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Reviews
His Bloody Project: Documents Relating to the Case of Roderick MacRae by Graeme Macrae Burnet
siancita's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
piamikaela's review against another edition
3.0
it was good and written very well, read like a true crime non fiction. if only it managed to capture more of my attention.
rebus's review against another edition
5.0
Easily one of the best and most class conscious novels ever written, very certainly the best in the last 30 years outside of Alan Moore's wonderful Jerusalem (sadly he's no Millennial hope and they still haven't produced even one good writer, but a member of my own Gen X, but one of the good ones born before 1973, when all Gen Xers seemed to be more like those insipid Millennials).
Roddy, of course, is portrayed as a bad seed simply for insulting the gentry and for preventing them from killing a magnificent stag during a hunt. Roddy was clearly deeply abused by his father, a religious nazi, loved animals, and was perhaps on the spectrum, as he kept to himself most of the time and engaged often in what might be termed now as stimming behaviors. He knew also that a better path was not open to him, despite the efforts of his superiors to guide him toward education, a point I could really relate to on a personal level.
The elites are almost all drunken assholes who abuse everyone around them, even forcing an incredibly violent sport (shinty) upon them during what is termed a celebration. The local minister is equally a fascist, taking delight in evicting Roddy's family from their home and livelihood, saying he should have been at church more often (the rev is described also as having an unbending will). These elites also promulgated fictions about criminality being hereditary, when it has always been a function of class oppression. Roddy truly was a resistance agent fighting back against oppression. The psychiatrist is perhaps the worst of all, dissing Roddy's attorney for being rural and less educated, arrogantly making pronouncements about how Roddy was clearly of 'low' breeding stock (when in fact Roddy could have taken him down with a single blow). He even dismisses the harassment of Lachlan Broad as 'trivial' and believes that corporal punishment could have saved the lad (when in fact he has suffered much of that abuse in childhood).
Which is why this tale is not a 'whodunnit' so much as it is asking why he did it. The trial was a mere show trial, a spectacle and theater for the masses, and despite the long deliberation it did not go well for young Roddy, a talented lad trapped in circumstances out of his control. The real hereditary criminals are the fascists who have always run society.
Roddy is clearly the hero of this tale--don't believe the idiotic reviewers here who said they feel bad for empathizing with a sociopath, as Roddy absolutely does not fit the diagnosis for sociopath, while ALL of the other characters among the elites are stone cold psychos, not to mention Lachlan and the religious types--who was further demonized by Kenny Smoke for having raped and mutilated Flora Broad post mortem, which clearly did not happen according to Roddy's account (it seems Kenny may have done this deed, but he and his wife were able to put on the airs of high society and fool the public into believing they were of that class, likely to hide Kenny's necrophilia).
A masterpiece that is more class conscious than all of the modern virtue signaling over meaningless and trivial topics combined.
Roddy, of course, is portrayed as a bad seed simply for insulting the gentry and for preventing them from killing a magnificent stag during a hunt. Roddy was clearly deeply abused by his father, a religious nazi, loved animals, and was perhaps on the spectrum, as he kept to himself most of the time and engaged often in what might be termed now as stimming behaviors. He knew also that a better path was not open to him, despite the efforts of his superiors to guide him toward education, a point I could really relate to on a personal level.
The elites are almost all drunken assholes who abuse everyone around them, even forcing an incredibly violent sport (shinty) upon them during what is termed a celebration. The local minister is equally a fascist, taking delight in evicting Roddy's family from their home and livelihood, saying he should have been at church more often (the rev is described also as having an unbending will). These elites also promulgated fictions about criminality being hereditary, when it has always been a function of class oppression. Roddy truly was a resistance agent fighting back against oppression. The psychiatrist is perhaps the worst of all, dissing Roddy's attorney for being rural and less educated, arrogantly making pronouncements about how Roddy was clearly of 'low' breeding stock (when in fact Roddy could have taken him down with a single blow). He even dismisses the harassment of Lachlan Broad as 'trivial' and believes that corporal punishment could have saved the lad (when in fact he has suffered much of that abuse in childhood).
Which is why this tale is not a 'whodunnit' so much as it is asking why he did it. The trial was a mere show trial, a spectacle and theater for the masses, and despite the long deliberation it did not go well for young Roddy, a talented lad trapped in circumstances out of his control. The real hereditary criminals are the fascists who have always run society.
Roddy is clearly the hero of this tale--don't believe the idiotic reviewers here who said they feel bad for empathizing with a sociopath, as Roddy absolutely does not fit the diagnosis for sociopath, while ALL of the other characters among the elites are stone cold psychos, not to mention Lachlan and the religious types--who was further demonized by Kenny Smoke for having raped and mutilated Flora Broad post mortem, which clearly did not happen according to Roddy's account (it seems Kenny may have done this deed, but he and his wife were able to put on the airs of high society and fool the public into believing they were of that class, likely to hide Kenny's necrophilia).
A masterpiece that is more class conscious than all of the modern virtue signaling over meaningless and trivial topics combined.
halynah's review against another edition
5.0
These five stars are definitely not for the plot, because little happens in this book. It is for gorgeous writing style, several really brilliant characters and the ability of the author to make you feel present in that time period and its atmosphere.
sophiejts's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i read “case study” by this author and really enjoyed it, so i picked this one up from my library. i enjoyed the interesting framing of the novel as a nonfiction work, and the inclusion of various voices through documents and court proceedings. although the concept may sound a bit dry, it read as a thriller to me and was definitely a page-turner!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse and Sexual assault
daylightgate's review against another edition
3.0
Worthwhile as a piece, but not something I particularly enjoyed reading. This is merely down to personal taste, however; the writing is affecting, but it is wasn't to an end that ever really piqued my interest. I would recommend giving it a try if the setting is something you have, or could take, an interest in.
nimmudher's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
charstevens's review against another edition
2.0
Kinda boring and doesn't really fulfill on the hype/reviews around it, lost potential. Felt like I was reading something for school. Sorry Graeme :(