I was enticed by the promise of the glitz and glam of the characters and their lives, but unfortunately this book just wasn't doing anything new within the genre.

Unfortunately I no longer wish to review this book as the first few chapters did not reel me in. Thank you for the opportunity.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

I couldn't really gel with this book. I didn't overly like any of the characters and wasn't invested in the story. The premise was interesting but unfortunately it didn't live up to expectations.

Lads. Fuckboys. Dudebros.
You know the guys I mean.
The ones who think getting drunk and talking about the girls they’re going to sleep with are enough to replace a personality.
Try to talk to them about something else, I dare you. I can already tell you now, that you’re not going to get much of an answer.
Whilst Toxic could’ve been a timely examination of ‘lad culture’, toxic masculinity and all of the horrors that it entails, it devolved into something that wouldn’t have looked out of place on an episode of The Inbetweeners.
I mean, sorry but you can’t given the Freudian excuse that a guy is a misogynistic, homophobic arsehole just because his dad is. My dad is one too, and you don’t see me acting like that.
It worked for Jay, it won’t for this.
Hope, the supposed focus of our story and our eyes into the raucous, sex-obsessed (despite none of them actually getting any ooooOH) shenanigans of a lads’ holiday (which were, to be honest, not much different to the girls’ holidays I’ve been on) and the group dynamic. She was a cool chick - a drinking, fun-loving protagonist who actually resembled a real teenager.
These girls who still call their parents ‘Mummy’ and ‘Daddy’ have nothing on her.
But unfortunately, what should have been Hope’s tale about the ever-present dangers of boozy nights out when your friends fuck off and don’t look after you (I hate people that do this, seriously) suddenly changed point-of-view into the one of her ex-boyfriend.
Let me spell this out right now, for those who might not get it: Hope should have been the one to tell her story about her potential sexual assault, its aftermath, and the trauma that comes just with the worry and the not knowing. It shouldn’t have been told through the eyes of some dude who didn’t even realise that leaving her alone in some town they didn’t know wasn’t something he should have done.
I mean, seriously?
And, then (then!), to make matters worse and really hammer home the fact that this book was going to be a 1* read, a novel that initially was about topics like lad culture, sexual assault and toxic masculinity that, now more than ever, need to be talked about, randomly turned into one about a random girl posting fan fiction on Live Journal.
You couldn’t make it up.
I mean, the author did, but anyway.
I know so many lads, I have been on so many of these boozy holidays, dealt over and over again with these kinds of situations and I know, for a fact, that nearly every other girl in my life has dealt with them too. Toxic tried to reflect the culture in the UK that is so damn recognisable to 99.9% of 17-25 year-olds (an age group that is wilfully ignored again and again by authors and the publishing industry as a whole) and it managed to fall at every damn hurdle. This should have been a vital piece of literature and yet…

This is such a good novel about Hope who is excited to be going on holiday with some of her best mates – she’s been given honorary ‘lad’ status and couldn’t be happier. The first couple of days are everything she wishes for but then things take a darker turn at a party. Hope tries to kiss her ex and he rejects her, she then gets very drunk and the next thing she knows she’s waking up on a beach the following morning. The novel is told in three sections, each with a different narrator. The first is really fun and summery as we follow this group of friends on holiday. The second is when dealing with the fall out of what happened to each of them on the night of the big party. The final section looks at the aftermath and really deals with some tough issues. The novel as a whole is really good. It’s about mental health, toxic masculinity and how tough it is to be a teen. I recommend this one.

I really loved this book. Nicci Cloke's books are always really easy to read and keep me engaged and this was no exception.

This book was unfortunately just not right for me. I didn't like the characters or the storyline. Maybe it was aimed at a younger audience? Although some of the jokes and punchlines are probably suited to atleast the 16+ audience.

I did not like this story, or any of the characters. It just didn't work for me unfortunately. Not sure if I'll read anything further from this author.

This book was not what I expected at all. From the synopsis, this sounds like a mystery trying to uncover what happened to Hope after she wakes up on the beach while on a 'lads holiday' with no recollection of how she got there. However, there is a lot more to this book.

