Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

40 reviews

erinjk's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Slavery, Rape, Sexual assault, Gore, Child death, Colonisation, Violence, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Racial slurs, Racism, War, Torture, Sexual violence, Murder, Gun violence, Death, Child abuse, Blood, Animal death, and Animal cruelty

ddavare's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Torture, Violence, Body horror, Drug abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Excrement, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia

This is a purely violent book. I did not enjoy this at all. It's supposedly considered a great American novel?? I understand what the author was trying to convey (fate vs. free will, humanity's taste for violence, hipocrisy of Christianity), but this could have been done with at least 70% less violence. Whatever happened to the power of suggestion? JEEZ!!! - I mean the author suggests what happens to the protagonist (I use the word "protagonist" very lightly) at the end and leaves it up to the audience to imagine it. I would not recommend this book (as a person who is not white or a man) as it's triggering in every regard. Unless you are a lit major, writer, or enjoy reading literary challenges (the writing is interesting and challenging), I don't recommend. I think the average reader would not draw out the author's point, and would not be able to see through all this violence. This has not added any value to my knowledge and just created unnecessary stress and disappointment in Western culture (and I'm already disappointed with our political climate). This is a rant. I was set up to read this as part of a group read, and I am not happy about it and am using Storygraph as a way to vent.

billyjepma's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

A towering, alienating, raging tapestry of the violent, bloodthirsty heart of the American condition. It’s a nightmarish read, one that forces you to wrestle with its foggy, murky plotting and aimless pacing—there’s a reason it took me months to finish. But that’s part of the nightmare McCarthy is cataloging for us, and his disdain is palpable even (especially?) as he coldly pontificates on the situation of the men his story follows.  

“In the days to come the frail black rebuses of blood in those sands would crack and break and drift away so that in the circuit of few suns all trace of the destruction of these people would be erased. The desert wind would salt their ruins and there would be nothing, nor ghost nor scribe, to tell to any pilgrim in his passing how it was that people had lived in this place and in this place died.”

There are a lot of quotes that speak to the intent of this book—a book I might someday understand better—but that one might be the one I latch into. McCarthy understood violence and its roots in the masculine soul better than almost any other American writer.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Murder, Rape, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Gore, Gun violence, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racism, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Violence, Child death, and Sexual violence

Moderate: War, Alcoholism, Torture, Excrement, Kidnapping, Medical content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Confinement, Death of parent, Genocide, and Cannibalism

bheller77's review against another edition

adventurous dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Rape, Xenophobia, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Death, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, War, Excrement, Suicide, Torture, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Racism, and Stalking

Very dark. Violent. Gory.

ronophica's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Death of parent, Murder, Ableism, Animal death, Hate crime, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, Body horror, Gun violence, War, Rape, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Excrement, Cursing, Violence, and Sexual harassment

revolution666's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Murder, Blood, Gore, Racial slurs, Child death, Racism, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, and Mental illness

Moderate: Alcohol, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual violence, War, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, and Physical abuse

Minor: Rape

thebearnest's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Torture, Gore, Death, Genocide, Racism, War, Colonisation, and Murder

Moderate: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Blood

gremlintamer's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Classism, Blood, Suicide, Violence, Religious bigotry, Rape, Murder, Gun violence, Child abuse, Body horror, Sexism, Xenophobia, War, Hate crime, Fatphobia, Sexual content, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Racism, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Gore, Drug use, Cursing, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Alcoholism, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Ableism, Drug abuse, Death, Child death, and Cannibalism

This book is A LOT.

burgundy_fairy's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

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

3.0

It's masterfully written. It also bored me out of my mind. I wish I could've experienced it as it deserved but I found it difficult to pick up. Maybe someday I can read it better but for now, 3 stars is all I can give.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Violence, Animal death, Body horror, Cursing, Alcohol, Colonisation, Death, Hate crime, Racism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Slavery, War, Murder, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Blood, Child death, and Gore

I very well may have missed content warnings. I also could not discern their weight. The book is written so that everything is mentioned in passing but also in a very raw manner.

t_yler's review against another edition

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, War, Violence, Rape, and Racism