Substance Addiction – Page 26 – Trigger Warning Database

The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo

The Ghost Bride by Yangsze Choo

Though ruled by British overlords, the Chinese of colonial Malaya still cling to ancient customs. And in the sleepy port town of Malacca, ghosts and superstitions abound.

Li Lan, the daughter of a genteel but bankrupt family, has few prospects. But fate intervenes when she receives an unusual proposal from the wealthy and powerful Lim family. They want her to become a ghost bride for the family’s only son, who recently died under mysterious circumstances. Rarely practiced, traditional ghost marriages are used to placate restless spirits. Such a union would guarantee Li Lan a home for the rest of her days, but at a terrible price.

After an ominous visit to the opulent Lim mansion, Li Lan finds herself haunted not only by her ghostly would-be suitor, but also by her desire for the Lims’ handsome new heir, Tian Bai. Night after night, she is drawn into the shadowy parallel world of the Chinese afterlife, with its ghost cities, paper funeral offerings, vengeful spirits, and monstrous bureaucracy—including the mysterious Er Lang, a charming but unpredictable guardian spirit. Li Lan must uncover the Lim family’s darkest secrets—and the truth about her own family—before she is trapped in this ghostly world forever.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Parental neglect
Drug addiction
Attempted suicide
Overdose
Death of a parent

Lead by Kylie Scott

Lead by Kylie Scott

As the lead singer of Stage Dive, Jimmy is used to getting whatever he wants, whenever he wants it, whether it’s booze, drugs, or women. However, when a PR disaster serves as a wake-up call about his life and lands him in rehab, he finds himself with Lena, a new assistant to keep him out of trouble.

Lena’s not willing to take any crap from the sexy rocker and is determined to keep their relationship completely professional, despite their sizzling chemistry. But when Jimmy pushes her too far and Lena leaves, he realizes that he may just have lost the best thing that ever happened to him.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Alcoholism & alcohol abuse
Substance addiction
Recreational drug use
Death of a parent

The Bird King by G Willow Wilson

The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson

Set in 1491 during the reign of the last sultanate in the Iberian peninsula, The Bird King is the story of Fatima, the only remaining Circassian concubine to the sultan, and her dearest friend Hassan, the palace mapmaker.

Hassan has a secret–he can draw maps of places he’s never seen and bend the shape of reality. When representatives of the newly formed Spanish monarchy arrive to negotiate the sultan’s surrender, Fatima befriends one of the women, not realizing that she will see Hassan’s gift as sorcery and a threat to Christian Spanish rule. With their freedoms at stake, what will Fatima risk to save Hassan and escape the palace walls?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Religious persecution
Homomisia
Alcoholism

The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager

The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager

Fifteen years ago, summer camper Emma Davis watched sleepily as her three cabin mates snuck out of their cabin in the dead of night. The last she–and anyone–saw of them was Vivian closing the cabin door behind her, hushing Emma with a finger pressed to her lips.

Now a rising star in the NYC art scene, Emma turns her past into paintings.. They catch the attention of Francesca Harris-White, the socialite and wealthy owner of the very same Camp Nightingale–and when Francesca implores Emma to return to the camp as a painting counselor, Emma sees an opportunity to find closure and move on… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Ableism & ableist language
Fatmisia & body shaming
Slut shaming
Statutory rape
Nonconsensual voyeurism
Alcohol consumption
Recreational drug use
Substance addiction
Anxiety attacks
Schizophreniform Disorder
Blood & physical depiction
Dead bodies
Hospital & forced institutionalization
Terminal cancer
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a friend
Death of a child
Death of a sister recounted
Murder & attempted murder
Drowning
Car accident recounted
Disappearance of a loved one
Graphic animal death recounted
Bullying

Dead to Her by Sarah Pinborough

Dead to Her by Sarah Pinborough

Marcie’s affair with Jason Maddox catapulted her into the world of the elite. Old money, old ties, old secrets. Marcie may have married into this world — but she’ll never be part of it.

Then Jason’s boss brings back a new wife from his trip to London. Young, attractive, reckless — nobody can take their eyes off Keisha. Including Marcie’s husband.