It's split into three sections, each with a different narrator. The first follows this holiday that Hope goes on with her male friends, including ex-boyfriend Logan. This was a really fun storyline that really got me in the summer mood and made me want to go on holiday. It also featured the mystery aspect of what happened to Hope, as well as another mystery that is revealed throughout the book.

The second section focuses more on the aftermath of the holiday and how friendships have changed due to the events that took place. There are a lot of important topics covered in this section, most prominently mental health and asking for help. This was an incredibly important section and one that I found really struck a chord with me.

The third section very much relates to the title of the book. This section really draws attention to toxic friendships, but it also deals with topics such as homophobia and sexual abuse. This is not the light and fluffy read the cover might lead you to believe, it deals with some really hard hitting stuff and this final section does go to some quite dark places.

While I did generally enjoy this book, some aspects didn't quite meet my expectations. The characters were all pretty average and I didn't have a strong connection with any of them. I also found the mystery aspect to be anti-climactic and not really necessary to the story, other than to emphasise how awful certain characters were. I also found that the three sections, though not set out as three separate sections, were very distinct in their separation and so the story didn't flow as well as it could have. On top of that, things did start to drag a little towards the end and I found myself getting a bit bored.

Overall, this is a good book with many layers to it. It deals with some difficult, hard-hitting topics, but important topics that need to be discussed. These topics were, I feel, handled sensitively and written well. Though there were aspects I found disappointing and I was bored at points, the main themes of each section were interesting and engaging for the most part. It was not at all what I was expecting, and definitely not the story the cover would suggest, but I did enjoy it and would recommend it to those who like darker contemporaries with a bit of summer fun thrown in.

I think, as a 68 year old woman, who's is not easily shocked, that this young adult book , was not really the right demographic for me to read!!
It concerns some teenagers, who after their A/S level exams, g on a sun, sand and sea break. 4 boys, and one girl, who counts as a honorary boy, go and then the" fun starts" Drunken flings with the opposite sea, too much drink, and some drug taking shocked this grandmother (me) to death. Everything is so matter of fact, and nothing seems to shock the teenagers, until one girl, who wasn't with them, vanishes on a boat trip where lots of booze, and worse is freely available., is found i
Then the honorary "boy" who is a girl, is found after spending all night on a beach, with her clothes and underwear disturbed, and cannot remember what has happened to her!
When they return home for their exam results, various feuds over boys, girls, and general attitudes ensue, and the explanations are not really very plausible.
However, to her credit the author does redeem some of the characters, some of whom are believable, and some of whom are one-dimensional, and not very believable..
Probably intended for the seemingly unshockable teenage, and young adult market. Thank you to Net Galley, and the publisher for allowing me to read this novel.

Very mixed feelings about this one. The handling of issues such as homophobia, date rape and depression was quite sensitive and of course, these are issues many young adults will face, either directly or indirectly so it should be a good book to recommend. However, the time-span was too unrealistic for me - somehow one holiday just couldn't trigger such a roller-coaster of events in such a short space of time among a group of friends who had known each other for so long.
Whilst keen to recommend books that young adults, including the wildest of party-goers, can relate to, I felt the party nights out were presented in too frivolous a manner and I feel recommending this reading would be somehow saying this extreme drinking was okay.
Although this might have appeal for some young adult readers, it isn't a book I would highly recommend.

This book was very good, i really enjoyed the pace and the plot. Great summer read and would reccomend it for holiday.

I was so eager to finish this book and find out what happened.

Since I received a digital arc of it, it wasn't clear when the characters perspectives changed from Paige, to Logan, to Daisy. But thanks to reading other reviews I knew it was to come so looked out for the change in tone and so on.

No matter what it looks like this isn't your light summer read.

Paige joins her guy friends including her ex boyfriend on their "lad's holiday". It's all fun and games until Paige wakes up alone on the beach, her skirt up around her waist.

We then see the aftermath of the events on holiday and later on as well. One of the guys suffers from depression, one of them comes out, others are keeping secrets, one is so focused on how he looks in front of others he'd be willing to sacrifice his friendships. There's a lot that happens.

