles for a gig that could revive his career, Simon must learn the meaning of sacrifice, while Stella’s best friend, Libby, a doctor who treats Stella, must also make a difficult choice as the coma wears on. When Stella, at last, awakes from her two-month sleep, she emerges into a striking… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Anxiety
  • Dementia
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Drug abuse
  • Pregnancy
  • Hospitalisation
  • Stroke mentioned
  • Death of parents mentioned
  • Death of a sibling mentioned

Off Balance by Aileen Erin

Off Balance by Aileen Erin

Broken, beaten-down, and plagued by nightmares, Amihanna di Aetes is surrounded by the Aunare race that makes up the other half of her heritage, but she feels alien amongst them. She’s not sure which is worse: SpaceTech’s overt hatred of Aunare or the Aunare’s covert hatred of halfers. She hears their whispers whenever she enters a room and sees her death reflected in their eyes. Amihanna doesn’t know who to trust anymore, but she hasn’t survived this long by ignoring the warning signs all around her, especially when her instincts are screaming that a familiar choice is coming: flee or fight. Her parents assure… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Sexual assault recounted
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Drug use recounted
  • Emesis
  • Attempted kidnapping
  • Bombing

The Dark Club Pact by Alison Goodman

The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman

London, April 1812. On the eve of eighteen-year-old Lady Helen Wrexhall’s presentation to the queen, one of her family’s housemaids disappears-and Helen is drawn into the shadows of Regency London. There, she meets Lord Carlston, one of the few who can stop the perpetrators: a cabal of demons infiltrating every level of society. Dare she ask for his help, when his reputation is almost as black as his lingering eyes? And will her intelligence and headstrong curiosity wind up leading them into a death trap?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Misogyny (theme)
  • Slut-shaming
  • Sexual assault
  • Domestic & child abuse
  • Suicide
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Recreational drug use
  • Blood, gore and injury depiction including graphic dead bodies
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother recounted
  • Murder
  • Loss of autonomy (possession)
  • Drowning

Never Coming Home by Kate Williams

Never Coming Home by Kate Williams

Everyone knows Unknown Island—it’s the world’s most exclusive destination. Think white sand beaches, turquoise seas, and luxury accommodations. Plus, it’s invite-only, no one over twenty-one allowed, and it’s absolutely free. Who wouldn’t want to go? After launching with a showstopping viral marketing campaign, the whole world is watching as the mysterious resort opens its doors to the First Ten, the ten elite influencers specifically chosen to be the first to experience everything Unknown Island… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Ableism
  • Queermisia
  • Drug use
  • Overdose
  • Anaphylaxis, including death from good and bee sting allergies
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Poisoning
  • Suffocation
  • Stalking
  • Attempted murder of an animal

Yona of the Dawn, Vol. 20 by Mizuho Kusanagi

Yona of the Dawn, Vol. 20 by Mizuho Kusanagi

Princess Yona lives an ideal life as the only princess of her kingdom. Doted on by her father, the king, and protected by her faithful guard Hak, she cherishes the time spent with the man she loves, Su-won. But everything changes on her 16th birthday when tragedy strikes her family! Betrayal leads to Yona and Riri being abducted by the nation of Sei! Forced to work as slaves, the two stubbornly refuse to be controlled, but their situation is dire. In order to save Yona and Riri, Hak and the Four Dragons split into two groups and sneak into enemy territory!

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Slavery
  • Drug use & abuse
  • Substance addiction
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