Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

16 reviews

carojust's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I understand why this book is so loved and lauded. It's an enormous read that encourages you to dedicate a lot of patience and heart to its slow-moving narrative. My inner voice currently has a Texas accent -- that's how much it embeds itself in your imagination.

The book follows Texas rangers Call and Augustus as they decide to make money driving cattle to Montana, across risky terrain full of bandits, wild animals, rivers and dry plains. Larry McMurtry takes great care in fleshing out the contrasting personalities of the two main characters, as well as their moments of heroism and loss. The fight scenes, especially, were so well imagined, and make your heart race. 

What held me back was how one-dimensional the secondary characters were, particularly how Native Americans and women were portrayed. Violent or starved, a whore or a mother. And I don't think this was done in any kind of pursuasive way, it was just convenient to stereotype, and serve as ornamental means to manhood.

Nevertheless, you'll enjoy this if you're in the mood for adventurous plots, a large cast of characters, and rooting for heroes. Please consider the content warnings, too.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

annatlibrarian14's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad slow-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

seanml's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

McMurtry gives such a realistic depiction of the characters in the story that they are more realized in three paragraphs than the main character of a series might be in three entire books. Even characters doesn't feel like the right term sometimes because they just feel like people. People that make bad decisions and keep making them, or contradict themselves constantly. McMurtry's writing doesn't follow arcs as much as it does the natural way of things. It only goes to serve the dreary nature of the novel, but at times it does give its little moments of cheer. 9.5/10.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child death, Fatphobia, Toxic relationship, Blood, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

m1nature's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

flaweddimension's review against another edition

The violence took a vivid, disturbing, sadistic turn, with visual images I will never get out of my brain. I didn't care to stick around to see what else happened. (I looked it up. It only gets bleaker.)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, and Violence

byrdy's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Once I got to page 400 (out of 852), it really started to pick up. Worth a read, but you are probably going to have to force yourself to read especially at the beginning.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Animal death, Rape, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

erynlasbelin's review against another edition

adventurous dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Infidelity, Mental illness, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and War

alexhaydon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Murder

kuhnja's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A western Oddysey. Very unlike any other western I’ve consumed before. 

This one took me a minute to get though at almost 900 pages and one missstart. I started this on audio and abandoned it about halfway through because I thought it warranted a little more of my attention and I was so right. I’m glad I restarted from the beginning because it made me appreciate the story so much more. This is one I felt like I would have read and written a paper on in college. I wish I could be in a class and hear the debate and analysis over this one. 

The length helped the epic timeline of the story have more impact. The multiple storylines were an annoyance at first but a delight once I settled in. I loved the interconnectivity. The ending felt a little rushed and tacked on. It was so close to being perfect.

The story was so heartbreaking and raw and real. Trajedy was matter of fact without the drama that most books add. It made the loss feel more like it does in real life. The book was so sad, so funny, so full of longing and what might have been. Hubris and comradery. 

Last year it felt good to hit my reading goal, and this was a different kind of goal, to get through such a long book, but it was such a delight.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, and Pregnancy

graff_fuller's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

As you can see...I really enjoyed this book. The number of notes, how quickly I read the story...all of it. Also, this book is very deep. 

The characters may seem/are stupid or just plain ignorant of the wider world, but they have a strength without worldly knowledge that is oddly translated into wisdom. 

This applies especially to Augustus McCrea. He was NOT perfect. He wasn't sparing with his wisdom, and more so...you couldn't shut him up...BUT he was also a good man.

SPOILERS below 👇

So, throughout the story, the main protagonist...turned out to be Captain Call. Not really, but this is how the story ends...carrying on the story...and burying his friend/enemy (in a friendly way) back to Lonesome Dove, TX...to the garden. Such a waste, in my opinion.

I'm glad that Lori ended up with Clara, July and the kids...that really was the best place...and they will NEVER lack for anything...bc of the generous gift by Augustus to Lori. 

I so wish that Captain could've done more for Newt. I stand with Clara on that decision, plus what she felt should've been done with Augustus' body. What a shame to have made a promise to a dead man...when ALL the people who loved him were in Nebraska and Montana...and NOT in Texas. Ugh.

I also wonder how the story progresses and who the story will follow? So, it will be interesting. I will not read it now, or soon, but I will continue on with this series.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism and Rape