I enjoyed reading it but wished it delved more into Paige's character and what truly went down that night but I guess this type of read is meant to leave questions and not everything in life gets an answer in the end.

I did like when it switched to Logan's perspective and then Daisy's. I liked the tight friendships and support they all had. (Minus from that one person).

But yeah, I think from this I'd definitely go on to read the authors other books.

I found it difficult to give a rating to this book. Especially because I am limited with 5 scores. This book for me is a 7/10 or 3.5/5, I must say this first.

Cloke's writing is definitely enjoyable, this is not one of that disposable young adult novels, there's something to take away and remember about this story. However I think it could have been better.

The book is a timeline of events, divided in 3 chapters. Told first from Hope's perspective, then her ex-boyfriend Logan's, and finally Logan's new girlfriend Daisy's.

I absolutely enjoyed the Hope's section, which was nearly half of the book, and I wish this book was just told from her POV or at least was switching through them one by one continuously, rather than giving them a whole slice of chapter. Because Hope is the most well built character in this story, the reader can't help to feel disappointed about not going back to Hope's feelings and her view point.

The story is not only about toxic friendships, it's also about the toxicity in the community we live in, which pushes the young people to behave in certain ways. From depression to binge drinking, consent to rape, the books talks about a lot of things. I wasn't crazy about the ending, it became a bit too didactic after one point. That's why I cut it down to 3.5 and rounding up in 3. Would read Nicci Cloke again.

Initially I found this book to be faintly reminiscent of Colin Butt's "Is Harry On The Boat?" just told from the tourists perspective. It took me back to my first parent-free holiday and the antics that my friends and I got up to - the difference being that we always stuck together. As the points of view change throughout the book and the truth of what really happened on the holiday is revealed, you realise that this book goes a lot deeper than the initial chapters suggest, and you come to see that each of the characters was left with something far worse than a hangover after the fated boat party.

Covering topics such as depression and homophobia in teenage boys, and the question of consent and the placing of blame on intoxicated girls, this book has a much darker message than the light-hearted holiday romp that I first thought it would be. These subjects are handled well, and I think this books serves as a strong message for teenagers who are just stepping towards adulthood.

Depression, teenage drinking and abuse; some heavy topics converge in Toxic, a novel by Nicci Cloke that could have been the ultimate YA summer read, but just wasn’t.

Again, this was one of those cases where my expectations not only didn’t meet reality, but weren’t even close. Based on the blurb I thought there will be some mystery surrounding the unfortunate events that befell poor Hope who went on a “lad’s holiday” and got thoroughly fucked up. But no, sir!

Toxic is basically a collection of three stories involving Hope, Logan and Daisy, that blur into each other through the characters’ slightly messed up relationship to one another.

The only reason why I don’t think Toxic is a complete waste of space and time is because it touches upon some important topics that are relatable whether you are a teenager, like our main characters, an adult, or a parent of a teen. Is getting hammered really the best way to have a good time? If you can’t talk to your best friend about personal stuff, is he really your best friend? What if the worst bully in your life is not an asshole from school, but one of your parents? What is consent?

For Hope, Logan, Zack and the other guys in this story having a good time means getting absolutely smashed, often to the point of passing out. If nobody puked their guts out during a party, the night was not successful. I’m not sure where this idea comes from, but I must say, I encountered this sort of opinion way more often ever since I moved to England. The amount of people who considers getting stupid drunk a success and are actually proud of it are just alarmingly high, and I’m not talking about only teenagers, but some of my colleagues also share this sentiment. Mind boggling, really…

After one of these parties poor Hope ends up on the beach, completely alone. What happened to her? She has no clue, and her “friends” are no help either, simply because they abandoned her. Some friends, eh? The mystery is never solved, and it’s up to her to come to terms with it. Tough titties, but so often in life this is just how things are. It’s up to you to learn from your mistakes.

