Tag Archives: Mental Illness

Names for the Dawn by CL Beaumont

Names for the Dawn by C.L. Beaumont

Seasoned Park Ranger Will Avery has found his home in the Denali wilderness, cherishing his solitary routines for the decade leading up to 1991. The trade-off that no one knows of his identity as a transgender man feels worth it for the comforting assurance he finds in the towering glaciers. Until Will discovers an unexpected passenger in his truck—the visiting wolf biologist everyone in the Park is ecstatic to meet—Nikhil Rajawat. Nikhil doesn’t return his new colleagues’ fervour. He’s dreamt of Denali for one reason: the pinnacle of his research, and it isn’t anyone’s business that this is the last year he’ll get to chase the wolves. He… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Homomisia discussed
  • Transmisia recounted*
  • Familial estrangement & disownment*
  • Physical child abuse recounted*
  • Anxiety & panic attacks
  • Insomnia
  • Nightmare
  • Parent with alcoholism recounted
  • Recovery from substance addiction including an off-page relapse
  • Suicidal ideation recounted
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Pregnancy & childbirth mentioned (sc)
  • Weight loss mentioned
  • Gender dysphoria & body dysmorphia
  • Scars from top surgery mentioned
  • Gun violence*
  • Bullying
  • Animal death, including a wolf cub & death of a pet dog

*Context : When the protagonist came out to his father, his father shot a gun at the barn near him. He has wondered for years if it was intentional or an accident. As a child, the protagonist’s mother physically abused him and burnt him with cigarettes.

Something Wild and Wonderful by Anita Kelly

Something Wild and Wonderful by Anita Kelly

When Alexei Lebedev finally comes out to his conservative community, it does not go well. That’s how he ended up on the rugged Pacific Crest Trail, hoping he can figure out a new life plan in the thousands of miles it’ll take to walk the famed hike. He’s prepared for rattlesnakes, blisters, and months of solitude. What he’s not prepared for is the ray of sunshine named Ben Caravalho. Charismatic and outgoing, Ben’s personality and infectious laughter are a stark opposite of Alexei’s quiet, reserved demeanour. But no matter how determined Alexei is to hike the trail alone, it seems he and Ben can’t avoid… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Homomisia & homomisic slurs
  • Familial estrangement due to religious-based queermisia
  • Coming out recounted
  • Emotionally abusive relationship recounted
  • Social anxiety
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death of an aunt from Alzheimer’s Disease

Sweet Sacrifice by Sav Miller

Sweet Sacrifice by Sav R. Miller

Fiona Ivers has been in love with her brother’s best friend since she was a kid. He’s older and oblivious to her existence—which only makes her want him more. She’s always believed he was disinterested until a charity gala pushes them together. There, she realizes maybe he pays more attention than he’s ever let on. Broody, tattooed loner Boyd Kelly has a low tolerance for distractions and has no issues letting those around him know. His best friend’s younger sister doesn’t seem to care, though. Each time the high-strung… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Human & sex trafficking
  • Parental infidelity
  • Sexual assault
  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Drug abuse
  • Hospitalisation for anaphylaxis (deliberate self-exposure)
  • Parent with chronic illness
  • Death of a mother
  • Murder
  • Torture
  • Organised crime

Little Lies by Helena Hunting

Little Lies by H. Hunting

I don’t want you. You mean nothing to me. I never loved you. I turned my words into swords. And I cut her down. Shoved the blade in and watched her fall. I said I’d never hurt her, and I did. Years later, I’m faced with all the little lies, the untruths, the false realities, the damage I inflicted, when all I wanted was to indulge my obsession. Lavender Waters is the princess in the tower. Even her name is the thing fairy tales are made of. I used to be the one who saved her. Over and over again. But I don’t want to save her anymore. I just want to pretend the lies are still the truth.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Anxiety & panic attacks
  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) & trauma
  • Self-harm
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Attempted kidnapping of a child recounted

Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield

Aftertime by Sophie Littlefield

Awakening in a bleak landscape, Cass Dollar vaguely recalls enduring something terrible. Having no idea how many days—or weeks—have passed, she slowly realizes the horrifying truth: her daughter, Ruthie, has vanished. And with her, nearly all of civilization. Instead of winding through the once-lush hills, the roads today see only cannibalistic Beaters—people turned hungry for human flesh by a government experiment gone wrong. In a broken, barren California, Cass will undergo a harrowing quest to get Ruthie back. Few people trust an outsider—much less one who bears the telltale scars of a Beater attack—but she finds safety… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Substance addiction recovery

Solitaire by Alice Oseman

Solitaire by Alice Oseman

In case you’re wondering, this is not a love story. My name is Tori Spring. I like to sleep and I like to blog. Last year – before all that stuff with Charlie and before I had to face the harsh realities of A-Levels and university applications and the fact that one day I really will have to start talking to people – I had friends. Things were very different, I guess, but that’s all over now. Now there’s Solitaire. And Michael Holden. I don’t know what Solitaire are trying to do, and I don’t care about Michael Holden. I really don’t.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Suicidal ideation
  • Suicide & attempted suicide, on- & off-page
  • Self-harm, on- & off-page
  • Depression
  • Eating disorder (anorexia)

Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu

Stars and Smoke by Marie Lu

Meet Winter Young – International pop sensation, with a voice like velvet and looks that could kill. His star power has smashed records, selling out stadiums from LA to London. His rabid fans would move heaven and earth for even a glimpse of him – just imagine what they’d do to become his latest fling. Meet Sydney Cossette – Part of an elite covert ops group, Sydney joined their ranks as their youngest spy with plans to become the best agent they’ve ever had. An ice queen with moves as dangerous as her comebacks, Sydney picks up languages just as quickly as she breaks… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Physical child abuse
  • Parent with alcoholism
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Dismemberment
  • Murder
  • Death of a mother recounted
  • Graphic death from poisoning
  • Gun & knife violence
  • Kidnapping

The Headmaster’s List by Melissa de la Cruz

The Headmaster’s List by Melissa de la Cruz

One of them was driving. One of them was high. One of them screamed. And one of them died. When fifteen-year-old Chris Moore is tragically killed in a car crash, Argyle Prep is full of questions. Who was at the wheel? And more importantly, who was at fault? Eighteen-year-old Spencer Sandoval wishes she knew. As rumours swirl that her ex, Ethan, was the driver that fateful night, she can’t bring herself to defend him. And their messy breakup has nothing to do with it – she can’t remember anything from that night, not even what put her in that car with Ethan, Chris, and Tabby Hill, the… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Cheating*
  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Drugging (‘roofie’)
  • Medicinal and recreational drug use & abuse discussed
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Gun violence
  • Kidnapping
  • Car accident (theme)

*Context : A narrrator catchers her boyfriend cheating on her.

Beautiful Mess by Claire Christian

Beautiful Mess by Claire Christian

Since Ava lost Kelly, things haven’t been going so well. Even before she gets thrown out of school for shouting at the principal, there’s the simmering rage and all the weird destructive choices. The only thing going right for Ava is her job at Magic Kebab. Which is where she meets Gideon. Skinny, shy, anxious Gideon. A mad poet and collector of vinyl records with an aversion to social media. He lives in his head. She lives in her grief. The only people who can help them move on with their lives are each other.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Suicide & attempted suicide
  • Self-harm recounted
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a friend recounted

The Fashion Committee by Susan Juby

The Fashion Committee by Susan Juby

What if one contest could change the course of your entire life? Charlie Dean is a style-obsessed girl who eats, sleeps, and breathes fashion. John Thomas-Smith is a boy who forges metal sculptures in his garage and couldn’t care less about clothes. Both are gunning for a scholarship to the private art high school that could make all their dreams come true. And whoever wins the fashion competition will win the scholarship.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings

  • Domestic violence
  • Cheating
  • Substance addiction