Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Особливе м'ясо by Agustina Bazterrica

776 reviews

dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This is the first extreme horror book that I have read that describes the horror and the evil acts in this book from a non sexual point of view. 

The book describes in extreme detail an absolutely dystopian nightmare of humans being raised for slaughter and eaten.

The book does an excellent job of having the main character know and understanding the horror he sees everyday, and understands its completely wrong. This character is around before the world went to shit.

The ending was not what I expected. All in all a good horror book that does a good job with wrestling with psychological trauma and. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark reflective medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I feel like I arrived late to the party with this one after going through all the trouble of getting a physical copy when it was the trending topic. A dystopian setting parallel to our own where animal meat consumption is now outlawed by governments worldwide, it is from the perspective of a meat processing plant owner grieving the death of his infant son.

While I’ve seen a lot of readers water Tender is the Flesh down as a vegan think piece, I would have to disagree with this perspective. In my opinion this novel explored the themes of human-on-human violence and what it means to be “human”. The humans that are segregated and labelled as products are never to be considered human but instead are referred to as heads. It is a common conspiracy throughout the narrative voiced by our protagonist and a number of other characters that there never was a viral disease in animals but rather that cannibalism was the answer to overpopulation. It is illegal to keep a head for any purpose other than breeding or slaughtering, and all activities regarding each and every head is to be reported to a government agency. Towards the end of the novel, Mari the secretary refers to a group of humans known as “Scavengers” as less than human for how they brutally murdered a lorry driver, disregarding the group of heads that were also ripped limb from limb that were being transported to the meat processing plant to be slaughtered. Society has normalised violence against the heads to the point where there are extremities of cruelty that are seen as symbols of wealth that weren’t present with livestock beforehand. It is as if humanity never cared about the lack of access to meat but rather the newfound freedom in punishing those they view as beneath them.

While the setting itself was absolutely horrific, as I read through the novel I found myself becoming desensitised to the absolute carnage of human-on-human violence and consumption. I had to close the book once or twice in the first half during the job interview section where our protagonist gives a walking tour of the slaughtering process. It was particularly the description of how the artificially impregnated female “heads” had their arms and legs amputated and lay on sterile tables so that they couldn’t deliberately miscarry. The disturbing imagery of the humans that were sectioned off to be reduced to cattle, while descriptive, I just couldn’t perfectly visualise it. I couldn’t put the image in my head of how humans could actually look like with brands on their shaved heads, naked in crowded pens, and hung upside down to be skinned and butchered.

Could this be because my mind can’t comprehend the concept of humans put in place of animals bred for consumption and stripped of their humanity? But this thought strays from me and becomes a question of what is considered humanity? If gathering livestock in an optimal fashion to be slaughtered for produce in the most optimal fashion is considered to be a human invention, then maybe gathering and killing each other for our food, skin, hair, and meat is the most humane we could be.


Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark sad tense fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I am having a hard time rating this book for a few reasons.

First, it is just an uncomfortable read. it deals with a very dark subject, legalized cannibalism, and it doesn't shy away from some of the logical results of such a legal policy. I completely understand that this is a way of shining light on the meat industry and how humans treat animals. It isn't trying to be subtle in that regard. It is just disturbing in that way and if you decide to read the book you need to understand this is what you are getting into.

Second, and this is what I think may be more relative to my rating, I don't think once the book sets up its premise and purpose that it goes anywhere interesting. The book basically sets up the premise, gives some detail of the main character's daily life in this world, shows the character struggling with his reality, and then ends with him ultimately not doing anything different or evolving as a human. This is what I find most egregious. the book just doesn't have anything else to say once it sets up its main ideas and the main character's growth is minimal at best. There was an opportunity for the author to really say something interesting about humanity and human nature but instead just went with "yeah, we suck."

I guess this book received most of its attention due to the shocking nature of the central idea and maybe not so much as a complete narrative. It was kept me interested but the end just didn't deliver anything of note.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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: Complicated

Please take care of your mental health and do not read this book if you cannot handle the associated trigger warnings. Every topic covered comes with warnings described in vivid, dark, and disturbing detail. This book is a dark dystopian horror story filled with unimaginable atrocities. There is no happy ending, no solace, or comfort to be found. You may lose your appetite several times while reading and could question everything you believe. I would venture to say that if someone is on the path to veganism or vegetarianism, this book might push them over the edge.

Again, the trigger warnings associated with this book are not mere suggestions; they are serious and should be treated as such. This is the first book I have read that turns trigger warnings upside down—they feel more like threats than warnings. Please read the warnings thoroughly before you begin. I’m going to need pixie dust and all the happy thoughts after reading this one. I can't use the word "happy" to describe my experience; I think the author perfectly depicts humanity's inhumane treatment of fellow human beings. The passages detailing feelings of grief were extremely accurate and on target.

The descriptions of personal relationships, work dynamics, marriage hardships, and conflicts between characters were spot on. This book is like watching a movie about something horrible that has happened in history; even if it's fictional, it leaves a lasting impact. You don’t eat the popcorn you bought or drink your cherry limeade slush—you just sit there, horrified, with your eyes glued to the screen. When the movie is over, you remain still, trying to breathe—not too fast, not too slow, not too deep, and not too shallow. When you go out into the theater lobby and see people coming out from watching the newest Minions movie, laughing and carefree, unaware of what you have just seen, you think, “Did I really just see that?” That is this book.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: N/A
Diverse cast of characters: N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

5All the stars for this book.
After all since the world began, we’ve been eating each other. If not symbolically, then we’ve been literally gorging on each other. The Transition has enabled us to be less hypocritical.”
I have never had a book make me feel the way Tender Is The Flesh did.  Disgusting, yet enthralling - simply one of the best books I have yet to read.
🥩 
This book is set in a world where animals have been widely exterminated due to a deadly zoonotic virus and a special meat has been substituted in diets internationally. Yet, it felt so real. It felt as though I was reading a first hand account of something that was terrifyingly possible. It truly does show you the true nature of human beings and how easily humans are able to separate themselves from “others”.
🥩
This book did take a while for me to properly digest and get through, without having a slight mental breakdown 😅

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

the writing was so clear and well done and impacted the story in such a good way. the quick blow of the ending left me in tears. i don’t know if the tears are empathy from the characters, horror, disgust, but oh my goodness this book is a ride. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark reflective tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix

This book is so many layers of horrifying I don't even know where to begin. It's so disgusting but written so well. I don't think I'll ever recover from reading it.

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