If you are still confused whether I actually liked this book or not, you are not alone. On one hand, the stories could have carried more power if they hadn’t gotten lost into tiny details, like for example the very detailed list of alcoholic drinks these kids guzzled down on a daily basis was quite unnecessary, or shit like having to spend some time trying to figure out what were text messages between characters and what are only their personal thoughts, because there was no indication of who’s texting, and it got a bit too much when they were on the group chat. Like, maybe using italics would help. No? But on the other hand, I think Nicci Cloke managed to capture the essence of being a teenager very well. You know, the classic “I have no idea what I’m doing but I won’t ask for help, because reasons“. We’ve all been there.

Depression, attempted rape and how some people treat gay people were handled really well, and yay for the author for not falling into the trap we’ve probably all seen, where mental illness is magically cured, or the bully suddenly turns into a nice guy just because happy endings are cute. Just like in real life, some characters will remain assholes and refuse to see just how wrong they are, and make friends with other assholes who validate their opinions, some will learn how to live with some shit that happened to them, while others will realize there’s no harm in being honest with the people who are there to help them.

While this book was far from being wow, there are some great messages hidden under all that rabble, and considering how short it is, you might just want to give it a try.

Cover suggests this is a trashy beach read but it's actually anything but! Multiple viewpoints don't really gel which makes for a slightly unsatisfying story arc, tho it is always compelling & characterisation is strong. A thought-provoking read.

"Toxic" is the story of Hope who has been made an honorary lad in order to be permitted to travel with friends on holiday. She is not just with a group of male friends but her ex- boyfriend Logan is present too. In the beginning everything is as she had both hoped and expected - long lazy days spent in the sun and lounging by the swimming pool, long drunken conversations, and reconnection with Logan. However, after having attended a party on a boat, Hope is awoken by two complete strangers on the beach and cannot remember anything about what had happened to her. What exactly has occurred and why isn't one of the boys with her to check she is okay? Does this absence mean that they know what happened to her or that they were responsible for it themselves somehow?

From what I can gather there are many people who have mistaken this for a light summery read, especially due to the cover art being of a woman floating on an inflatable in the pool. It is far from a throwaway read though as it broaches important subjects such as sexual assault, homophobia and depression to name but a few. The bulk of the story, however, focuses on toxic masculinity. It explores this topic in remarkable depth and breaks down some of the lads identifiable behaviours as contributing to the "lad culture" and talks about rape culture too. Although it did become a little heavy it does discuss important and timely topics and does so in a brave and fearless way, which I admired.

All in all, the messages here are essential and timely ones and I feel we are underestimating the effect this toxicity has on our lives and how men should be the first ones to recognise when they are heading down this damaging road. We still need to encourage men to talk more and to know that it isn't something to get embarrassed about. This is the only way we will move forward and make significant progress but we still have a very long way to go it appears. I haven't read another book that explores toxic masculinity so painstakingly and I would welcome more titles that highlight this as an important issue of our time. I am going to have a look at Cloke's previous publications and will be purchasing what sounds intriguing to me to enjoy soon.

Many thanks to Bonnier Zaffre/Hot Key Books for an ARC. I was not required to post a review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

This is an excellent look at drinking culture, lad culture and toxic masculinity among other things.

I have to admit. I've never understood drinking culture. I've never understood these party destinations that people go away to just to spend a week getting drunk in a foreign country either. So it was interesting to read about a group having a fun time out getting drunk and partying in bars. Some of it actually sounded reasonably enjoyable, until it went dark really, really fast.

The first part of the book has a very different tone to the rest of the book. The first part is a fairly lighthearted story about young people on holiday. Obviously, I was expecting it to go bad, but I wasn't quite prepared for how dark it's got. It was like Cloke painting this happy, fun picture of a nice group of friends in the first part and then ripped it off in the second to show the darkness hiding inside the seemingly nice, normal exterior. A little bit of a shock to the system, but a very interesting way of showing how these things can hide away in dark corners until you see it. Because it resembled life. When you start to see these things, you start seeing them everywhere and you can't imagine how you were so blind before. The perfect metaphor.

So though this book definitely lulls you at the start into thinking this will be a fairly nice summer read and then tramples over your feelings and leaves you feeling horrified and slightly sick, it really is a fantastic read.