Some people would kill for the life Marcie has—what will she do to keep it?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Ableism & ableist language
Fatmisia & body shaming
Misogyny
Classism
Slut shaming
Sex work shaming
Rape (on-page)
Domestic abuse
Child abuse
Cheating recounted
Drug addiction
Nightmares
Suicide
Alcohol consumption
Pregnancy
Murder

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The very married man from the bar… who says the kiss was a terrible mistake but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise.

And then Louise bumps into Adele, who’s new to town and in need of a friend, but she also just happens to be married to David. As Louise is drawn into David and Adele’s orbit, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong, but Louise can’t guess how wrong―and how far a person might go to protect their marriage’s secrets.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Fatmisia & body shaming
Rape by coercion
Adult-minor relationship recounted
Domestic violence
Cheating
Abortion
Sleep disorder & night terrors
Substance addiction
Recreational drug use
Overdose
Alcohol consumption
Psychiatric hospital
Burns
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a wife
Death of a mother
Murder & attempted murder
Stalking
Fire recounted
Graphic animal death & death of a pet

Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth

Chosen Ones by Veronica Roth

A decade ago near Chicago, five teenagers defeated the otherworldly enemy known as the Dark One, whose reign of terror brought widespread destruction and death. The seemingly un-extraordinary teens—Sloane, Matt, Ines, Albie, and Esther—had been brought together by a clandestine government agency because one of them was fated to be the “Chosen One,” prophesized to save the world. With the goal achieved, humankind celebrated the victors and began to mourn their lost loved ones.

Ten years later, though the champions remain celebrities, the world has moved forward and a whole, younger generation doesn’t seem to recall the days of endless fear. But Sloane remembers. It’s impossible for her to forget when the paparazzi haunt her every step just as the Dark One still haunts her dreams. Unlike everyone else, she hasn’t moved on; she’s adrift—no direction, no goals, no purpose. On the eve of the Ten Year Celebration of Peace, a new trauma hits the Chosen: the death of one of their own. And when they gather for the funeral at the enshrined site of their triumph, they discover to their horror that the Dark One’s reign never really ended.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Nightmares
Suicide
Drug addiction
Overdose
Blood & gore depiction
Physical injuries
Death of a friend
Murder
Kidnapping & captivity

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Set in the small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the Depression, To Kill a Mockingbird follows three years in the life of 8-year-old Scout Finch, her brother, Jem, and their father, Atticus–three years punctuated by the arrest and eventual trial of a young black man accused of raping a white woman.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Racism & racial slurs
Rape
Substance addiction mentioned
Murder
Gun violence
Knife violence & stabbing
Animal death

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. When she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one in the journalism community is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now? Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband, David, has left her, and her career has stagnated. Regardless of why Evelyn has chosen her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career. Summoned to Evelyn’s Upper East… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Racism
Misogyny
Bimisia
Homomisia
Lesbomisia
Forced outing
Paedophilia
Rape & statutory rape
Sexual assault & harassment
Child abuse
Domestic abuse
Cheating
Alcoholism, secondary character
Drug use
Suicide & suicidal ideation
Abortion
Miscarriage mentioned
Physical injury
Hospitalisation
Terminal breast cancer
Grief & loss depiction
Death of a partner
Death of a child
Death of a friend
Death of parents in a car accident
Blackmail

Torn Away by Jennifer Brown

Torn Away by Jennifer Brown

Jersey Cameron has always loved a good storm. Watching the clouds roll in and the wind pick up. Smelling the electricity in the air. Dancing barefoot in the rain. She lives in the Midwest, after all, where the weather is sure to keep you guessing. Jersey knows what to do when the tornado sirens sound. But she never could have prepared for this.

When her town is devastated by a tornado, Jersey loses everything. As she struggles to overcome her grief, she’s sent to live with relatives she hardly knows-family who might as well be strangers. In an unfamiliar place, can Jersey discover that even on the darkest of days, there are some things no tornado can destroy?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

Child abandonment
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Panic attacks
Alcoholism mentioned
Death of a sibling
Death of a parent
Tornado, central theme